Forgotten 45-cap Belgium star – who is out-scoring Lionel Messi and Luis Suarez in MLS – insists ‘I will leave the door open’ to international return two years after his last appearance

A former Premier League star has refused to close the door on his international career.

Christian Benteke played 45 games for his country, but his last appearance was in March 2022.

The striker, who played for Aston Villa, Liverpool and Crystal Palace, has found a new life in the MLS with DC United.

The 33-year-old claimed the MLS Golden Boot over the likes of Lionel Messi and Luis Suarez after scoring 23 times in 30 appearances in the regular season.

He has 18 goals to his name in a Belgium shirt and remains hopeful of increasing that tally even further.

“I’m still playing in a very good league and I’m still a professional, so why should I retire from the national team?” he told BBC Sport.

‘I’m not obsessed with it and I don’t put any kind of pressure or focus on it. But as long as I play, I leave the door open. That’s just common sense to me.

‘The day I retire from my club also means the end of the national team.’

‘(Lionel) Messi and (Cristiano) Ronaldo are four or five years older than me and they are still playing, so who are we not to push ourselves?’

‘It’s not luck. It’s hard work. They take care of their bodies, something we can all do. We may not have their qualities or everything they have, but as top athletes we can all take good care of our bodies.’

Unfortunately for Benteke, DC United were eliminated from the play-offs on the last day of the season.

The Villa man also had some words of appreciation for what his old club is doing now,

‘A huge club’, he called them. ‘It’s more expected at Liverpool, but Villa was my first team in England. Love is different. They haven’t played in the Champions League for a while, so to see them play well at Villa Park on Tuesday or Wednesday is quite nice.’