Liverpool triggered the £32.5 million buyout clause in Christian Benteke’s Aston Villa contract yesterday and the striker is set to become their second most expensive signing behind Andy Carroll.

Having previously resisted Aston Villa’s demands to meet the clause, Liverpool have taken the decision to pay the asking price to ensure Rodgers does not miss out on his prime summer transfer target.

The Liverpool manager has been interested in Benteke for the last two years and was only prevented from trying to sign him last summer when the forward suffered an injury to his Achilles tendon which left him unable to play for six months.

Benteke is now fully recovered from that injury, proving his fitness during the second half of last season when he