Liverpool manager Rafael Benitez is ready to step up his transfer
dealings at Anfield - but insists he has no plans to cash in on
Ryan Babel.
With two players heading out of Anfield, and another on the
brink of signing, the Reds boss remains coy on just how much money
he will have to spend in this current transfer window.
The belief remains he will have only limited funds to add to
his squad with the likelihood there will be greater spending in the
summer.
Full-back Andrea Dossena has completed a £4.5million
move to Napoli, while striker Andriy Voronin is on the verge of a
deal that will take him to Dynamo Moscow for £2million.
Benitez maintains he will not be selling winger Babel, but is
awaiting confirmation that his deal to bring Argentina wide man
Maxi Rodriguez to the club from Atletico Madrid can be tied up.
Benitez will use some of the money from the Dossena and
Voronin deals to pay for new contracts for Jose Reina and Javier
Mascherano.
But he clearly does not want to sell Babel if the money from
that deal will be stockpiled for a summer spree in the transfer
market. Benitez wants to retain Babel for Liverpool's fight for
fourth spot which would ensure a return to Champions League
football next season.
He said: "Sometimes you must do what you have to do. So now
we find ourselves having to react in this way in a transfer window.
"We must manage the squad and if we sell players we could
have money available. But we must always think of what is the best
for the club, at this moment in time.
"We are planning ahead, but the most important thing is now.
We believe we can progress. We have enough confidence. We did well
last season with this squad and we can do it again."
Benitez explained his reasons for selling Dossena and
Voronin, and for turning down a £9million bid from Birmingham
for Babel. He said: "Dossena wanted to play again in Italy. The
move is good for him and good for us, and hopefully he will now go
to the World Cup.
"When he arrived here we were trying to sign offensive
players, particularly full-backs. Similarly we signed Philipp
Degen.
"It is difficult to sign wingers, the best can cost
£20-25million. But it is cheaper to sign attacking full-backs,
and that was the idea to improve our attacking style.
"We wanted full-backs going forward. Dossena had some good
games, but he could not perform regularly at the level we needed.
This is now the best for him and the best for us.
"We needed to do something with regard to Dossena and
Voronin. We were not using them much and we had some offers for
them.
"They both wanted to play every week, we had little option
but to let them go.
"Ryan (Babel) is different. We had an offer from Birmingham
but he said he wanted to stay. That means we must keep working with
the players we have here, the most important thing is to push them
and hopefully see the best of them.
"You have to listen to offers, it is the way of football. But
he said he did not want to go, and if Babel plays at the level we
know he can play at, we will be pleased.
"We have to train with the players we have, push them and
make sure they are ready. That will apply to Babel."
