RAFAEL BENITEZ admits Newcastle United’s survival prospects could be seriously damaged if the club’s rulers do not provide some clarity about their January transfer budget in the next few days.

Benitez endured a frustrating summer transfer window as he attempted to sign a series of targets, only for the financial restrictions imposed by Mike Ashley and Lee Charnley to repeatedly shift, and the Magpies manager is clearly fearful of the same thing happening again next month.

He is keen to sign a centre-forward and at least one full-back when the transfer window reopens, and has identified a number of potential acquisitions after receiving a series of scouting reports in the last few weeks.

However, his attempts to pin down a precise budget have failed, despite a face-to-face meeting with Charnley in which he asked for a clear indication of what he would be allowed to spend next month. As of last night, he was still waiting for an answer.

The ongoing takeover talks between Ashley and Amanda Staveley’s PCP Capital Partners group are clearly a complicating factor, with Newcastle’s current owner extremely reluctant to invest in the playing squad next month if there is a chance of him being able to sell the club before the end of the season.

However, with the Magpies having dropped to within two places of the relegation zone ahead of this evening’s home game with Everton, Benitez is only too aware of the risks involved if the current confusion is not cleared up quickly.

“We are monitoring players and talking with people, but at the moment we do not know how much money is available,” said the Newcastle boss. “I don’t know what the budget is. We know what we need. Can we get that? I don’t know, I just have to concentrate on the games.

“It is always helpful if you have information. Hopefully, after the Everton game and a win, we will have good news and everybody will be happy. It is important to know because we are working really hard with the scouts. We have a lot of names, but we do not know exactly how much (money) we have.

“I was asking Lee Charnley the other day, and I am waiting for an answer in a few days. If you know where you are and what you have, it’s easier for me and it’s easier for our people. We can talk with agents, players and clubs and say 'We’re here’ and ‘We can do this’ or ‘We cannot do that’.

“It's easier. You know where you are and you can go in one direction or another. You need to know as soon as possible.

“Now, we need to concentrate on this game. But hopefully, we can finish this game and talk. We have Arsenal in a few days, but still, we need to know, because our people are travelling round the world watching games.”

Benitez has assembled a list of potential targets in the event of Newcastle having meaningful money to spend next month, and another list of possible recruits containing the names of players who could be available on loan or for a cut-price fee.

He is ready to make formal contact with a couple of the clubs involved, but is unable to take the next step until his budget is confirmed.

A centre-forward is the main priority, and while Aleksandar Mitrovic could be sacrificed to help fund a signing, the Serb will not be allowed to go anywhere until a replacement is already in place. Similarly, while Chancel Mbemba and Karl Darlow had been available for sale in the summer, they will not be leaving Tyneside this month unless alternatives are already through the door.

“We know our job,” said Benitez. “The transfer window is a time when everyone is talking and everyone has an opinion. It is not rocket science. It is easy to see that we need things in some positons.

“We were trying to do that in August and we will try to do that again now. Whether we can, we will see. You have to go to the market in January and have your targets, but you also need to know the budget. That’s it.”

Newcastle go into tonight’s game having taken just six points from their last 11 matches, a run of form that has seen them tumble nine places in the table.

From a position of relative security a month or so ago, the Magpies now find themselves deep in trouble, and Benitez is targeting a return of at least five points from the next three games, which will see Newcastle travel to Arsenal and West Ham after tonight’s home meeting with Everton.

“I would like 20 points by Christmas,” he said. “Obviously, I thought that maybe we could win one of the last few games, or get a result in one of these games, but still more or less it is the same.

“The reason I say 20 is because it is half of the competition, and then 40 is the full season and then you will be safe. If we are on 18, then we need 22 during the second half.

“But I still think this team will improve. The main thing is can we improve even with a bad run and start winning games again? I think so, but obviously we need to do it on the pitch.”