All of last season it was quite clear that after such an impressive debut campaign, Christian Benteke isn’t going to be easy to keep for Aston Villa, and him handing in his transfer request, while Chelsea move in closer to try and sign the player pretty much confirms year-long rumors to be true.
Chelsea haven’t been successful in finding the complete striker Jose Mourinho is looking for. Edinson Cavani is going to PSG, Radamel Falcao is joining Monaco, Robert Lewandowski isn’t going anywhere while even different type of players, Stevan Jovetic and Stephan El-Shaarawy haven’t been easy to bring over.
So despite wanting to spend as much money as possible on more accomplished players, Mourinho turned his head towards Aston Villa and Benteke, who scored a very impressive 19 league goals last season from Villa, the main reason they survived yet another relegation battle.
Benteke himself hinted that his future isn’t at Villa Park all through last season, but offers weren’t coming in early this summer which made the club think there’s a chance of dodging the bullet on this one and keeping the Belgian striker (14 caps, 6 goals) for yet another season.
However, things haven’t turned out that way. Benteke handed in a transfer request, and according to the Telegraph, it’s only a matter of time before he leaves the club. He has said in the past that he doesn’t mind stirring up causing trouble with his current club, as his main goal is making the most he can from his career, and remaining with Aston Villa while there are bigger and better clubs out there trying to sign him would be a waste.
Benteke is signed until 2016, which means Villa don’t have to compromise on the price, which should be around £25 million considering he is still a few months away from his 23rd birthday and his proven scoring ability in the Premier League, even though it has been just one season. With some clubs, and especially Chelsea, realizing they’re running out of options for quality strikers, chances are Aston Villa are going to make a lot of money of this sale, even if they prefer keeping the player.