LIVERPOOL, England (AFP) - New Liverpool co-owner George Gillett on Wednesday promised to back Rafael Benitez in his summer transfer plans for the Premiership club.

Reports have suggested that the Spanish manager could be handed 40 million pounds (70 million dollars) to spend, but Gillet would not be drawn on the figure.

"Rafa has been very good about his plan but we won't discuss that publicly," said Gillett.

"We believe in building a winning tradition and that means building something for the long term so we can be successful."

Since assuming official control of the club Gillet and fellow co-owner Tom Hicks have seen Liverpool demolish Arsenal 4-1 in the Premiership and virtually book their place in the Champions League last four with a 3-0 win at Eindhoven on Tuesday night.

However, despite those results Gillett is aware Benitez needs huge financial backing if the club are to compete in the Premiership and on the continent.

The American duo have been going over the plans for the club's new 60,000-seater stadium in Stanley Park to ascertain whether extending it would be a viable option.

Gillett denied they were trying to compete with arch-rivals Manchester United, whose Old Trafford ground holds 76,000, and pointed to the economic impact of Arsenal's new Emirates Stadium with its increased capacity.

"I think we have to be economically competitive - it is not to be larger than Old Trafford or smaller than Old Trafford," he told ITV1.

"Arsenal have set a new standard on game-day revenue - they set a new standard on quality and revenue.

"We want to be competitive. We don't want to fall behind."