AC Milan appears closer to signing Real Madrid's unsettled Brazil striker Ronaldo.
Milan CEO Adriano Galliani on Wednesday met with Real exec Franco Baldini, the first direct contact between the clubs since they failed to agree terms in August.
"Ronaldo has said he only wants Milan and he has the club's OK to pursue the transfer," Galliani told ANSA, He said he hopes to fly to Madrid Monday for the next stage in the talks, "if things go right".
However, the Milan No.2 denied recent reports that a deal was very close.
The meeting with Baldini, he said, was "inconclusive," Galliani admitted.
There therefore appears to be no change in the main sticking point, Milan's demand for a free transfer Real reportedly wants $13 million for the three-time Fifa World Player of the Year. According to Italian newspapers, Galliani has agreed personal terms for the move in a meeting with Ronaldo's agent.
If a deal is made, Ronaldo's new contract would run until the summer of 2008, just like his existing deal with the Spanish giants.
AC would effectively take the star, who Real boss Fabio Capello does not intend to use any more, and his hefty wage bill off Real's hands.
The latest whispers from those in the know is that Ronaldo is willing to fork out some five million euros to get out of his Real contract.
He is prepared to do this, soccer watchers say, because his existing contract requires him to split his huge sponsorship revenue 50-50 with the Spanish club.
The new contract with Milan will have no such stipulation, sources familiar with the negotiations say.
Even though his best days are behind him, Ronaldo could still provide much-needed finishing skills for Milan, whose attack is suffering a goal drought.
Italy star Pippo Inzaghi and Brazilian striker Carlos Oliveira - deputising for off-form Italy forward Alberto Gilardino - have failed to find the net in Milan's last two games. AC Milan coach Carlo Ancelotti was tight-lipped about Ronaldo Wednesday, saying his mind was on Thursday's Italian Cup semi-final first leg against Roma.
Ancelotti has repeatedly indicated he thinks the Real talks will go down to the wire - the closure of Italian soccer's mid-season transfer window at the end of the month.
Real Chairman Raul Calderon has repeatedly ruled out a free transfer but there is reason to believe a compromise can still be found, insiders say.
The 30-year-old one-time 'Phenomenon' wants to keep playing for a big club in a top championship, unlike his team-mate David Beckham and former Real colleague Luis Figo, who have been lured to less prestigious leagues by massive offers from American and Saudi clubs respectively.
And Real will not find it easy to offload a player with such a high salary anywhere else.
Although past his prime, Italian soccer pundits say Ronaldo would strengthen a Milan attack weakened by the departure of Andriy Shevchenko last summer.
If a deal is sealed, it will be a field day for the Italian media, which has long been waiting to hail the return of a prodigal son.
Ronaldo plied his trade with Milan's cross-town rivals Inter for five seasons between 1997 and 2002.
His term at Inter was dogged by injuries and latterly a running feud with coach Héctor Cúper, but he still scored a string of memorable goals.
It was while he was an Inter player, in 1998, that Ronaldo suffered a still-mysterious fit ahead of Brazil's 3-0 defeat to France in the World Cup Final.
He was still on Inter's books when, after two operations and 20 months of rehabilitation, he came back for the 2002 FIFA World Cup, in which he scored two goals against Germany in securing Brazil's fifth World Cup title.
Ronaldo scored against every team he came up against except England in the quarter finals and was the top scorer of the tournament with eight goals.
Later in 2002 he won the World Player of the Year award for the third time and transferred to Real Madrid for approximately 40 million euros.
