Arsenal Transfer News: Christian Benteke To Stay At Aston Villa?

Daily Mail. Arsene Wenger had been an admirer of the forward, who has impressed at Villa Park since his move from Genk in August by bagging 19 goals in all competitions. He had also been tracked by both Liverpool and Tottenham Hotspur, but the Belgian has instead told manager Paul Lambert that he wants to stay where he is. Benteke believes that by remaining at Villa Park, he will benefit from the guaranteed first-team football it provides, giving him a better chance of being called up to Belgium's 2014 World Cup squad. Villa are now willing to double his earnings by offering him a new £40,000-per-week contract to tie him down at the club until 2017. It is likely that Benteke will agree to the deal - providing the club can avoid relegation this term. Villa are more buoyant than ever of securing their top-flight status this season however and were the big winners from results elsewhere near the bottom of the table at the weekend. They are determined not to let yet another of their star performers leave having seen the likes of Gareth Barry, James Milner, Ashley Young and Stewart Downing all move on for pastures new down the years.