Arsenal Set To Battle With Tottenham For £28m Belgium International - Report

Arsenal are set to ramp up their interest in Aston Villa striker Christian Benteke but may be forced to battle it out with Tottenham for the Belgium international's signature as Paul Lambert faces the prospect of losing his prolific forward.

On the back of a season in which Benteke scored 26 goals for Villa the 22-year-old has so far scored five times in the current campaign and is once again proving a handful for Premier League defenders.

Tottenham had been hoping to seal a deal with Benteke over the course of the summer and were handed further encouragement when he handed in a transfer request, but eventually he decided to remain at Villa Park and signed a contract extension.

Speculation has claimed that the north London side are readying another bid in January and now the Daily Mail are reporting that Arsenal are hopeful of capturing the Spurs target as Arsene Wenger looks to bolster his attacking line-up.

While Olivier Giroud has been in form in front of the net and Wenger has insisted he has faith in Nicklas Bendtner to re-find his spark for the side, it would appear that the manager has little faith in the man who has spent two loan spells away from the club in the last two years.

The Gunners are currently flying in the Premier League but they face a tough month ahead, with fixtures against Chelsea, Liverpool and Manchester United, that will go a long way to defining their season.

Benteke is believed to be worth around £28m, with Aston Villa keen to keep hold of the former Genk man but aware that every player has his price.

And should both Tottenham and Arsenal make their interest serious in the new year the price could be driven up even further, particularly if Benteke's good form continues.