Liverpool look set to make a move for Aston Villa's in-form Belgium forward Christian Benteke as Brendon Rodgers looks to bolster his attacking options over the summer - but Tim Sherwood says he will cost £30million.
With Daniel Sturridge having missed the majority of the season through injury and Mario Balotelli failing to rediscover anything like his best form, Rodgers looks to have made an improved strikeforce one of his main priorities.
However, Villa manager Sherwood says that the 24-year-old will command a price tag around the £30million mark - but he will not stand in Benteke's way should he request to leave.
“If a player doesn’t want to play for the club any more and the club he wants to go to meets the valuation, it’s best to let them go," Sherwood admitted.
“It will be just a market value - what’s out there.
"I don’t want to talk about selling Christian when I’ve got no intention of doing that. So it would have to be a lot of money for someone to get him off us.
“We are looking for players ourselves, so we know how much other clubs are looking at [as fees] for their players. He’ll be too expensive for a great deal of people in the Premier League. We want to keep our best players - and he’s certainly one of those.”
However, with a considerable squad overhaul planned over the summer months - with James Milner and Danny Ings reportedly among his targets - Rodgers will have to free up funds for Benteke with a transfer kitty of £30million.
Glen Johnson has already expressed the likelihood of his leaving on a free transfer with his contract up in the summer, while Balotelli, Lucas Leiva and forgotten man Fabio Borini are among the names linked with the exit door.
And with the Reds set to miss out on Champions League qualification, Sherwood can afford to stand his ground and wait for Rodgers to pay up with few big-name signings realistically available.
Benteke played as Villa beat Liverpool in the semi-final of the FA Cup, with the final at Wembley now potentially his last game for the club.