Reid has wasted little time in reading the riot act to his squad after a poor pre-season that has seen defeats by the likes of Hull City, Burnley and Shelbourne.
"I have told him that if he wants to restructure the team through player sales, then the club will back him," McKenzie said. "All money he makes can be used to bring in players. This is not me telling him to sell players to pay debts. It gives Peter the opportunity to restructure the squad because I know he has been frustrated with the way things have been going in pre-season."
That will go down badly with the supporters, however,who wish for stability after the departures of players such as Harry Kewell, Jonathan Woodgate, Lee Bowyer and Olivier Dacourt. The arrival of Lamine Sakho, Jody Morris, Zoumana Camara and Didier Domi has not diluted the anguish.
Those who may be offloaded include Mark Viduka, who has already clashed with Reid, along with fellow internationals Nick Barmby, Jason Wilcox, Ian Harte, Stephen McPhail and Danny Mills.