Benteke Alerts North London & Merseyside After Handing In Transfer Request

With the summer transfer window now open, there is plenty of gossip doing the rounds in the newspapers so we’ll keep you up-to-date with the latest transfer rumours. Today, Christian Benteke hands in a transfer request.

Arsenal, Tottenham and Liverpool have been placed on red alert after Christian Benteke handed in a transfer request but Aston Villa will demand up to £25m for the striker, according to the Daily Mail.

The Belgian international enjoyed a stunning debut season in England after making a £7m move from Genk last summer, scoring 19 Premier League goals to almost single-handedly keep Villa in the top flight last season.

Understandably, his form lead to interest from the upper echelons of the division with the Mail claiming that Arsenal, Liverpool and Tottenham have all shown an interest in signing the 22-year-old this summer.

The trio have now been boosted with the news that after weeks of stalling over a new contract Benteke has handed in a transfer request and made it clear he wants to leave Villa Park. However, the Villains have warned they wont be forced into selling their star man on the cheap and he’ll only be sold if a club meets their valuation and the bid comes in before the start of the new campaign.

A club statement last night said:

‘For clarity’s sake we should make it clear that Christian had already been given extra time off until July 18 and was reminded that there are three years remaining on his contract.

‘We consider him to be a Villa player and expect that he will be with us for the 2013-14 season.

‘Having received his transfer request, we have also informed him that should we receive an offer within an appropriate time frame during pre-season which meets our valuation we would act upon it. But he will remain a Villa player should this not happen.’ an Aston Villa statement read according to the Mail

Manager Paul Lambert also had his say on the news and while the Scot is disappointed at Benteke’s actions, he maintains he still wants the striker to be part of his plans for the upcoming season:

‘While we’re hugely disappointed that Christian has put in a transfer request, it’s important that people appreciate we are trying to build something strong and vibrant here at the club, something this club demands and stands for, and we want Christian to be part of that.’ Lambert said according to the Mail

Benteke has been given extra time off and has not travelled with the rest of the Villa squad to their pre-season training camp in Germany. The giant Belgian would be an excellent addition for Arsenal, Liverpool or Spurs but I’d suggest the trio will hope to bring Villa down on their reported £25m asking price – especially given the fact the striker has handed in a transfer request.

Read more Arsenal transfer news | Liverpool transfer news | Spurs transfer news

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