Real Madrid tell AC Milan: £100M for Van Nistelrooy

Real Madrid have warned AC Milan off star striker Ruud van Nistelrooy.

Reacting to reports that Milan had offered £4 million for the Dutchman, a senior Real director told Marca: "Van Nistelrooy is not for sale and whoever wants sign him will have to pay his buyout clause (£100 million).



"Why are we going to release him if we've just renewed his contract? I'm sure that next season he will again be one of the best goleadores. We rely on him and he is very important for us."

AC Milan ace Kaka pleads with Gattuso to stay

Kaka has pleaded with Rino Gattuso to stay with AC Milan.

"I really cannot imagine Milan without Rino," said the Brazilian.

Asked about the arrival of Ronaldinho from Barcelona, Kaka said: "I think he could do very well here. We can play together and already have done for the Selecao. This is a team that can take many great champions in its line-up, so if more were to arrive that would be even better."

Of Chelsea striker Andriy Shevchenko, he added: "If Sheva returned then I would be very happy, because he is my friend. For various reasons he has not played consistently for the past two years, but I know he could make his contribution to Milan."

MILAN, 18 YEARS IN THE LEAD

Eighteen years photographed with the magnifying glass of statistics. The Iffhs of Wiesbaden (Germany), recognised by Fifa, make up every month the ranking, with a coefficient comprised of performances, results, and victories, of the top 25s of the whole world. From 1991 to 2007 Milan were on top of the ranking 37 times, in different periods. No team in the world has been judged to be at the top of this sport like Milan in the last 18 years.

The Rossoneri were ranked first by Iffhs Club World Ranking in the following months:

- January 1991
- February 1991
- January 1993
- February 1993
- March 1993
- April 1993
- May 1993
- June 1993
- July 1993
- August 1993
- September 1993
- October 1993
- January 1994
- February 1994
- March 1994
- April 1994
- May 1994
- June 1994
- July 1994
- August 1994
- September 1994
- October 1994
- Entire year 1995
- January 1996
- February 1996
- March 1996
- May 2003
- June 2003
- July 2003
- August 2003
- September 2003
- October 2003
- December 2003
- Entire year 2003
- January 2004
- February 2004
- April 2004

from IFFHS

WE WILL IMPROVE AND WE WILL FIGHT

ADRIANO GALLIANI

'I'm happy about the three points, this was one of our 12 finals, the first of our 12 finals, we won it, while Fiorentina lost. We are now one point away from the Viola, as we were a week before the results all changed. The battle will be until the end.'

'I was a bit tense because Milan were not playing well, our goal came in a moment when we were struggling, like it happened on Tuesday when Arsenal scored in their worst moment. I think the game changed when we scored the second goal. It reminds me of what happened at San Siro against the English. Football is like that, it should be accepted in good luck and bad luck. Today we had that bit of luck we didn't have on Tuesday.'

'Now we'll see what Juventus do tonight against Genoa, we'll see if there will be two places for three teams or one for two.'

CARLO ANCELOTTI

'This is a good result, it's certainly a positive victory, we needed it and it's good for the environment. Also, Fiorentina have lost and so now we are closer to the fourth place. A new period starts for us now which will allow us to work and to present the team at its best. Today it wasn't easy, after the great disappointment of Tuesday. This was the last game of a cycle which has seen us play non stop from 13 January until today. Now we'll have the chance to train the whole week and prepare well.'

'I didn't like Milan today. We are in a period of convalescence. Today we needed the result and it's very important that it came, even if we struggled. For the rest we will wait. With calmness we will find our best football again. The reaction was there, I think things will improve. We have to look forward and think about the next Champions League.'

'Paloschi's entrance? He's young and good, we can use him when perhaps the others are a bit tired, his freshness and his enthusiasm can help us.'

from acmilan.com

KALAC : Thank You Fans!!

"After the match against Arsenal on tuesday night the fans were great, they applauded because they understood that unfortunately you can't always win and we appreciate their understanding. Now we must focus on the league to go forward and win the fourth place. We are all very disappointed to have exited such a prestigious competition, but now Milan have to find the energy necessary to continue. In these past few months we have suffered the fact that we've had so many matches close together, but now we have the chance to prepare every match carefully and earn many important points.
Perhaps if on tuesday we had scored in the first twenty minutes everything would have turned out different, unfortunately we didn't manage it and at the end Arsenal surprised us when it was already too late.
On Sunday we have the match away to Empoli, it will certainly not be easy because we are coming off a match where we had 80.000 fans supporting us at San Siro, but we have the duty to prepare it well, especially mentally."

