But it will need another summer squad cull to raise all the
funds.
That is unlikely to be enough to satisfy worried striker
Fernando Torres' demands for 'four or five' world-class
signings.
The Merseysiders' will have an initial £25m to splash on
recruits once they have secured new investment.
The rest of the transfer kitty must be drummed up through player
sales, with Albert Riera and Yossi Benayoun the first high-profile
departures.
Riera will be sold for £8m, with CSKA Moscow trying to secure a
deal this week.
Benayoun has wanted out since the start of the season and will
raise another £9m.
Liverpool already brought in another £8m through the January
sale of Andrea Dossena and Andriy Voronin.
What is clear is the bid for 40 per cent of Liverpool from The
Rhone Group will not herald the start of a vastly different era of
investment in the squad.
The only way the Liverpool manager will be able secure the kind
of fantasy football figures the fans crave is to ponder the
unthinkable - by selling Torres for £80m.
Such a decision would create hysteria on the Kop, but it is not
without precedent in Anfield history. Liverpool sold their record
goalscorer Ian Rush in 1987 and used the money to buy John Barnes,
John Aldridge, Peter Beardsley and Ray Houghton. These four
world-class players formed the core of the most attractive team
ever seen at Anfield.
Liverpool insist selling Torres (right) is not an option they
are willing to discuss, even though they are well aware agents on
behalf of Chelsea and Manchester City are making regular contact
with the player's advisors.
Benitez still believes the striker, who turned 26 yesterday,
will be loyal to Anfield. He has tried to play down fears of a
superstar exodus from the club.
Asked if Liverpool fans should fear Torres will go, Benitez
said: "I don't think so.
We don't want to sell Fernando to anybody. I can talk with him
and we can go forward. He makes his own decisions but Fernando is a
professional who plays hard and is really happy here.
"He knows we have a lot of good players at the club. If
everything is fine on Sunday he will be very happy.
"The priority now is to concentrate on this year and if we can
improve and stay in the top four it will be easier to talk about
this. If we can't, we have to keep working and have the belief we
will have good players and they will be good enough."
Benitez has been seeking talks with his board to assure him the
proceeds of all transfers will be available to reinvest.
It is the lack of such guarantees which is leading the Spanish
coach to believe his future is away from Anfield.
For their part, Liverpool have not quelled last weekend's claims
Benitez's boardroom support is evaporating.
Publicly, the club insists everything is still to play for with
fourth place and a Europa Cup triumph potentially redeeming a
miserable campaign.
But there is a distinct eye on the future in both the manager's
office and boardroom, with acknowledgement a decent climax will
merely paper over the cracks of deep-rooted problems. Victory at
Old Trafford today would prolong a rare, upbeat week on Merseyside,
but will not disguise the drastic dip in Liverpool's fortunes since
their 4-1 win at United a year ago.
A summer rebuild is a necessity, but where the money will come
from to satisfy Torres is key to Liverpool's survival as part of
the Euro elite.
A decision on the Rhone offer for 40 per cent of the club,
revealed first in last week's Sport of the World, will be made
within the next two weeks.
The Premier League need to know by March 31 how Liverpool intend
to operate their business for the forthcoming financial year.
Failure to provide details will jeopardise the application for
their UEFA license, as it did 12 months ago.
If they get the green light, the Rhone investors will not turn
up at Anfield wearing Liverpool scarves, proclaiming Kevin Keegan a
boyhood hero or making grand promises about £100m signings.
They are merely a bridge to appease the bank, reduce the
boardroom power of Tom Hicks and George Gillett, make stadium
funding feasible and for managing director Christian Purslow to
ensure the club is run in a different way.
Benitez heads to Old Trafford today making familiar observations
about the relative spending power of himself and Sir Alex
Ferguson.
He believes his efforts to topple United have been ultimately
sabotaged by lack of transfer funds.
Benitez said: "In the past Liverpool were breaking all the
records and making all the signings but over the last 13 years that
is different.
"We have to be proud of the history but now we have to manage in
a different way.
"I could read Sir Alex Ferguson's words about what he wanted to
do when he became their manager but it is different now.
"If you talk about what they have and what we have, it is
different, especially with money. We have to reduce this gap in the
transfer market and on the pitch.
"If a rivalry is positive it can help. Not just in football but
in life. But if it's negative it is a problem. The fans know it is
a very important rivalry but we are talking about a game. We will
try and do our best but the fans have to respect each other.
"This is a massive game. I know what the rivalry means but I am
a professional and I try to concentrate on each game. But this is a
big one."
