Christian Benteke

[Gym Beglin]

Benteke is a plan B for a good side or plan A for a shit one. Chelsea and City can pay £30m for their second choice striker, we can't.

 

Well, we will, but you know what I mean.

How are we intending to use Benteke? Can't think of anytime in their careers where Firmino, Coutinho etc have played off a 'big man', so why start this experiment now?

 

We know how to play with a Sturridge, so why not buy a player with almost identical qualities to Sturridge ie Berahino?

 

If we want to run this experiment with a big man then let's get Papis Cisse in for fuck all and see how that pans out in cup games. Let's not blow everything on a signing that comes with questionmarks over both his quality, and our ability to play a different way to what we have been.

 

Benteke will keep, if we don't buy him then no one else will, not at that price.

 

I think Everton paid £10m too much for Lukaku, all based on the old adage "he's unplayable on his day". That's what we're on the verge of doing with Benteke. Any player is fucking unplayable on their day, even Downing or Charlie Adam.

 

You look at the way we play, even that game today, and ask yourself what would be different with a Benteke up front. Not much. Is that a rational use of £32m?

[J-V]

Talks will take place between Liverpool and Villa over the coming days now that the Sterling saga is over, with Benteke seen as the proven Premier League goalscorer that Brendan Rodgers needs to give his team the cutting edge that was so badly missing last season.

 

We missed a Manager who had a clue more than a £32.5million lump last Season.

 

We should have saved ourselves the agony and just sacked Rodgers at the end of the Season.  It's going to happen anyway.  Why piss money away whilst watching the idiot stumble around trying to fit Benteke in the team.

[TheHowieLama]

For the record Benteke is 2.5 cm taller than Sturridge.

#Big_man-itis.

[WhiskeyJar]

Tim Sherwood expects Christian Benteke to remain with Aston Villa amid reported interested in the striker from Liverpool.

 

With Raheem Sterling’s transfer to Manchester City confirmed, Liverpool have been widely expected to try to wrap up a deal for Benteke, who is 1/4 with Sky Bet to make the move.

 

He said: “I think Liverpool – I looked the other day – have six or seven strikers at the club. Now I’m not sure how many they actually need. We know Christian is a very good player and we want to keep hold of him."

[aRdja]

How are we intending to use Benteke? Can't think of anytime in their careers where Firmino, Coutinho etc have played off a 'big man', so why start this experiment now?

 

We know how to play with a Sturridge, so why not buy a player with almost identical qualities to Sturridge ie Berahino?

 

If we want to run this experiment with a big man then let's get Papis Cisse in for fuck all and see how that pans out in cup games. Let's not blow everything on a signing that comes with questionmarks over both his quality, and our ability to play a different way to what we have been.

 

Benteke will keep, if we don't buy him then no one else will, not at that price.

 

I think Everton paid £10m too much for Lukaku, all based on the old adage "he's unplayable on his day". That's what we're on the verge of doing with Benteke. Any player is fucking unplayable on their day, even Downing or Charlie Adam.

 

You look at the way we play, even that game today, and ask yourself what would be different with a Benteke up front. Not much. Is that a rational use of £32m?

 

I think we tried it last year with Lambert, but the conclusion we drew was not that a target man doesn't work in our 'system', but we need a better one.

[Jairzinho]

How are we intending to use Benteke? Can't think of anytime in their careers where Firmino, Coutinho etc have played off a 'big man', so why start this experiment now?

 

We know how to play with a Sturridge, so why not buy a player with almost identical qualities to Sturridge ie Berahino?

 

If we want to run this experiment with a big man then let's get Papis Cisse in for fuck all and see how that pans out in cup games. Let's not blow everything on a signing that comes with questionmarks over both his quality, and our ability to play a different way to what we have been.

 

Benteke will keep, if we don't buy him then no one else will, not at that price.

 

I think Everton paid £10m too much for Lukaku, all based on the old adage "he's unplayable on his day". That's what we're on the verge of doing with Benteke. Any player is fucking unplayable on their day, even Downing or Charlie Adam.

 

You look at the way we play, even that game today, and ask yourself what would be different with a Benteke up front. Not much. Is that a rational use of £32m?

 

It makes no fucking sense. We've got two top class number 10s and another that's pretty good as well. So we're going to buy someone that thrives when a team plays direct football.

 

I honestly think we'll get more out of Ings than Benteke.

[Mil-ing Around]

It makes no fucking sense. We've got two top class number 10s and another that's pretty good as well. So we're going to buy someone that thrives when a team plays direct football.

 

I honestly think we'll get more out of Ings than Benteke.

 

I think Ings will surprise many people, he is a good player. 

 

Don't we already have a big (ish) target man in Origi? He is tall, strong and mobile...maybe we don't need Benteke after all. I do slightly understand the logic though, why sign another Sturridge type forward if some teams will sit deep and defend the box? We've all seen it happen many times over.

 

That cunt Mourinho did it to us and when we went for the league.

 

Do you think we have enough pace in Sturridge, Ings, Origi, Firmino, Ibe, Markovic? I guess Brendan does and that's why he wants something different.

[smilezzz]

But if you had to choose one, would it be Suarez or Mascherano?

Suarez, no doubt.

 

A proven, reliable, world class striker scores the goals needed to win games. Sure, our defence was porous, but we scored more than the opposition. That should be priority 1. A player of that ilk also raises everyone else's game around them, see Sterling that season. A striker like that would take a lot of burden off our youngsters who could potentially thrive in such a side.

