Chelsea deny record bid for Kaka
Chelsea have denied any contact with Milan over the transfer of Kaka
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Wednesday, 03, Jun 2009 10:39
Chelsea have denied reports linking them to a world record bid for Brazilian playmaker Kaka.
Yesterday reports in Spain claimed Real Madrid were close to securing the transfer of the 27-year-old from AC Milan for a fee of £56 million.
However, Kaka then released a statement claiming he was happy to remain in Italy with Milan.
This seemingly left the door open for a bid from Chelsea who have just secured Kaka's manager at AC Milan for the last six seasons, Carlo Ancelotti, as their manager for next season.
But the west London club have now dismissed reports that they have attempted to hijack Real's bid for Kaka with an offer of £73.5 million – which would be a world record transfer fee.
A statement from the Blues said: "We have never made an offer to AC Milan for Kaka and therefore not one at this extraordinary level.
"As a consequence we have not discussed a salary with the player either. Any reports to the contrary are totally untrue."
Italian prime minister and AC Milan owner Silvio Berlusconi has now said he expects the situation to be resolved on Monday, with the decision being left up to Kaka himself.
"I will talk with Kaka next Monday and on Monday I will be able to reveal the decision," he told Italian television programme Rai.
"It is always our lads who must decide where they want to play. Now we will see."
In January Milan reportedly received a bid of £100 million from Manchester City for Kaka which was met with fierce protests from the club's fans, prompting AC to keep hold of the player.
However, on Wednesday only a few fans attended a protest against selling the player.