RAFAEL BENITEZ will not receive a cash windfall this month – even if Liverpool succeed in selling some of their fringe players.

The Spaniard is still restricted to loan arrangements, swap deals and bargain transfers as the financial restraints remain in place at Anfield.

One such budget switch is close to being completed, with Maxi Rodriguez poised to move from Atletico Madrid.

Liverpool had initially attempted to broker a six-month loan deal for the Argentine winger, but are now in talks over an 18-month contract that would cost them a £1.5million fee. It is an example of how Benitez must be creative during this month’s transfer window, with any money generated from sales only due to be made available in the summer.

Ryan Babel is the most high-profile of the expected departures, having fallen down the pecking order in recent weeks after a disappointing campaign.

Liverpool have already rejected a bid for the Holland international from ambitious Birmingham City who, armed with the cash from new owner Carson Yeung, had tabled a £9m offer.

In any case, a move to St Andrew’s holds little interest to Babel, the winger instead preferring a move abroad in search of the regular first-team football that could bolster his chances of appearing in this summer’s World Cup.

The cashflow situation isn’t being forced on Benitez by the club’s debt and as such shouldn’t be regarded as a sign the manager is facing the sack.

Instead, it has been decided that with a far greater number of players available in the summer, it makes financial sense to save any money raised from January sales until then.

That, though, is unlikely to please the Liverpool supporters, who believe quality reinforcements must be brought in this month with Benitez’s side struggling to make the top four and qualify for next season’s Champions League.

One player on the brink of an exit is Andrea Dossena, with reports in Italy suggesting Napoli have agreed a £4million fee for the defender.

And the player’s agent yesterday claimed a deal has been all but completed, with only the inclement weather that has struck Merseyside preventing the full-back from finalising a return to his homeland.

“I believe the player will arrive in Napoli tomorrow,” said Dossena’s representative, Roberto La Florio, yesterday. “At the moment there are logistical problems, that is to say he can’t leave Liverpool because of the snow.