What's the story?
As per The Guardian, Chelsea manager Antonio Conte has set his eyes on former Liverpool and Aston Villa striker, Christian Benteke as the replacement for Diego Costa. Conte revealed yesterday that Diego Costa is fit and the issues between the two seem to have been resolved after a reported spat resulted in Costa's omission from the squad that faced Leicester City last week.
Despite Costa staying this season with the Blues, there is uncertainty whether the Spaniard will stay at the club beyond this season.
In case you didn't know...
Christian Benteke was Crystal Palace’s record signing when they signed him from Liverpool for a fee of around £27 million in the summer. The towering Belgian has scored 10 goals this season with two of these helping the club come from behind against Bolton Wanderers in Palace's third round tie of the FA Cup.
The former Aston Villa man had a disappointing time at Liverpool which saw him being offloaded to Palace in the summer.
The heart of the matter
According to The Guardian, Conte has planned a four striker shortlist if his main forward, Diego Costa, decides to leave. Real Madrid's Alvaro Morata, Everton's Romelu Lukaku and Swansea City's Fernando Llorente are the other three players in the list apart from Benteke.
The Belgian striker denied claims of leaving Selhurst Park in a recent interview and assured supporters of his whole efforts to help Palace avoid relegation this season, but may change his need when Chelsea come calling.
What's next?
Although Costa's absence last week is being attributed to a back injury, it is obvious that everything is not well between the player and the manager. If Chelsea are to solidify their lead at the top, they need Costa in their team as the Spaniard has been sensational this season.
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The chances of him staying at the club beyond this season look bleak with a few Chinese clubs and Spanish club, Atletico Madrid interested in the hot-headed striker.
Sportskeeda's take
A move for Christian Benteke seems realistic as Conte interested in a tall striker who can hold up the ball and a player with good link up ability. The Belgian fits the bill and also has an experience of playing in the Premier League.
