Christian Bentekea s impending big money move from Aston Villa to Liverpool has caught the attention of football aficionados all across the Globe. Liverpool FC Chief Executive Ian Ayre confirmed that the Merseyside club triggered Bentekea s 32.5 million pounds release clause, just days after Raheem Sterling made his switch to Manchester City.
A move to a club of the stature of Liverpool FC took a long time coming for Christian Benteke. The 24 year old Belgian powerhouse has been quietly waiting in the wings for a long time to make his jump to a a biga club.
Aston Villa, who have been battling relegation on an yearly basis over the last 3 seasons, owe their survival in the English Top flight to the goal scoring exploits of Benteke. Despite missing the start of the 2014-15 Season due to a knee ligament injury, Benteke went on a rampage towards the end of the year, plundering 11 goals in 9 matches as he virtually single handedly kept Aston Villa in the Premier League.
Despite scoring a remarkable 42 goals in 88 appearances for the misfiring Villans since joining them in 2012, Benteke has long been living in the shadows of his more illustrious Belgian strike partner Romelu Lukaku, who caught the eye of many while playing for both Chelsea and Everton in the last few seasons. It is notable to mention here that Benteke has a higher goal scoring strike rate than Lukaku while playing for both club and country. The Aston Villa man outscored his Belgian compatriot by 3 goals last season despite playing 7 games less than him.
(Source: www.squawka.com)
On his day, Christian Benteke can be unplayable. Just ask his soon to be employers Liverpool. He has scored an impressive 5 goals in 6 matches against the Reds, including a majestic brace in a 3-1 Villa win at Anfield in 2012. Liverpool will be certainly hoping that Benteke displays the same scintillating form for them in the future as he did against them in the past.
The Big Belgian possesses all the attributes of a World Class No. 9. His aerial prowess is exemplary. He has scored more headed goals in the Premier League in the last 3 seasons than any other player.
Christian Benteke has scored more headed goals over the past 3 Premier League seasons (13) than any other player. pic.twitter.com/po8URFpmkM
a Squawka Football (@Squawka) July 16, 2015
Bentekea s strengths arena t just limited to his aerial ability. a He can link play, he can score from distance, he can come short or he can run in behind. He’s shown some of his best form when Villa have been counterattacking and contrary to some misconceptions, he is not someone who likes to just stand up there and have high balls launched at him. He’s a well-rounded, powerhouse of a player who on his day can be completely unplayablea , wrote Dave Usher, founder of the LFC fanzine The Liverpool Way for ESPNFC.
But perhaps what makes Christian Benteke truly World Class is his ability to score goals against the big sides. Over the past 3 seasons, Benteke has consistently found the net against the likes of Chelsea, Manchester United, Manchester City, Arsenal and Liverpool. Quite remarkably, he has been doing so on the back of assistance from a below par Aston Villa midfield consisting of Delph, Westwood, Sanchez and Grealish. One shudders at the thought of Benteke plying his trade ahead of a midfield consisting of Coutinho, Firmino, Henderson and Lallana.
Many believe Benteke is not worth the 32 million pounds that Liverpool paid Aston Villa for his services. Many believe that he is not the a typea of striker Liverpool need at the moment. The time has come for Benteke to prove his doubters wrong, once and for all. But keeping in mind what hea s already achieved during his short stay in England, Christian Bentekea s move to Liverpool FC is nothing more than what he truly deserves.