Klopp dismisses Benteke departure speculation - but striker must play his way back into Liverpool team

Reds boss says it's up to the Belgian to change his mind over selection

Watford's Miguel Britos (behind) grabs Liverpool's Christian Benteke as they battle for the ball during the Barclays Premier League match at Vicarage Road, Watford. PRESS ASSOCIATION Photo. Picture date: Sunday December 20, 2015. See PA story SOCCER Watford. Photo credit should read: Andrew Matthews/PA Wire. RESTRICTIONS: EDITORIAL USE ONLY No use with unauthorised audio, video, data, fixture lists, club/league logos or "live" services. Online in-match use limited to 75 images, no video emulation. No use in betting, games or single club/league/player publications.

Jurgen Klopp dismissed suggestions Christian Benteke could leave Liverpool in January – but said it was up to the striker to play his way back into favour at Anfield.

Benteke was left out of Klopp’s starting line-up for the 3-0 defeat at Watford, emerging only as a second-half substitute, by which time the Reds were already two goals down. Divock Origi, his 20-year-old countryman, was summoned from the bench during the first half when Martin Skrtel’s injury necessitated a change.

One report on Sunday morning had suggested Benteke, who has managed five goals in 17 appearances since joining from Aston Villa for £32.5m in the summer, could be allowed to leave the club as early as next month, with Chelsea credited with an interest.

Klopp was uninterested in such speculation in his post-match press conference at Vicarage Road, but suggested that Benteke would have to convince him he was worthy of a return to the Reds starting XI.

He said: “If there is the same probability in that (story) as all the other transfer rumours since I have been here, then I am pretty cool!”

Asked whether it had been a mistake to leave Benteke on the bench, Klopp replied: “That’s the problem; if you lose a game everyone is allowed to ask why this player didn’t play. You never ask after a win.

"Maybe it was not the best decision, I don’t know. Today I decided not to start with Christian. It is up to the player to change this.”

Klopp was unable to offer an update on the fitness of Skrtel, who departed before half time having injured himself in an aerial challenge. “I don’t know,” was his answer when asked about the Slovakian.

Liverpool, of course, can ill afford to lose another senior central defender, with Dejan Lovren already sidelined with a knee problem. Midfielder Lucas Leiva finished the game in defence, alongside Mamadou Sakho, who was making his first start in six weeks following his own knee injury.

Head to Head: Odion Ighalo (Watford) vs Christian Benteke (Liverpool)

After surpassing the Reds in the Premier League table last weekend; newly promoted Watford are impressively looking for their fourth consecutive league win on the bounce when they host Liverpool at Vicarage Road this afternoon (13:30pm).

Odion Ighalo’s only goal of the game against Sunderland last Saturday; his milestone tenth league goal of the campaign, gave the visitors all three points and propelled Quique Sanchez Flores’ Hornets up to seventh in the top-flight standings, only four points behind the UEFA Champions League qualification places.

Meanwhile Liverpool; who lie one point and two places behind today’s opponents before kick-off, are yet to win in December following defeat to Newcastle United (2-0) and a draw against West Brom (2-) last Sunday at Anfield.

Boss Jurgen Klopp will be hoping striker Christian Benteke can net his first Premier League goal since late-October to give the travelling fans the three points they crave for before Christmas day.

With both forwards set to go head-to-head this afternoon, here’s how the in-form Ighalo and out-of-form Benteke match up so far this term…

ODION IGHALO

• Club:
   
  Watford

FACT FILE

• Position:
   
  Forward
• Height:
   
  1.88m
• Birth Date:
   
  June 16, 1989
• Birth Place:
   
  Lagos, Nigeria
• Clubs:
   
  Prime, Julius Berger, Lyn, Udiense, Granada (loan), Cesena (loan), Watford
• International:
   
  Nigeria (5 caps, 2 goals)

WHAT HE SAYS

"He is a wonderful man who stayed here because his future here at Watford is really big. He is already an important player for us." - Quique Sanchez Flores, Watford boss.

DID YOU KNOW

Ighalo survived gang-wars in Lagos slums and kicked tin cans with his bare feet when growing up in Nigeria.

PREMIER LEAGUE 2015/16

• Games:
   
  16
• Goals:
   
  10
• Assists:
   
  2
• Key passes:
   
  15
• Shot accuracy:
   
  60%
• Pass accuracy:
   
  74%
• Goals per 90 mins:
   
  0.68
• Take ons:
   
  23

CHRISTIAN BENTEKE

• Club:
   
  Liverpool

FACT FILE

• Position:
   
  Forward
• Height:
   
  1.91m
• Birth Date:
   
  December 3, 1990
• Birth Place:
   
  Kinshasa, Zaire
• Clubs:
   
  Genk, Standard Liege, Kortrijk (loan), Mechelen (loan), Aston Villa, Liverpool
• International:
   
  Belgium (25 caps, 7 goals)

WHAT HE SAYS

“He’s got strength and pace, can score with his feet, his head and he’s a handful. He’s proved that he can score goals in the Premier League." - James Milner, Liverpool team-mate.

DID YOU KNOW

Christian has a younger brother; Jonathan, who is also a professional footballer and currently plays for Zulte Waregem in the Belgian Pro League.

PREMIER LEAGUE 2015/16

• Games:
   
  13
• Goals:
   
  4
• Assists:
   
  1
• Key passes:
   
  13
• Shot accuracy:
   
  39%
• Pass accuracy:
   
  66%
• Goals per 90 mins:
   
  0.40
• Take ons:
   
  5.

