Carlos Tevez has warned he will leave Manchester United if he gets a suitable offer after becoming frustrated at the lack of progress over talks to turn his loan deal at Old Trafford into a permanent contract. The Argentinian also risked the anger of Sir Alex Ferguson by saying he would like to play for Real Madrid.

As Ferguson tried to increase the pressure on Liverpool by claiming that Rafael Benítez's team will get "nervous" during the run-in for the Premier League title, United's manager found himself in an uncomfortable situation of his own thanks to Tevez's remarks.

The Argentina forward rejected suggestions that he had turned down an offer from United and reiterated his desire for a swift resolution. He joined the club on loan from West Ham in 2007 and has become tired of waiting for that temporary deal, which runs out next summer, to become a long-term arrangement.

"Now all clubs are on an equal footing. If a club comes to me and offers me a five-year deal, I will accept it for peace of mind," the 24-year-old told a radio station in his homeland. "I will sign my last contract, and then I figure that I'll go back to Boca [Juniors]. That could be in four or five years. I want everybody to know no offer has been made. I don't like that they are playing with our fans, who show their love to me in each match."

The Argentinian also made remarks about Real likely to displease his manager. "Who wouldn't want to play for Real Madrid," he said. "Like Manchester, they are one of the best clubs in the world and it would be a pleasure to play for them."

Tevez said that if he leaves United he wants to "quit on good terms" but indicated he is unhappy with Ferguson for comments the manager made regarding his contract. "I didn't like him [Ferguson] saying I didn't like the offer I was made because neither my agent nor me were given one," he said. "I don't know anything on my future. United know what they must pay if they want me to stay. I want to stay but the club have not made any offer. I've been waiting for them for a year and a half."

There is an agreement in place with Tevez's agent, Kia Joorabchian, for United to secure Tevez for £32m but the Premier League champions may be reluctant to pay that.

Milan have offered Jermaine Pennant the chance to move to San Siro on a free transfer next summer but have been warned by Liverpool that they will not succeed in any bid for Daniel Agger this month.

Pennant is surplus to requirements at Anfield and has been offered a pre-contract by the Italian club which would see him join at the end of the season. However, Rafael Benítez is determined to hold on to Agger as he tries to keep the core of Liverpool's title-chasing squad intact.

Reports in Italy yesterday claimed that Milan would capitalise on Agger's stalled contract negotiations by making an £8.5m offer for a player who will be available under a £7m 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 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 £75,000-a-week deal that he has reportedly rejected.

Benítez is determined to avoid any ­disruption this month and insists that Andrea Dossena, the left-back signed for £7m 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 Benítez 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."

Benítez's stance follows news that ­Liverpool will be without Emiliano Insúa, the 19-year-old who has replaced Dossena in the side for their last four games, until 8 February. Insúa 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.

The Liverpool manager has responded to Sunday's FA Cup draw by warning his players they cannot be distracted from their championship challenge. Benítez'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. "We must remember that we have some big games coming up. Only when the Cup game comes around will it become our focus," Benítez said.

Jamie Carragher, however, thinks 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.

The Liverpool defender said: "It is 20 years since Hillsborough and I think that anniversary makes this season's competition more important for us," he said. "It was a terrible time for the club, so I think it is important we try and do as well as we can. It is something we are all aware of. Going on to win it would be the perfect tribute to those who died."

Mark Hughes has identified a small but influential group of Manchester City players he fears are trying to lead a dressing-room mutiny against him. There has already been one meeting at which the ringleaders shared their grievances, and a fringe player has complained about Hughes to the club's executive chairman, Garry Cook.

Hughes, the latest Premier League manager to face speculation about a prospective sacking, is said to be dismayed but unsurprised by the unrest. He has been comforted by the fact he retains the backing of the majority of his squad but he has also had prolonged difficulties with some of the players he inherited from Sven-Goran Eriksson, most notably the Brazilian midfielder Elano. His relationship has also deteriorated with two of the players who were bought to the club under his management but entirely on the say-so of the former owner Thaksin Shinawatra, Tal Ben Haim and the Brazilian striker Jo.

Hughes is already seeking ways to offload several of the players he has come to regard as bad apples. Ben Haim has been offered to Blackburn as part of a proposed cash-plus-player exchange for Roque Santa Cruz that would also see City pay a fee of around £18m, and the Israel international is unlikely to be the only player to leave Eastlands.

Elano's relationship with Hughes has rarely been anything better than tepid and, despite being recognised as one of City's more talented passers, the Brazilian has created so many problems he, too, is available to potential buyers. Jo, a £19m recruit from CSKA Moscow, will also be sold or loaned if Hughes gets his way, and it is a measure of how strongly the manager feels that he is prepared for it to impact on the happiness of a third Brazilian, Robinho.

The priority for Hughes, according to well-placed sources inside the club, is to bring in new players and he remains hopeful of taking his spending at City over the £100m mark this week by concluding the deal for Santa Cruz as well as the £12m capture of West Ham's Scott Parker. City have also resurrected their interest in Kolo Touré of Arsenal and lodged a bid for Parker's team-mate, Craig Bellamy, with a back-up offer in place to take on Tottenham Hotspur in the market for Portsmouth's Jermain Defoe. Shay Given, the Newcastle United goalkeeper, is also on Hughes's wish-list.

Once City have worked through that list of names, however, Hughes will confirm to Cook there are several players with whom he feels he can no longer work - some because of their ability but others because of their attitude.

Potential buyers will be encouraged to look at a list that includes Dietmar Hamann, Michael Ball, Javier Garrido, Kasper Schmeichel, Nedum Onuoha and Darius Vassell.

Cook is sympathetic towards the manager and made that perfectly clear to the player who complained to him. However, quotes attributed to Cook yesterday, insisting there is no danger of Hughes being sacked, came from a month-old interview ? before the run of games that saw City briefly drop into the Premier League's relegation zone as well as being humiliated in the FA Cup on Saturday by a Nottingham Forest side currently fourth from bottom of the Championship.

That 3-0 defeat has led to calls for Hughes's head from some supporters, although he is still thought to retain the backing of the club's billionaire owners in Abu Dhabi. Yet Hughes's problems can be gauged by the fact that one of the players who was involved in Saturday's game was seen laughing and joking in the showers directly afterwards.