MILAN-ARSENAL: CALLED UP ROSSONERI

Here are the 21 players called up by Carlo Ancelotti for tomorrow's match against Arsenal:
GOALKEEPERS: Kalac, Fiori, Offredi
DEFENDERS: Bonera, Favalli, Kaladze, Maldini, Nesta, Oddo, Simic
MIDFIELDERS: Ambrosini, Gattuso, Emerson, Gourcuff, Pirlo, Seedorf
STRIKERS: Gilardino, Inzaghi, Paloschi, Pato, Kakà.

Milan's Seedorf doubtful for Arsenal clash

AC Milan's Dutch midfielder Clarence Seedorf is a doubt for Tuesday's Champions League clash at home to Arsenal after suffering a leg muscle strain in the 1-1 draw with Lazio in Serie A on Saturday.
"We'll see over the next few days, but I think it will be difficult to have him back for Tuesday," Milan coach Carlo Ancelotti told Sky television.
Seedorf pulled up after 34 minutes at the San Siro.
Ancelotti said the European champions were suffering fatigue after their fourth league draw in five games.
"We're tired but so are all the other teams, even in Europe," he said. "I don't see teams producing spectacular soccer".
Milan host Arsenal after the first leg of the last 16 tie ended goalless at The Emirates stadium.

MILAN - LAZIO photos

KAKA in MILAN For the rest of his carier

His was a life choice. An important signature which represents the will of the man and the champion Kaká to remain a rossonero, to become with every day more and more a symbol and flag of this club. The Brazilian revealed his emotions in a long interview to Milan Channel.

'I remember that a year ago Milan Channel also asked me if I wanted to stay at Milan for life. In that circumstance I did not yet have the right confidence but today I do. Now I can say it and I want to. I want to stay a Rossonero for the rest of my career, I want to stay here for life. I remember the last two summers well, full of pressures, 'Ricky goes, Ricky stays'. My renewals have always come at difficult times, like it happened in the summer of 2006 during 'calciopoli'. That's why I did not give the answer I am able to give now before. I apologize for that, but I simply did not feel like I was ready to make such a commitment. But everything is different now, and I can say it without dboubt and a lot of joy.'

'This renewal charges me up, I think about the future and I know I will stay here, forever in this winning team which always starts with the aim to win. For a player that's a good feeling. I never take decisions alone, I talked with my family, my wife Caroline. She told me: 'Ricky, if I could I would sign too.' She's happy with this decision, to remain in Milan and in this club. Milan are always special in the way they treat us.'

'This is my fifth season at Milan, I want to become a symbol, a flag, and one day a captain of this club, with respect for the hierarchies. That day will come, substituting Paolo Maldini will be a great responsibility but before me there are other players and I respect that.

'In a few months I will become a father (Ricky revealed to a subscriber that he will have a son). Caroline and I are awaiting the moment, living everything with great emotion. Every day she feels something special, something new. I stay close to her, I accompany her to each exam, it's a good feeling to know that soon we will have our first son.'

'This fourth signature of mine is a life choice. Galliani knows it, I've told him yesterday as well. What I experienced here has always been intense. I've seen players leave, not just Sheva, who then always told me to evaluate my choices carefully because Milan are different, Milan live of feelings, affection, and this for me is a special value. I am happy to live my career here.'

'I think about when I will be 31 (in 2013), I imagine I will still be in good form. Besides, in this club I only have great examples in front of me which I will try to follow. The first great model of my life was Rogerio Ceni who spent his entire career at San Paolo. Here the example is Maldini. I want to be like them. Reaching Paolo won't be easy, but I will try to come as close as possible to the great targets and statistics which regard him. Scoring many goals, winning a lot. Those are my objectives. I want to enter the history books of this club.'

'If you ask me today who is the best Italian player, I say without a doubt Andrea Pirlo. For the way he behaves on the pitch, for how he plays, he is very important for us. I always feel the difference between when he's on the pitch and when he isn't. When we play I always ask the defenders to give the ball to him, every ball goes through him, he's intelligent, he's a player who's always there in important moments. He'll be there on Tuesday. It will be tough also for him, he's playing a lot and there is some tiredness but on Tuesday he will be ready and for us it will mean a lot.'

'I feel better, yesterday I tried to run and it went well. For tomorrow I am not available, but I'm very confident I will be there on Tuesday.
This hasn't been a good period for me, physically I haven't been doing too well over the last month. The knee, the knock the other day... Physically I'm not at my best. But this week I've had the chance to work a lot, also physically. That was useful for me. I work hard to get in good form on Tuesday and do everything that people expect from me. Against Arsenal it will be a special match, I imagine a sold out San Siro, I remember Milan-Celtic of last year. In the end that turned out to be an unforgettable match, let's hope it will be the same way on Tuesday.'

Draw 1-1 (Milan vs Catania)

At the Stadio 'Massimino' of Catania, Catania-Milan finished 1-1. The Rossoneri went in front in the 55th minute through Pato. Spinesi equalised for the Sicilians in the 64th minute.