SOCCER ENGLISH PREMIER LEAGUE:Liverpool have told Daniel Agger he will not be allowed to join Milan during the transfer window. In a further indication of Rafael Benitez's determination to keep Liverpool's title-chasing squad intact, the manager also announced that Andrea Dossena is not for sale despite the poor start to his Anfield career.

Reports in Italy yesterday claimed that Milan would capitalise on Agger's stalled contract negotiations by making a €9 million offer for a player who will be available under a €7.5 million release clause in the summer. Liverpool insist that no such clause exists, however, and have informed the Denmark defender and his agent, Per Steffensen, they will resist any approach for the 24-year-old as they concentrate on trying to win a first league title in 19 years.

Milan's need to find replacements for their veteran defenders Paolo Maldini and Alessandro Nesta is no secret and Agger's contract situation has alerted the Italians to a possible transfer. Agger is in the final 18 months of his contract and talks between the parties have proved problematic, although Liverpool deny they have offered the €80,000-a-week deal that he has reportedly rejected.

With the exception of putting up for sale marginalised figures such as Jermaine Pennant, Benitez is determined to avoid any disruption this month and insists that Dossena, the left-back signed for €7.5 million from Udinese in the summer, still has a future. The 27-year-old has been unimpressive in his debut season and has not featured in Liverpool's last four games, fuelling the belief that Benitez will seek to cash in. The Liverpool manager, however, said: "I have not considered selling Andrea Dossena. I think it is important to keep people together now."

Benitez's stance follows news that Liverpool will be without Emiliano Insua, the 19-year-old who has replaced Dossena in the side for their last four games, until February 8th. Insua is expected to miss Liverpool's league games with Stoke City, Everton, Wigan and Chelsea, plus the FA Cup fourth-round date with their Merseyside rivals, due to his involvement in the Under-20 South American championship with Argentina in Venezuela.

The Liverpool manager has responded to Sunday's FA Cup draw by warning his players they cannot be distracted from their championship challenge. Benitez's team face Everton twice inside a week at Anfield this month after the fourth-round draw pitted the rivals together for the first time in 18 years. "It is a draw which will excite everyone in the city because everyone knows about the great rivalry that exists between the two clubs," Benitez said.

"But we must remember that we have some big games coming up before the cup tie and we will be taking one game at a time. Only when the cup game comes around will it become our focus."

Jamie Carragher, however, feels that the 20th anniversary of the Hillsborough disaster, when 96 Liverpool supporters were killed at the FA Cup semi-final against Nottingham Forest, has placed added significance on the competition this year for the Anfield club.

"I think that anniversary makes this season's competition more important for us," he said. "It was a terrible time for the club and we won the cup that year, so I think it is important we try and do as well as we can. It is something we are all obviously aware of. Going on to win it would be the perfect tribute to those who died."

Carragher believes Liverpool underlined their desire to win the FA Cup with the first-choice team, reserve goalkeeper Diego Cavalieri for Jose Reina apart, that Benitez fielded in the third round at Preston. "I was a little bit surprised that the team was probably our strongest outfield side at the moment," he said.

"It isn't that we haven't taken it seriously in the past, but we have had our fingers burnt before. The league and the Champions League are obviously very important but we all want to give 100 per cent in the FA Cup and the team we put out showed that.

"We have a bit of momentum at the moment, everyone's confidence is up, and you don't want that to end. You don't want to take a chance and slip up and then you get negative publicity and lose a bit of confidence. We wanted to keep the run going."

• Guardian Service