[Ne Moe Imya]

I agree. If we don't bring in any more players we should finish 6th but if we buy Benteke we will possibly still get 6th or maybe even 5th. Either way it doesn't justify spending 32 million on Benteke to stand still. We would be better of saving the money till next summer add and 20-30 million to it and bring in a truly top class proven striker who will get us 4th at least.

 

I agree that without Benteke (that is to say, if we entered next season with Sturridge, Origi, Ings and Balotelli as our top 4 strikers) we're about the 6th best team in the league, and that adding him only moves us up to the 5th best, at most.

 

The problem I see, as you do is that there simply is not a striker out there available to us that guarantees us "4th at least," as you put it.  We're not finishing above City or Chelsea next season unless we buy Suarez back off Barca, so that's 3rd at the absolute best.  The Mancs have spent a boatload of money so far and are about to spend another boatload, so I don't realistically see us catching them either unless they implode in spectacular fashion.

 

That leaves Arsenal, who are opening the chequebook more and more these days, and with Cech they have improved one of their major weaknesses.  I just don't see a striker out there who guarantees us beating them.  Benzema, maybe?  At least you'd think that would give us a decent chance at pipping Arsenal to fourth, but it's completely unrealistic.  Icardi could have, but I think the amount we'd have to throw at Inter rules that out as well.

 

I'm honestly struggling to think of a striker we could get who's good enough to really guarantee that kind of result.  The best we could probably find is someone who would give us a 50-50 shot at beating Arsenal to fourth, and even then we'd have to spend a fortune just to get that.  Lacazette, for example, highly touted around here, is a very good player but his conversion rate from last season is completely unsustainable (better than Messi) in a small sample size so it's far from a guarantee that he'd get us 75 points.  

 

I'd be perfectly fine with us putting more money towards the midfield and defence, since the top of the line strikers are so hard to find, and maybe getting a mid-range striker who can back up Sturridge capably (if not brilliantly) for 15m.  I don't hate the idea of Mario Gomez, for example, if it meant we went after another top midfielder like Carvalho or Kovacic and boxed that whole part of the pitch off for the next 3-4 years.  Then hopefully in January or next summer, even if we finish 5th, we can find the next Torres/Suarez out there somewhere and re-enter the race for the title then.

[xerxes]

I agree that without Benteke (that is to say, if we entered next season with Sturridge, Origi, Ings and Balotelli as our top 4 strikers) we're about the 6th best team in the league, and that adding him only moves us up to the 5th best, at most...

A good post in full.

 

Benteke is a good player who will score goals, the latter is not something that the current side can ignore.

 

This side has to be improved incrementally. The chances of us signing any player, or players, who will seal a top four finish are slim. Those players are going to the established top four sides.

 

What Brendan has to do is create a side whose total is greater than its individual parts, as Whiskeynose did with his final title winning team.

 

My concern is that rookie Brendan has never assembled a team himself in his managerial career. Let's hope he gets it right first time.

[skend04]

 

My concern is that rookie Brendan has never assembled a team himself in his managerial career. Let's hope he gets it right first time.

He's had 3 summers and this is his 4th. He's had 4 attempts at building a team, not 1.

[Cardie]

He's had 3 summers and this is his 4th. He's had 4 attempts at building a team, not 1.

Definetly how it works.

 

 

[ZonkoVille77]

If Benteke is not a wonderful technician, then I'm out.

[an tha]

For the record Benteke is 2.5 cm taller than Sturridge.

#Big_man-itis.

Now way is Sturridge 6'2. His height on wiki etc is wrong he is barely 6 foot

[ZonkoVille77]

He'll be a flop if we buy him, won't he?

[an tha]

He'll be a flop if we buy him, won't he?

He will bomb here, he will score 20 league goals at Man Utd

[El Rojo]

Brenteke.

[VladimirIlyich]

He'll be a flop if we buy him, won't he?

What makes you think this?....apart from Carroll,Lambert,Balotelli,etc,etc

[Tony Moanero]

Really, really hope he is a failure.

[Pureblood]

Really, really hope he is a failure.

Same here.

 

We should only ever sign small South Americans because there's only one way to skin a cat - FACT.

[redninja]

The way I see.. with the teams above us strengthening we need to be seen to make a statement of intent.

 

Throw the money at a top class striker... This chap from Lyon..

 

Money Talks at the end of the day...

 

Benteke just feels too much like a meh signing... Hell I would even take Berahinio over him .. But that again arguably fails to make that statement of intent..

[Paco]

If and when we sign Benteke. If and when Sturridge returns from injury, will this be rodgers starting 11?

 

----------------------------Mignolet--------------------------------

Clyne-----------Skrtel-----------Sakho-------------Moreno

 

Firmino-------Milner----------Henderson----Coutinho

 

-------------------Benteke-------Sturridge----------------------

 

Subs from:

Flanagan

lovren

Toure

lucas

allen

can

lallana

markovic

origi

ings

[Hades]

Really, really hope he is a failure.

 

Happy-clapping cunt. I want him dead.

[Dr Nowt]

Berahino's move to another agent did seem portentous, really.

[Dr Nowt]

It didn't of course, just sounded a bit more Twatty Henry Winter than saying he's hitching his skirt at us or whatever.