Aston Villa manager Tim Sherwood has said he was not surprised that Liverpool moved for striker Christian Benteke after his dazzling form at the end of last season.
Benteke scored 11 times in the final 10 games as Villa steered clear of trouble at the foot of the table -- and that prompted the Merseysiders to activate the £32.5 million release clause in his contract.
And Sherwood, whose side travel to Liverpool on Saturday in what is a key game for his under-pressure counterpart Brendan Rodgers, said: "He showed the quality he's got over the latter part of the season, which prompted Liverpool to spend the money.
"I expected them to pay that sort of money for Christian Benteke because of what he is -- a top player.
"There was nothing the club could have done. We'd have liked to have kept him, we valued him at a lot more than that.
"The clause was there for a reason, and Liverpool matched it. But his value to the football club would have been a lot more than that."
Sherwood, who took over at Villa Park in February, will not face Belgium international Benteke at Anfield after the striker was ruled out with a hamstring injury sustained in the 1-1 draw with Norwich.
But he voiced support for Rodgers, saying: "I have a lot of respect for him.
"He's probably paying the price for overachieving a couple of years ago [when Liverpool finished second]. He lost two of his best players -- Luis Suarez in particular, and he's rebuilding."
Meanwhile, sources have told ESPN FC that Benteke is set to miss the Merseyside derby and is likely to be out for two weeks.
That means he will miss the Europa League meeting with Swiss club FC Sion on Oct. 1 as well as the trip to Everton three days later.
He has scored two goals in six appearances for Liverpool since arriving in July.