Louis Van Gaal and Ed Woodward seem to be plotting another big transfer, after the signing of Schweinsteiger and Schneiderlin; the club are looking to sign Aston Villa target man Christian Benteke. The 24-year-old striker was the reason why Villa survived the league last season and also made it to the final of the FA Cup.
Benteke has one of the best scoring records in the Premier League, despite a nasty injury which took him out of the World Cup in 2014. He returned to Villa during the second half of last season and started banging the goals in for fun. Manchester United would have to pay Villa around £32.5 million as that is his release clause, although it now looks like rivals Liverpool are in pole position to sign the Belgian International.
United have lost a couple of strikers in Radamel Falcao and Robin Van Persie, while Javier Hernandez is injured for the start of the season. United do need to sign a striker and fast. Getting Benteke in would be great for them as he is acclimatized to the Premier League and would fit into the team since he barely has competition for position at the club.
A big Belgian up front
Benteke will play as the lead striker for Manchester United, he seems to be built for nodding in those headers and having Memphis Depay and Angel Di Maria on either side of the attack would certainly help the big striker. Benteke also is decent with the ball at his feet and being played in would help him score as well.
We all saw how United were dependent on the long ball being hoofed to Fellaini and that would probably be what Benteke would thrive on at Manchester United. It isn’t to say that Manchester United cannot be a smooth passing game but this is based on what we all saw from the record Premier League champions last season.
The big question would be around Wayne Rooney’s role in the team, he should still continue as an attacker for the club but with Benteke playing as the focal point of the attack, the English forward would have to play behind the big man. That shouldn’t be a problem for a player like Rooney; he did play a deeper role last season and can be a threat from almost any position in the attacking half.
Benteke might seem a bit costly for any team but he does have the pedigree to do well, especially if a team is being built to his strengths. The Belgian is no slouch with the ball either and would give Manchester United a lot of dimension in attack. This could be one of the smartest moves of the season.