Is Liverpool’s Christian Benteke the striker Alan Pardew needs at Crystal Palace?

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Having not had a fantastic season at Anfield, it is looking like Christian Benteke is going to be on his way this summer. He found the net on 10 occasions in 42 appearances and despite this not being his best output since he originally arrived in the Premier League – he still finds himself with a number of potential suitors.

It is unsurprising that the towering Belgian could be looking to leave Anfield as he has struggled to hold down a regular spot since the arrival of Jurgen Klopp. This is at least in part due to Benteke’s lack of overall mobility when compared to the likes of Sturridge and Origi. Klopp prefers to have mobile strikers who can press high up the pitch and Benteke was clearly never going to make the cut in this system.

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However, he is obviously still a huge goal threat when employed in the right system. This is why Benteke could prove to be an excellent signing should Crystal Palace cough up the money for him. The Eagles have some fantastic talent in wide areas but have struggled for goals recently having found the net just 39 times last season – which was the tied third least in the league.

While Palace do have some decent attacking players in their squad, it is clear that a player like Christian Benteke would a massive addition for them. Palace did not perform too well in the Premier League, but did get into the FA Cup final and took Manchester united all the way. If they were to land a player who could be relied to score goals then they would without doubt be launched up the table and not be flirting with relegation as they were last season.

The former Aston Villa man could fit very neatly into the setup at Selhurst Park. Palace have tried and not had great levels of success with a big target man up top but none have had the goal-scoring prowess of the current Liverpool forward. He has shown during his time at Aston Villa that when he is employed in a system that suits him, he can be an absolute nightmare to defend against. His size and combative nature make him a matchup that strikes fear into opposition centre backs; when this is matched with his ability to score goals from inside and outside the box – he is always going to be a real handful for any defender.  He is undoubtedly one of the best at playing his role, which was shown by Villa attempting to replace the talismanic forward with Rudy Gestede – which while the former Blackburn man did show some positivity; he was ultimately unable to replicate the performances of Benteke.

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If Liverpool had fully committed to building an attacking system around Benteke then there is little doubt that he would have enjoyed his first season at Anfield far more. This is probably one of the main reasons why he has so many clubs interested in obtaining his services this summer. Palace are looking to finally land that player who they can rely on to bring a steady flow of goals all season long and Christian Benteke could well be that man.

It remains to be seen as to whether Crystal Palace will decide to bite the bullet and cough up the money required to get Benteke on their books. The price itself is likely to be pretty substantial as Liverpool spent £32.5m on the Belgian international just last summer and will definitely be looking for some form of reimbursement on that fee. However, with the likes of Saido Berahino attracting attention from clubs and players starting to return to training up and down the country – the sooner Alan Pardew gets his business done the better. Benteke would no doubt bring great quality to Selhurst Park and with good players around him and a point to prove to his critics – he could end up being worth every penny that Crystal Palace spend on him.

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