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The Honolulu Advertiser
Updated at 3:17 a.m., Tuesday, January 20, 2009

Soccer: Man City accuses Milan of reneging on Kaka deal

By ROB HARRIS
AP Sports Writer

MANCHESTER, England — Manchester City accused AC Milan on Tuesday of reneging on an initial agreement to sell Kaka to the Premier League side.

Executive chairman Garry Cook sharply criticized the Serie A club, a day after leading City's delegation to Milan hoping to complete the world-record transfer of 100 million pounds ($147 million, €111 million).

The proposal fell through Monday night with Milan and the Brazilian star announcing that he was staying in Italy.

"We had entered into a confidentiality agreement weeks ago," Cook said. "But what got in the way was the behavior of AC Milan and I think they bottled it (backed out)."

"We had gone through a three or four-stage process in which Milan made it quite clear Kaka was for sale and we made it clear we intended to bring him to Manchester City," Cook said. "As we got to the next stage there were questions they could not answer and I think the political and public pressure made them change their conditions."

Cook met Monday with Kaka's father and chief adviser, Bosco Leite, for about two hours.

"His father said he was very interested in the project and we talked about humanitarian potential factors but when we got into discussions those issues took a back seat and financial demands came to the fore," Cook said.

Cook said City would now turn its attention to other potential signings.

"We'll continue on our journey but he (Kaka) won't be a part of it," Cook said. "Deals with the greatest players are more than complex."