Liverpool must navigate heavy red-tape to land Shanghai Shenhua striker Didier Drogba.

The Mail on Sunday says Drogba finishes his season with Shanghai Shenhua next month and will return to England for two months of training before heading off the African Cup of Nations with the Ivory Coast in January.

Chelsea legend Drogba will train with a Premier League club to keep in shape in November and December - but would need permission from his Chinese club to play and would need additional permission from the Premier League Board to join a club outside the transfer window.

Liverpool would view the possibility of signing Drogba as a potential short term solution until they make a permanent move for a striker in January.

But the contractual issues of playing in England and the additional burden of receiving permission from the Premier League to recruit a player outside of the transfer window is likely to make it difficult to process the move in time.