The time for talking is over. Rafael Benitez is demanding Liverpool's new owners urgently fulfill a promise to back their manager in the transfer market.

George Gillett and Tom Hicks have played an astute public relations game since their buyout of the Anfield outfit in February. The American duo made all the right noises about restoring Liverpool to the pinnacle of the English game.

Benitez has accepted the pledges at face value. But in the aftermath of last night's Champions League final defeat to AC Milan, the Spaniard has laid bare the stark reality of the situation Liverpool find themselves in.

And if Gillett and Hicks are really intent on ensuring the Merseyside giants' league title drought does not extend beyond 18 years, Benitez wants money and he needs it now.

"Sometimes, when you are in another country or another continent, you don't know how important this time is," Benitez said. "The owners have said they will back me and we are really excited about the future. But it is OK to talk, we need to change things now.

"The top sides have been spending $50 million or more over the last five or 10 years. Manchester United just won the league and finished 21 points in front of us. They are paying $20 million for a new midfield player in Owen Hargreaves. We have been spending $9 million on a striker. That is a big difference."

Gillett and Hicks do not have to look back too far to work out what is likely to happen if Benitez does not get his way.

The 47-year-old may appear jovial and relaxed but underneath the pleasant exterior beats the heart of an ultra-ambitious man who quit Valencia for Liverpool three years ago because the Spanish outfit refused to meet his demands and has already rejected overtures from his beloved Real Madrid on three separate occasions.

On his arrival at Anfield, Benitez famously declared he asked the Valencia board for a coffee table and was given a table lamp instead. And he has still not forgotten.

"We won the league with Valencia for the first time in 31 years," he recalled. "Afterwards, everyone said 'fantastic, we are so good we do not need to spend any money'. The following season we finished fifth.

"With Liverpool, we have won the FA Cup, the Super Cup, the Community Shield and the Champions League and reached another final. But if we do not spend money now, we will continue to lose games because we do not have enough quality and eventually finish 20 points behind United, Chelsea and Arsenal."

With Bolo Zenden, Mark Gonzalez and - possibly - Craig Bellamy among those on their way out, the decks are being cleared for a huge influx of new players. The number of potential signings is wide-ranging. The defense and midfield will be tinkered with, while at least two new strikers can be expected given Liverpool's season-long difficulties in front of goal, which proved so costly in the Olympic Stadium.

David Villa, Samuel Eto'o, Darren Bent and Carlos Tevez could all appear on Benitez's radar. Clearly though, business needs to be done swiftly if the Spaniard's demands are to be satisfied and Gillett and Hicks are to ensure Liverpool's magnificent new stadium in Stanley Park is not to become a huge white elephant by the time it opens in 2009.

"I can't say exactly how many players I want, it depends on the market," Benitez said. "Also, there might be someone we don't really want to sell who we get a fantastic bid for which makes us look at the situation again. But we need to look at two or three things, that is very obvious to everyone. We have some targets but we must move quickly because if we end up with our second or third choices, we cannot be contenders.

"The new owners know what my ideas are and they know what is required. They are businessmen. It is clear when you spend money on a stadium, you need to keep the team in the top four and try to be contenders every season before 2009. They want to see their stadium full of supporters. And the supporters know the club needs to progress. If we do the right things, they will be there."

(China Daily via Ticker May 25, 2007)