AC Milan will have to fight off another Real Madrid bid to sign Brazil star Kaka when the mid-season transfer window opens, according to Spanish press reports.
The nine-time European champions, whose persistent wooing of Kaka has irked Milan in the past, are said to be preparing a 60-million-euro bid for the playmaker.
Real Chairman Ramon Calderon is reportedly hoping to take advantage of Kaka being disillusioned at Milan's current plight.
The Serie A side are a lowly 15th in the league, 26 points behind leaders Inter.
Spanish sports daily AS reported Wednesday that Real intend to use the money from a massive television-rights deal with a company called Mediapro to finance the move.
It claimed Milan may be tempted to accept, as the cash could be used to tempt Brazil sensation Ronaldinho away from Barcelona.
With his swift, strong runs and telling passes, Kaka is the creative spark behind the Milan attack.
He has a keen eye for the net too.
The Brazilian has scored 33 goals in Serie A and 16 in the Champions League since coming to Italy in 2003.
When speculation linked him to Real in the past, Kaka has always insisted he is happy at Milan and would only move if the club wanted to sell.
In the summer, the 24-year-old extended his contract at the San Siro Stadium until 2011.
Many pundits see a move to Spain in January as unlikely.
They say a transfer will be more probable at the end of the season, if Milan fail to qualify for next season's Champions League.
The Italian sports press predict that Milan will buy a defender in the transfer window to bolster their injury-hit, aging back-line.
In-form Lazio and Italy right-back Massimo Oddo is reportedly the top target.
Lazio Chairman Claudio Lotito insisted on Wednesday that his captain is not for sale, although that could be pre-negotiation posturing.
At the moment, six members of the Milan squad are in sick-bay, including defenders Serginho, Giuseppe Favalli, Alessandro Costacurta and Alessandro Nesta.
After picking up just six points from the last seven Serie A games, Milan coach Carlo Ancelotti is under intense pressure to turn things around.
The club is planning to dump Ancelotti at the end of the season, according to some media reports, and may even sack him mid-season if the poor results continue.
On Wednesday Italy's World Cup-winning coach Marcello Lippi denied Milan were lining him up as a replacement.
"I've had no talks with Milan," he insisted.
"They have said all sorts about me, that I'm going to Napoli and to Spain, but there is no truth in any of it. I'm resting until next year".
