According to the Telegraph, Crystal Palace are growing increasingly hopeful of striking a deal with Liverpool to sign Christian Benteke.
It’s hardly news that the former Aston Villa man is unwanted at Liverpool with there being little or no room in the forwards pecking order for a target man given the way Jürgen Klopp prefers to play.
Palace had a £25 million bid rejected in the early days of July for the Belgian. A deal could go through as Liverpool are keen to recoup as much of the £32.5 million they paid to acquire the services of a forward who doesn’t suit the team.
“Palace are now growing increasingly hopeful they can reach an agreement over Benteke this week and the Belgium international is preparing himself for a move to Selhurst Park,” writes Matt Law of the Telegraph. The news correspondent mentions that the sale of Benteke could signal the departure of Yannick Bolasie for Merseyside. Don’t worry, he’s not signing for Liverpool just that prison across the park.
Palace are believed to be willing to match Benteke’s exorbitant £120,000-a-week wages with the stumbling block the agreement of a fee. The Belgian international scored 9 goals in 14 Premier League starts but failed to comply with Klopp’s high intensity style of play.
Some of the goals Benteke scored, such as his volley against Swindon Town and his overhead kick against Manchester United, indicate the quality that he possesses but he requires a different type of service than that which he receives from Liverpool.
He seems like a nice guy and I am sure he would do as well as he did at Villa with Palace.