AC MILAN will fail in their attempts to sign Daniel Agger during the January transfer window – but are giving Anfield outcast Jermaine Pennant a chance to kickstart his career.

Pennant, who is out of contract at the end of the season, has been offered a pre-contract agreement by the Italian giants to sign on a free transfer in the summer.

The winger is no longer part of Rafael Benitez’s plans with Liverpool keen to off-load the 25-year-old for a fee this month.

Real Madrid had a bid in the region of £3million accepted a fortnight ago but the deal is believed to have floundered over the player’s personal terms.

Pennant, also a target for Wigan Athletic, Blackburn Rovers and Tottenham Hotspur, has previously expressed a desire to play in Spain.

But Pennant may now opt to sit tight and walk away for nothing at the end of the campaign and join Milan, against whom he was the star performer in Liverpool’s 2-1 Champions League final defeat in 2007.

However, the Italians will not be able to prise Pennant’s team-mate Agger away from Anfield this month.

Milan have been tracking the Denmark international since it emerged talks have stalled over a fresh deal for the centre-back, who has less than 18 months remaining on his current contract.

With no agreement yet in sight, the Italian giants are preparing to take advantage by lodging an £8.5m bid for the 24-year-old.

But Benitez has no intention of losing any key squad members as his team press for silverware both home and abroad.

And Liverpool will also resist any efforts to take Andrea Dossena back to Italy this month after Emiliano Insua was ruled out for a month after being called up by Argentina for the Under-20 South American Championships in Venezuela.

Insua will miss this weekend’s game at Stoke City, the double header with Everton, the trip to Wigan Athletic and the home clash with Chelsea.

Young reserve defender Ronald Huth, who has been selected to represent Paraguay, will also take part in the bi-annual tournament, which runs from January 19 until February 8.