Following a struggling start to the Premier League season, Liverpool manager Rafa Benitez will be handed a 12 million pound transfer kitty to spend in the January transfer window, according to a report in the Daily Mail this morning.

John Edwards writes: "Liverpool boss Rafa Benitez will be handed a £12million New Year transfer budget after all, but that is still well short of what he would need to attract top players as he bids to salvage the club's fading Premier League title dream."

Edwards adds: "The Liverpool manager’s spending power has been a contentious issue since the arrival of Tom Hicks and George Gillett, but Anfield’s American owners will back him with more funds when the window reopens in January."

Having lost three Premier League games so far this season, Benitez is eager to strengthen and the Daily Mail link the Spaniard with a move for out-of-favour Lazio striker Goran Pandev as well as "several emerging Spanish players."

Yesterday, press reports in Germany claimed the Merseyside giants were interested in Werder Bremen forward Aaron Hunt.