Christian Benteke shelves transfer talk for a while as Aston Villa striker enjoys short break with girlfriend

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Aston Villa striker Christian Benteke has been relaxing on holiday with his girlfriend and shared a picture of the pair on Instagram
The 24-year-old is currently subject to constant transfer speculation
Benteke has two years left to run on his contract at Villa and has made it clear that he does not want to sign an extension
Villa are reluctant to let Benteke to leave cheaply and will demand that any buyer will have to meet his £32.5million release clause

Published: 18:10 EST, 24 June 2015 | Updated: 09:11 EST, 25 June 2015

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Aston Villa striker Christian Benteke took a break from the ongoing transfer speculation he finds himself embroiled in to enjoy some downtime with his girlfriend at a Latin American restaurant on holiday.

The 24-year-old Belgium international, who scored 15 goals last season in all competitions to help Villa avoid relegation from the Premier League and reach the FA Cup final, has been linked with a move away from the club.

Villa, however, are reluctant to sell their star man and are insisting that Benteke will not depart for any less than the £32.5million release clause written into his contract.

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Aston Villa's Christian Benteke has cast transfer talk to one side to enjoy some downtime with his girlfriend

Benteke, 24, played a key role in helping Villa to retain their Premier League status last season

Benteke himself has made it clear that he is unwilling to sign an extension with Villa, but plenty of suitors are balking at the size of the price tag attached to him.

In forcing Benteke to run down his deal though, Villa are risking having an unhappy member of their squad next term.

Benteke joined Villa in 2012 for £7m from Genk and has since scored 49 goals in 99 games in English football.

With a record like that, in a team that has battled near the bottom of the table for the majority of recent seasons, it is no wonder that he has attracted plenty of interest from bigger sides.

At one stage or another, Liverpool, Manchester United and Manchester City have all been credited with a desire to acquire the forward.

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