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Christian Benteke is ready to give Aston Villa boss Paul Lambert a massive boost by making a shock return to action next month, writes Neil Moxley in the Sunday People.

The big striker is ahead of schedule as he recovers from a ruptured Achilles that ended his World Cup dream.

According to sources in Belgium, Benteke is pushing the Villans' manager and, if things go to plan, he may miss just three Premier League matches.

The two-week international break at the start of September has given the 23-year-old forward breathing space as he completes his recovery.

He joined in with drills when Villa were training in the United States, and has been part of the first-team squad that has stepped up preparations this week.

(Image: Laurence Griffiths)

It had been anticipated that it would be November at the earliest before Benteke returned to action after suffering a setback that has a six-month recovery period.

But the powerful hitman has told friends in Belgium that he is pushing to be ready as soon as possible – although, Lambert will take care about rushing Benteke back too soon.

However, Villa face a tough Premier League programme during September and tackle Liverpool, Arsenal, Chelsea and Manchester City in the weeks after the international break.

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The good news about Benteke comes on the back of Villa unveiling Aly Cissokho to fill their troublesome left-back slot.

Lambert has tried twice to fill the position – but neither Joe Bennett nor Antonio Luna has cut the mustard, so he has raided Valencia to secure the France star.

The Scot clearly believes the defender – who spent last season on loan at Liverpool – will not need much time to adapt to the pressures of the Premier League.

He said: “Aly has big-game experience. He’s not a novice. You can see that with the clubs he’s been at and the way he is as a lad. He’s big, strong and powerful and he had a good taste of what English football is all about at Liverpool.

“Aly’s also at a good age, 26, and I think he will be a big asset, no question.”

Lambert added that striker Libor Kozak, who suffered a broken leg in training towards the end of last season, is also close to a return.

He added: “We will try and do another couple of things in the market if we can. Then when we get Christian, Libor and Joe Cole back, we’ll be a lot stronger.”

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