It appears Liverpool will complete the signing of Aston Villa striker Christian Benteke quite soon. When exactly depends on which source you believe. Tony Evans, The Times’ Football Editor, says Liverpool will cross the Ts and dot the Is ‘by the end of next week’.
“I am almost certain that this is going to happen. Brendan Rodgers really wants the player and the club are going to back him. The medical will be early next week. (transcript TalkSPORT)
The Daily Star went so far as to say that he’ll have his Anfield medical on Monday, while the Daily Mirror’s narrative claims that “Liverpool’s move for Christian Benteke has been forced because boss Brendan Rodgers cannot rely on the fitness of star striker Daniel Sturridge.”
Liverpool are having an exciting and compelling summer transfer window having already closed deals on six players; including Southampton right-back Nathaniel Clyne and Hoffenheim attacking midfielder/striker Roberto Firmino.
In order to acquire Christian Benteke, Liverpool will have to meet the £32.5 million release clause in his contract. That seems like a lot of money, especially for a player like Benteke, but remember that the Reds now have a cash influx of £49 million to spend after the sale of Raheem Sterling to Manchester City.
And they’ll need scoring punch; especially with the previously mentioned issues of Sturridge’s fitness and Sterling’s absence. Unfortunately, Rodgers keeps whiffing on his attempts to bring in scoring. Mario Balotelli, Fabio Borini and Rickie Lambert are just a few names on the list of forward flops. We’ll see if Benteke is the answer; if he is, it might be enough to save Rodgers’ job. If he flops, it might be the final tipping point that leads to Rodgers’ sacking.
Paul M. Banks owns, operates and writes The Sports Bank.net, which is partnered with Fox Sports Digital. Banks, a former writer for the Washington Times, currently contributes to the Chicago Tribune RedEye edition. He also appears regularly on numerous sports talk radio stations all across the country.
Follow him on Twitter and Instagram