As Premier League chiefs prepare to fling open the January transfer window, Sportsmail takes a look at each top-flight club and assesses the business they are each likely to do in the post-Christmas sales.

Manager Brendan Rodgers aims to maintain Liverpool's title challenge - and he certainly can't afford to fall outside of the top four - so who do they need to guarantee Champions League football next season?

What do they need?

Players who can come in and make a difference, most likely a powerful midfielder. That may sound simplistic but, if Liverpool are to sustain their push for the top four, they need to make signings who will significantly enhance their quality. The problem Brendan Rodgers faces, though, is that those stars are not readily available in January and Liverpool do not have the Champions League bargaining tool yet.

Who do they like the look of?

Martin Montoya, a Spain U21 right-back from Barcelona, has been courted. Liverpool held discussions with his agent in November in the hope of tying up a deal now rather than waiting another six months for his contract at the Nou Camp to expire.

Will Hughes, Derby's England U21 midfielder, is certainly on Liverpool's radar but they have not gone as far as making bids. The issue with him, also, is that he would be a player for the future - would he come in and play straight away? Work is going on, however, and as you would expect, Liverpool's scouts have been busy over the last few weeks trying to find the right target.

Best ever January buy

No need think too long about this one. Luis Suarez (£22.8million in January 2011) wins that accolade by some distance. A goalscoring machine who could be sold for four times that amount now. January, however, has been a good month for Liverpool, particularly when Rafa Benitez was manager. Daniel Agger, Martin Skrtel and Javier Mascherano all arrived in that particular window. Gerard Houllier also secured Jari Litmanen and Nicolas Anelka in the winter.

Source: Daily Mail