Do we really need a Benteke return?

News has surfaced today that Crystal Palace are looking to offload £120,000 a week forward Christian Benteke at the end of the season, as the striker hasn’t really hit the heights that he did whilst playing at Villa Park.

Twitter has of course jumped on the fact that this is in the news, with many Villa fans saying that the player should “come home” and return to Villa should they find themselves in the Premier League next season.

But, do we really need the return of a striker who has looked a shadow of the player who left in 2015?

It seems that Benteke’s £32.5m transfer to Liverpool had an effect on the player, with high expectations proving too much for the Belgian, and just a season later he left for London, joining Crystal Palace.

Since being at Palace, Christian has played under four different managers in the form of Alan Pardew, Sam Allardyce, Frank de Boer and former England manager Roy Hodgson – and has only managed to rack up 17 goals in 63 appearances.

His time in London hasn’t come without issues either, with his form and lack of prowess in front of goal causing issues for both fans and managers, with Hodgson publicly criticising the Belgian.

Benteke isn’t likely to take much of a pay cut when leaving Palace either. If Villa were to sign Benteke, they’d be dishing out a large amount of money in wages on the premise that he’ll perform the way he did a few years back.

As well as this, it’s a return to the Villa that many fans are glad to see the back of. Whilst a number of players are still appreciated for their time at Villa Park, the reign of Lerner leaves a sour taste in the mouth of Villans.

Xia’s reign has only just begun, and to bring Benteke back would mean considering wasting a colossal amount of money and a return to something that the likes of Tony Xia and Keith Wyness are trying to get away from.

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Words by Regan Foy (@FindFoy) // Follow us on Twitter @claretandview