Chelsea FC Transfer Rumours: Latest on Cheikh N'Doye, Christian Benteke, Bojan Krkic, Jonathan Calleri

It's been a hectic few days at Chelsea Football Club, but even in times of high drama, the rumor mill does not sleep.  The rumor mill is unerringly eternal.  Here are a few stories we have missed over the weekend.

CHEIKH N'DOYE:

Recently, rumours from France emerged linking Angers SCO midfielder Cheikh N'Doye to several Premier League clubs including Chelsea, based on a number of scouts sent by the teams presumably to watch the 29-year-old in action against Bordeaux in Ligue 1. Since N'Doye is based in France, there's a good chance that if we did have someone scouting N'Doye, it was Guy Hillion.

"[N'Doye] is an interesting player for the Premier League, but not necessarily for [Chelsea]. If he has to leave for England, he needs to do it soon. He'll need to choose a team where he will play."

-Guy Hillion; source: Le Parisien via Sport Witness

Hillion was also responsible for scouting and recommending names such as Kurt Zouma and Papy Djilobodji to the Blues in the last few years. Based on how the latter of those two panned out, it's not a surprise that he sounds a bit more reserved on the chances of N'Doye making any impact at Chelsea.

CHRISTIAN BENTEKE:

This one's the freshest rumor and the name it involves is known quantity to most.  Apparently, Mourinho had put Benteke on top, or at least near the top of his striker wishlist (a list that does not include Jamie Vardy, as we learned from other rumors) and, according to the Mirror, if Hiddink's keen as well, Chelsea might pursue the former Aston Villa striker, possibly on a loan deal.

It should be noted that Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp puts the chances of anything happening with Benteke at this time at "nil per cent".  That seems pretty definitive.

BOJAN KRKIC:

Having revitalized his career at the most unlikeliest of all unlikely places, Stoke City forward Bojan Krkic is apparently on the holiday shopping list of more than just a few teams, including but not limited to Chelsea, Liverpool, and Manchester United.  The former Barcelona prospect's price tag is in the £15m region, though why Stoke would want to sell is beyond me.  Manager Mark Hughes is confident that Bojan's also happy the Potteries.

JONATHAN CALLERI:

Last and also least, the young Argentinian striker's move from Boca Juniors to somewhere in Europe still has not been finalized.  He looked all set to join Inter Milan over Chelsea (and others), but now the Italian club seem to playing a bit of hard-ball.

"We are tracking him, he has an interesting profile, but right now there is nothing more. I read some things that made me smile. There is no deal. We worked very hard over the summer and if you do things right then January can be relatively calm. We don't need big changes."

"We are surprised by how well the 10 new players have settled in and Roberto Mancini did a great job. We don't want to relax, but we'll see where we are in March."

-Piero Ausilio; source: Sky Sports Italia via Football Italia

Sounds like there's still time for a late swoop, if we're interested, though chances are, we aren't.

Liverpool Transfer News: Latest on Christian Benteke and Marko Grujic Rumours

Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp has closed the book on any chances Christian Benteke could leave Anfield this winter. Plus, the German is close to sealing his first Anfield signing in the form of Red Star Belgrade youngster Marko Grujic.  

Benteke came on as a substitute in Sunday's 3-0 defeat to Watford, leading to intensified speculation of a January move to Chelsea, but Klopp ruled such gossip as little more than rumour, per Goal.com's Melissa Reddy:

If you lose the game, everyone is allowed to ask why this and this player didn’t play. You never ask after a win. Maybe it was not the best decision, but we will never find out. But today I decided first for Firmino, then for Origi, then for Christian - it’s up to the player to change this.

If it’s the same probability of all the other transfer rumours that I’ve heard since I’ve been here, then I’m cool. The things I’ve read so far are nil per cent true. I don’t know. I’ve never heard about this.

Chelsea were one of the clubs attached to Benteke before he left Aston Villa for Liverpool this past summer in a £32.5 million deal, the second-largest fee ever paid by the Merseysiders for a player.

It therefore stands to reason the Blues could execute an early Anfield exit for Benteke, considering they'd be able to afford his transfer and could be in line for drastic changes this January.

There is still some debate as to how Benteke fits in on Merseyside, particularly with the more mobile likes of Daniel Sturridge and Belgian compatriot Divock Origi looking to cement their places in Klopp's XI.

Football writer Nik Postinger highlighted Klopp's decision to start Roberto Firmino up front against Watford instead of Benteke as indication of his opinion on the former Villa ace:

Benteke has four goals in 14 Premier League appearances for the Reds this season, but Reddy pointed out Liverpool's scoring record when he's off of the pitch as being superior to their scoring record with him starting.

That being said, it seems highly unlikely the English giants would give up on their mega-money investment so easily, especially with Klopp still getting settled in his Liverpool surroundings—not to mention with the squad itself.

On the inbound list, there is news Liverpool will sign Grujic in a £5 million deal, pending a medical, later this week, according to James Pearce of the Liverpool Echo, who claimed a five-year contract has been agreed.

Reddy provided a glimpse at Grujic's 2015-16 statistics, claiming the player will shun competition as big as Italian giants Inter to join Klopp's uprising in England:

Liverpool will pay £5 million (€7 million) for the 19-year-old central midfielder, but Red Star Belgrade will receive £730,000 (€1 million) of that fee back so Grujic can remain in Serbia on loan for the remainder of the season.

Pearce added that Klopp's personal intervention in the deal was a key influence in luring Grujic to Anfield, a move that's sure to go down well with fans as the manager continues his hands-on approach to the game.