Christian Benteke is reportedly being allowed to leave Crystal Palace just months after joining in a club-record deal.
A report in the Daily Mirror has suggested that Sam Allardyce is willing to allow Christian Benteke to leave Crystal Palace during the January transfer window as he attempts to boost the club’s survival hopes in the Premier League.
The Mirror reports that the Eagles’ record signing may be sold on to raise funds that will allow Allardyce to strengthen his squad as the second half of the campaign really gets going.
Crystal Palace manager Sam Allardyce
However, it appears that the new Crystal Palace boss is unsure about his plans. The Mirror adds that Allardyce is reluctant to let the Belgian go and that Palace want to recoup all of the £30 million that they paid Liverpool to bring him to Selhurst Park in the summer.
Crystal Palace’s Christian Benteke
It would undoubtedly be a gamble for Palace to let Benteke leave the club, especially given the start he has made since joining. He has scored eight times in 18 games, and while that strike-rate may not be quite good enough to fully justify the fee, it must be remembered that their other strikers have scored just three times between them this season, and that they will do well to land another goalscorer for considerably less money.
Spending less on a striker would suggest that they are taking more of a risk on a less proven marksman, or someone who should have fewer years left at the highest level – the Mirror reports that 34-year-old Jermain Defoe had been on Crystal Palace’s radar – than Benteke, and that gamble may perhaps prove costly as they still sit in a precarious position in the top flight.
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