The Daily Mail believes that Arsenal have shortlisted Aston Villa’s Christian Benteke as a striking alternative, in case their proposed move for Porto’s Jackson Martinez falls through.
However, The Gunners will face competition from Liverpool and their North London rivals Tottenham Hotspur, who are also reportedly monitoring the situation.
Benteke, 24, notched an impressive 15 goals and is understood to be unsettled and angling for a move, a year after he withdrew his transfer request and signed a new contract with Aston Villa. And Arsene Wenger is certainly a fan of the Belgium hitman.
“He’s an intelligent player as well and he can score goals with his feet. He’s fantastic in the air and can score headers against any team in the league.”
However, Benteke’s buyout clause is believed to be around the £32 million mark, a fee Wenger would be reluctant to match.
Instead, the Arsenal manager has Martinez higher up on his radar, as he is hopeful to negotiate a price with Porto. Nuno Pinto de Costa, the president of the club, is uncertain they will be able to keep hold of the 28 year old Colombian.
“He’s a player we want to keep, but we cannot stop someone paying the clause. Jackson went on vacation and so when he returns we will try to renew his deal just like last year.”
Signing either one of Benteke or Martinez would be a huge step in the right direction as Wenger looks to provide support for Olivier Giroud and Danny Welbeck and win his first Premier League trophy since 2004.
