Aston Villa have highlight Charlie Austin as a potential replacement for outgoing Christian Benteke.
The Belgium international is on the brink of joining Liverpool after they activated his release clause, which stands at a staggering £32.4million.
With the fee agreed, Benteke is set to undergo a medical in Merseyside over the next couple of days, and with the powerhouse all-but out of the door, following Fabian Delph, focus now turns to signings at Villa Park.
According to reports, Tim Sherwood will be allowed to reinvest the Benteke money into the squad, and will start by signing a suitable replacement for the outgoing striker.
It’s believed Villa want to try and sign Queens Park Rangers‘ Austin in order to replace Benteke after the England international had a superb debut Premier League season last year.
Austin netted 18 goals for QPR but it wasn’t enough to keep them in the top-flight as they were relegated once again to the Championship.
After suffering relegation, it was made clear that Austin would be in line for a quick return to top-flight football, with several teams interested, but it looks like Villa could make a formal move.
Leicester City have already had a £12m bid turned down by The Rs, who want at least £15m, and it’s thought that Newcastle United, West Ham United, Southampton and Chelsea could all be plotting bids too.
Written by Alex Batt – @AlexBatt