Liverpool Transfer News: Christian Benteke Eyed by Crystal Palace, Fresh Rumours

Liverpool will reportedly demand a fee of £30 million if they are to sell much-maligned forward Christian Benteke, with Crystal Palace said to be keen on landing the player.

That’s according to Paul Joyce of the Daily Express, who added that manager Jurgen Klopp will allow the striker to move on this summer should such a demand be met. Although Benteke struggled in his first season at Anfield following a £32.5 million move from Aston Villa “due to the current state of the transfer market, and prices elsewhere, [Liverpool] will hold out to recoup almost all of that fee.”

Benteke’s attributes seemed to jar with the principles of Klopp, who took over from the man who signed the Belgium international, former manager Brendan Rodgers, in October 2015.

GLYN KIRK/Getty Images

With Sadio Mane through the door already this summer, Danny Ings returning from injury, Daniel Sturridge regaining his fitness and Divock Origi impressing late in the previous campaign, opportunities will likely be slim for Benteke should he stay at Anfield. Nevertheless, Keith Costigan of Fox Sports thinks he would thrive elsewhere:

Klopp’s ethos is about intensity. The manner in which his teams attack with the ball and press opponents without it always has to be dynamic. And at the point of the attack, the German coach has always sought someone selfless in their work rate and sharp across the ground to set the tone for the rest of the team.

Benteke can’t do that job. The former Aston Villa man is more of a static forward, excelling in physical battles, holding the ball up and winning headers; he’s not a mobile presence, and as such, it’s little surprise he quickly fell down the pecking order on Merseyside.

These numbers from WhoScored.com show how effective he can be, given the right type of supply line:

Palace would be more inclined to giving him that than Liverpool. Manager Alan Pardew typically fields two wingers in Yannick Bolasie and Wilfried Zaha, both of whom love to take on full-backs and put crosses into dangerous areas. That’s Benteke’s bread and butter, and after bidding £31.5 million to land Michy Batshuayi recently, per Dev Trehan of Sky Sports, the Eagles have the cash to prise him away from Anfield.

Martin Skrtel on His Way Out

Michael Regan/Getty Images

According to Joyce, Liverpool are poised to move on long-serving defender Martin Skrtel, too, with Fenerbahce said to be close to agreeing a £5 million deal.

The authoritative centre-back has been with the Reds for eight years and has turned in some excellent performances for the club. But after failing to secure a spot in the first team under the guidance of Klopp, his time on Merseyside looks to be coming to an end.

It’s potentially a bitter end, too. As reported by Kristian Walsh of the Liverpool Echo, the 31-year-old apologised after endorsing a post from one of his friends on Instagram that stated Klopp was a “d--khead." Here is a look at the apology, Skrtel saying his views were misrepresented:

In terms of his efforts on the field, it does seem as though the two parties need to go their separate ways. The Slovakian only featured sparingly under Klopp, and he looked rusty and error-prone whenever he donned the all-red kit.

As noted by Rory Smith of the Times, there are some worrying trends in his game that have not been addressed:

Klopp will be able to call upon Joel Matip next term, while Dejan Lovren also showed signs of improvement toward the back end of the campaign. Yet with Mamadou Sakho’s situation still unclear following his suspension for taking a banned substance, the manager may still have to delve into the transfer market to find a replacement for Skrtel.