Liverpool Transfer News: Christian Benteke Set to Force Move, Latest Rumours
Christian Benteke "has no desire" to remain with Aston Villa and will tell manager Tim Sherwood he wants to exit when the club's pre-season training begins on Wednesday.
However, Stuart James of the Guardian believes Villa have "no intention of budging" on his £32.5 million release clause, a price Liverpool aren't willing to pay.
Sherwood hopes Benteke will undertake the challenge of leading last season's relegation candidates to a strong Premier League season with the prospect of gaining a Euro 2016 starting place for Belgium, but the striker is "hell-bent on securing a move to a club competing at the other end of the table," per James.
"We want Christian here," said Sherwood, reported by David Armitage of the Daily Star. "We want to keep our best players and Christian is certainly one of those."
Liverpool boss Brendan Rodgers has recruited James Milner, Danny Ings, Adam Bogdan, Joe Gomez, Roberto Firmino and Nathaniel Clyne this summer. A £50 million bid is incoming from Manchester City for Raheem Sterling, according to the Telegraph (h/t Chris Beesley of the Liverpool Echo). Therefore, attacking reinforcements are likely to be needed.
Ings will provide pace and a willingness to break beyond defenders. Benteke's power and ability to hold up the ball could be key if Rodgers plans to play one up front with two overlapping wingers. Perhaps, frustratingly, he's exactly the type of individual who could help get the best out of Sterling.
Italian publication Corriere dello Sport (h/t Beesley) reports a chunk of the money received from the potential Sterling transaction could be used on City striker Stevan Jovetic. A £16 million price is outlined in what would be a strong showing of faith toward a player who hasn't fully hit his stride in England.
The Montenegrin netted five goals and produced three assists in just 787 minutes of Premier League football during 2014-15, as recorded by WhoScored.com. He averaged a telling contribution every 98 minutes so could excel with a consistent role in the division. The 25-year-old is well built, clever on the ball and also likes to bring others into play.
B/R UK's Andy Brassell recently discussed exactly who else Liverpool could sign:
It's important Rodgers finds a variation of strikers to feed off what could be one of the most creative midfield setups in England.
With Firmino joining Philippe Coutinho and Adam Lallana behind a lone striker, Liverpool will retain possession and look to carve open opportunities with clever passing. Pace will be crucial to splitting the opposition's defence, but possessing a powerful finisher inside the box could make all the difference.
Benteke is expensive at £32.5 million. We have to look at his entire 14-15 season, not just his run of goals at the end. Let's not forget he netted just three in all competitions before the end of February. Granted, 12 in 11 matches after this point signalled a return to form, but Benteke rarely bags consistent goals throughout an entire campaign.
It would be interesting to witness him at a top-tier side, though. Villa are in a strong position of knowing they can either sell him for huge cash—the kind which could build Sherwood a new team—or maintain their most lethal goalscorer.
Rodgers has worked quickly in the transfer market so far, but it may be best to search for better value elsewhere. Jovetic at less than half the price would be a snip.
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