Manchester United Transfer News: Christian Benteke Deal Set to Stun Liverpool

Manchester United are poised to beat Liverpool to the signing of Aston Villa striker Christian Benteke, according to Graeme Bryce of the Sun (h/t ESPN FC).

United boss Louis van Gaal is "ready" to trigger the Belgian's £32.5 million buyout clause and will use the player as a "back-up" to leading front man Wayne Rooney, per the report.

Links between Liverpool and Benteke have been prevalent for weeks despite Brendan Rodgers' side snapping up Danny Ings from Burnley earlier in the transfer window.

Divock Origi—who signed for the club last summer but spent the 2014-15 season on loan at Lille—has also joined the squad, so the Anfield club has added decent firepower to compensate for the departure of Raheem Sterling.

Neil Henderson of the BBC tweeted the Sun's headline:

MailSport also provided another snippet of information that could suggest Benteke is willing to accept a move to Old Trafford:

Both United and Liverpool continue to be linked with similar players. The latter signed Nathaniel Clyne and Roberto Firmino despite speculation suggesting both could move to Old Trafford.

However, it is United who have the greatest need for a big-time striker after the departures of Robin van Persie and Radamel Falcao.

Bogdan Maran/Associated Press

Benteke is proven in the Premier League and could excel at an elite club. He has averaged 14 goals a season across three years in the England, scoring 19, 10 and 13 during his first, second and third seasons in the Midlands respectively, per WhoScored.com. Rooney has averaged around the same amount over the last three campaigns at 13.66 (12, 17 and 12).

Villa boss Tim Sherwood knows the importance of this consistency and would rather keep Benteke than have the money to spend. He also understands the player will leave if his buyout clause is met, reported by ESPN FC:

"

We know Christian is a very good player and we want to keep hold of him. If someone matches that buyout clause, there's nothing we can do about it. But until that happens he's an Aston Villa player and we're all very pleased about that.

I think Christian is worth more than £32 million. But we don't want to sell him. We don't want the £32 million. It's very hard to spend that sort of money. When you're losing a player and trying to bring in someone to subsidise it, it's almost impossible.

"

Rui Vieira/Associated Press

Benteke would be a smart fit with United, considering Van Gaal's other signings. Memphis Depay will be able to provide him with quality service from the byline, and if Angel Di Maria remains at the club, United will have two speedsters with the ability to burst beyond the striker.

Villa use Benteke both to hold the ball up and to batter through defences when counter-attacks are launched. Too often last year, RvP and Falcao failed to get into the box at the right moment, leaving United's attacks blunt and wasteful. Benteke would bring a unique option to the club.

B/R UK's Sam Tighe believes the Red Devils should opt for another man instead:

Van Gaal cannot afford to take risks heading into the new season. United's squad must be packed with experienced and emerging quality, those who have either proven capable of or are hungry to make a splash.

Benteke hasn't failed to hit double figures during a season in England yet, but he needs to continue working hard to make sure he's on the Belgium plane for Euro 2016.

At £32.5 million, he'd be an expensive capture, but as we're seeing with many transfers, this summer's business is forcing clubs to go above and beyond to get whom they want.