Everton ready to go big for Lukaku’s international teammate

Everton are preparing to launch a big money move to sign Crystal Palace striker Christian Benteke as Ronald Koeman looks to find a replacement for Romelu Lukaku, reports Sky Sports.

The Toffees sold Lukaku to Premier League rivals Manchester United in a deal worth an initial £75m on Monday and Koeman is keen to re-invest that money into the squad further as the club plan for more new faces.

Everton have already signed six players, including two strikers in the form of Sandro Ramirez and Wayne Rooney, but now Koeman has turned his attentions to Benteke as a deal to sign Arsenal forward Olivier Giroud looks unlikely right now.

Benteke became Palace’s club-record signing when he joined from Liverpool last summer in a deal worth £27m but it remains to be seen whether he has a future under new boss Frank de Boer, who wants to bring total football to Selhurst Park.

The Belgium international, who would bring many of the same qualities as Lukaku, is also a summer transfer target for Chelsea after they were beaten to Lukaku’s signature by former manager Jose Mourinho.

The 26-year-old scored 15 goals in the Premier League last season, while he also won the most aerial duels in Europe’s top five leagues (322).

For more stats on Christian Benteke, click here to visit his WhoScored player page