City close in on Kaka and Bellamy

Berlusconi clears way for Brazilian's exit while deals for Palacios, Given and £15m Hammers striker look likely

(Reuters)

The owner of Milan, Silvio Berlusconi, appeared to clear the way for Kaka's departure to Manchester City yesterday, declaring it would be difficult for him to say no to the club's riches. Milan's match with Fioren-tina at the San Siro last night provided Berlusconi with a sense of the scale of opposition to the player leaving for £100 million. But the Italian prime minister believes the club can weather the storm, and his declaration that he cannot match the wage being offered by City is a deliberate piece of positioning, aimed at creating the impression that Milan are powerless to stand in City's way.

Kaka is understood to be hesitant about accepting the deal, but Berlusconi said the money on offer may persuade the 26-year-old to move. "It is still 'No' and nothing is decided," Berlusconi said. "But it is very difficult to make someone stay after they've seen such a wage. For a man that does not have a job for life, it would be difficult to say no."

Berlusconi said Milan had no plans to try to match City's salary offer. "I can't raise a wage that is already at the maximum level," he said. "If so I would have to raise the wages of all our players, which frankly isn't possible. I hope he stays, but let's see."

City were awaiting a response last night to their increased bid for Newcastle's keeper Shay Given, believed to be about £10m, and Steve Bruce was also resigned to Mark Hughes signing Wilson Palacios. "I don't know whether the [£13m] offer has gone in officially,"the Wigan manager said. "But how can I deny the lad the opportunity?" Hughes sought to deflect attention away from the bid for Palacios. "I wasn't concentrating on his performance," he said. But he did not disguise his desire to bring Kaka to Eastlands. "I'd love the opportunity to work with such a natural player," he said.

City's 1-0 win against Wigan was not convincing, though it did take the side up to 11th ahead of an initialmeeting with Kaka's father and chief advisor, expected early next week.

In an extraordinary twist last night, Craig Bellamy indicated to West Ham United that he now wants to join City – a day after demanding a move to Tottenham Hotspur. The 29-year-old striker will not feature for West Ham in today's game with Fulham after claiming that his "head was not right". Bellamy had a heated meeting with West Ham's chief executive, Scott Duxbury, on Friday in which he demanded a move to Spurs but was told, again, that he is not for sale. The Welsh striker then asked to be excused from training and returned home.

West Ham will consider a fee of £15m for Bellamy, who has accepted that he can only leave if the valuation is met and that he cannot join Spurs. He has told West Ham he now hopes to join City.

Meanwhile, the Liverpool manager,Rafa Benitez, has denied that he will walk away from the club this summer even though talks about a new contract have broken down. While happy with the financial terms, he wants more control over transfers. Expanding on the disagreement yesterday, he said: "If you have £20m, you can sign five players for £4m or one of £20m. Who will know? The manager, because he knows what he needs in the squad. It's clear."