Benteke to Liverpool?
Liverpool announced their sixth signing of the summer with Nathaniel Clyne joining the club from Southampton. Liverpool have been extremely fast and judicious in this transfer window, extensively buying players for problem areas which were highlighted last season.
Clyne will slot straight into the Liverpool as their right back, a glaring issue last time around with the failings of Glen Johnson and the experiment of playing Emre Can in that position not bearing many fruits. They have also signed James Milner to provide them the anchor in midfield and to give the team a lot of experience after the departure of Steven Gerrard.
They even got in a couple of attackers in Roberto Firmino and Danny Ings and are setting their sights on another proven Premier League attacker in Christian Benteke. The Belgian forward could be the next signing for the club as they try to vie him away from Aston Villa, the striker has a release clause of £32.5 million and according to Villa he is worth every bit of that transfer fee but do Liverpool really need another attacker?
Too many options already at the club
Well, Fabio Borini and Rickie Lambert are set to depart the club as soon as a couple of decent bids come up for them, they never really got a chance to showcase their talent and unless they want to sit on the bench for another year, they would be willing to move for regular football. The issue that Liverpool have is in trying to offload Mario Balotelli.
The Italian striker doesn’t need to move to another club since he has signed a long-term contract but who would be willing to take up the striker is another factor with many clubs not willing to sign the unpredictable Italian. Liverpool also have Divock Origi coming in, another Belgian talent, who did not have the greatest of campaigns with Lille, but he could make a massive difference if he is given the right atmosphere to prosper under.
We also have Danny Ings coming into the team from Burnley, the young striker did pretty well for the club who were relegated from the Premier League and he still has a lot of time on his hands to get better at his craft. The real deal could be with Daniel Sturridge’s fitness, he probably will miss the start of the season due to surgery and if he comes back fit and firing, Liverpool may not need to even play two strikers for the goals.
Benteke had a great time for Villa because he was aided with players who would give the ball to him in the air or would cross it for him from dangerous positions, he can run with the ball, and he is a physical beast, but Villa’s play was mostly related to giving the ball to Benteke in the penalty box and he would finish unerringly. Benteke could be a great signing for Liverpool if they play with two strikers next season and if they can get rid of Mario Balotelli.
The Reds would have to adjust their playing style so that it can suit the strengths of Benteke who is pacey but loves it if he gets tasty crosses all the time. The likes of Lallana, Coutinho, Firmino and Sterling might not be the best crossers of the ball as they prefer to run with the ball or slip in a pass for the striker to take up, again something that Benteke can do. Liverpool should work with the current crop of strikers they have and help them get better, especially the likes of Origi and Ings, the club has a decent enough squad this time around and even without a fit Daniel Sturridge can pose a threat for a top four finish.
Comments are closed.