Aston Villa striker Christian Benteke finally completed his £32.5 million transfer to Liverpool on Wednesday evening, joining the Reds on a five-year deal.
As reported by the Express, the Belgium international has explained why he opted to move to Anfield and join Brendan Rodgers’s squad.
“I came here to win trophies,” the 24-year-old began.
“I came here to reach some great goals with the team,” he continued.
“It’s about winning trophies. It’s about doing something in [my] career I can maybe explain to my son or my kids what I did,” the striker continued.
“I’m very happy to be here and I would like to thank the owners, Ian [Ayre] and of course the manager for their massive effort to bring me here.
“I think it was the right club for me because I had a good chat with the manager and I wanted to be part of his project.
“I think there are quality players, a lot of good players with big names of course. I’m happy to be part of this team and will [try] to help this team reach its goals.”
The forward underwent a medical on Monday and Tuesday, before the deal was confirmed on Wednesday.
While Benteke has been signed following the windfall received from the departure of Raheem Sterling—who moved to Manchester City on a £49 million deal [Telegraph]—he will ostensibly be expected to replace the goals lost when Luis Suarez signed for Barcelona.
The Reds wholly failed to substitute the impact lost with the forward, with Fabio Borini, Mario Balotelli and Rickie Lambert all struggling to impress at Anfield.
With Lambert linked with a move to West Bromwich Albion [Sky Sports], Benteke could be set to inherit the striker’s No. 9 shirt.
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The forward managed 49 goals in 101 appearances for a struggling Villa side, although injury concerns often affected his time in Birmingham.
It remains to be seen whether the Reds will sign another attacker during the summer window, with Edin Dzeko [Mirror] and Marco Reus [Daily Star] both having been linked to the forward.