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Hughes hits out at Manchester City critics
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Your support makes all the difference.Manchester City manager Mark Hughes has hit out at critics of his club's audacious move for Brazilian super star Kaka and claimed the Blues have not even begun to negotiate the financial terms of any transfer.
AC Milan have indicated City would be willing to pay £108m as a transfer fee for the 26-year-old, with a massive weekly wage, estimated in some quarters to be £500,000.
But Hughes, while not exactly claiming such figures were wide of the mark, defended City's position.
While some may wonder at how the football club can justify such a deal in times of financial hardship across the globe, the City manager feels his club are just adopting a professional edge in trying to make themselves one of the top teams in Europe.
"I have been a little disappointed about some of the reactions to the prospect of a fantastic player coming to City," Hughes told the Manchester Evening News.
"There are some elements of the media who are talking about a deal and how much Kaka is going to earn when those things are a long way from being talked about.
"It is being said that the player is going to get a level of wealth that some people are saying is obscene when the club are not even having those talks yet.
"People are going to have to bide their time and realise it is not a deal that is going to happen in 24 hours."
City are likely to meet Kaka's influential father Bosco Leite at some point in the next 24 hours before further discussions with Milan vice president Adriano Galliani.
It is thought Milan will do a deal at the price City have stipulated as it would allow them to wipe away a vast part of their current debt.
Milan's supporters are not too happy though and made their displeasure felt at the San Siro during Saturday's win over Fiorentina.
However their unhappiness is unlikely to play a part in the end decision, which Hughes is fully supportive of the City board as they try to complete one of the most amazing transfers of all time.
"We are very much together on the fact that we want to bring one of the top players in the world to City," he said.
"That is the motivation behind this whole situation. The owners understand it will take a long time to get where we want to and are more prudent than perhaps is being portrayed."
While efforts to sign Kaka continue, the Blues also hope to tie up the transfers of Holland international Nigel De Jong from Hamburg and also Craig Bellamy from West Ham.
Tottenham manager Harry Redknapp admitted yesterday he feared Bellamy would sign for City even though he is keen to take the Wales international to White Hart Lane. And speculation has now surfaced that City have had a bid accepted by West Ham for the player, meaning a deal could be done in time for Bellamy to face Newcastle at Eastlands on January 28.
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