Kaka's Man City transfer deal in doubt

LONDON (AFP) – Manchester City's reported world record bid for AC Milan's Brazilian playmaker Kaka hung in the balance on Thursday with conflicting reports on how the transfer talks were progressing.
The club's assistant manager Mark Bowen told the BBC that a deal was "very close", but an Arabian business website insisted that talks had broken down.
Reports on Wednesday said that the Abu Dhabi-owned City had proferred a staggering 100 million pounds (110 million euros, 150 million dollars) to acquire the services of the 26-year-old former World Player of the Year and that club officials had met with their Italian counterparts in Milan.
"We have understood there have been negotiations for a fair while now and as far as we are concerned we believe a deal is very close," Bowen, who is assistant to head coach Mark Hughes at Eastlands told the BBC.
"I've read a lot about his love of AC Milan - and that goes without saying - but even when people said the deal was dead, that was not our understanding.
"We are still hopeful of still signing Kaka."
That view was not shared by Arabianbusiness.com which cited a "senior source close to the club's owners" as saying that the deal was off.
The unnamed source was quoted as saying: "The deal is off, and the offer is no longer on the table. The club is now pursuing another striker which it is very close to signing. Manchester City is about to unveil a new striker, but he is not called Kaka."
City manager Hughes, however, was quick to dismiss those reports telling a press conference: "I've seen these reports but you have to bear in mind that the people who are being given a platform to speak do not represent the owner (Sheikh Mansour) or (chairman) Khaldoon (Al Mubarak).
"In my opinion they should not be given a platform to say what they have because in this instance it is completely untrue because negotiations are still taking place."
"It would be naive to think I have not been involved in discussions over this transfer. I have had meetings about it and have had an input.
"It is impossible to say whether it will go through or not but we will let everyone know when there is something to say."
And reports in the Italian press suggest that the move is very much alive with Milan themselves seemingly keen to push it through.
The Gazzetta dello Sport claimed that Milan gave Manchester City permission to talk to Kaka on Tuesday with City representative and notorious Iranian-born agent Kia Joorabchian making contact with Kaka's father and agent Bosco.
Kaka himself was quoted as saying that he was happy to stay at AC Milan if the club did not want to sell him, but he has given every indication in the past that he would love to play in the English Premiership at some stage in his career.
He is already one of the best paid players in the world and his spokesman Diogo Kotscho said it would not be money that would prove decisive.
"It's not impossible for Ricky (Kaka) to transfer to Manchester City as long as the English club demonstrates it is preparing to become one of the best teams in the world," he said.
"Even so it will be very difficult to reach agreement with Milan, but if Manchester City present a good project and prove capable of attracting other players of the highest level to become one of the best clubs in the world, like Milan, then we can begin transfer proceedings.
"The English championship is one of the best and Kaka would like to play in it. But I don't know if it will be the right way forward."