Berlusconi wants Robinho: report

AC Milan president Silvio Berlusconi, the Italy Prime Minister, wants to add Brazilian forward Robinho to his team’s attacking resources having already landed Zlatan Ibrahimovic, according to reports.

Milan landed a transfer coup over the weekend, bringing the 28-year-old Sweden striker to the club on an initial loan from Barcelona with the view to a 24-million-euro permanent deal at the end of the season.

And now Berlusconi is after Manchester City’s out-of-favour forward Robinho as well.

“It’s not down to us, if it was down to us, well that’s our intention,” he told reporters and fans outside a restaurant on Sunday night.

As for where Robinho would fit into the Milan team, which is likely to comprise a forward trident of Ronaldinho, Ibrahimovic and Pato, Berlusconi added: “Well we’ve got many possibilities and anyway, it’s better to have three players for two positions.”

Whether Robinho arrives or not, one player who might be heading out the exit door is Italy forward Marco Borriello, who expressed his dissatisfaction at the Ibrahimovic signing following the 4-0 victory over Lecce.

On whether the 28-year-old will be leaving, Berlusconi said: “Borriello will decide, he knows what the situation is and he’ll decide what’s best for his career.”

However, there is no doubt who the president expects to be playing week in, week out.

“In a certain sense it’s the best (attack) we’ve had since (Marco) Van Basten,” he said.

“Ronaldinho is the best player in the history of football, Pato is a great player and Ibra has won eight national titles.”

Ibrahimovic actually has six titles: three with Inter, one with Barca and two with Ajax but Berlusconi was also counting the two titles Juventus were stripped of for match-fixing in 2005 and 2006 when the Swede was their attacking spearhead.

One thing that is indisputable is that Berlusconi is expecting a new attacking style of play from his team with Massimiliano Allegri at the helm and he hit out at the tactics of Allegri’s predecessors Carlo Ancelotti and Leonardo.

“I fell out of love with Milan because I wasn’t reflected in the team that Leonardo put on the pitch,” he said.

“Ronaldinho was too far left, Pato too much on the right and then in the last minutes of the games we never had control of the ball.

“Ancelotti and Leonardo did not share the club’s ideas. I’m tied to them by excellent personal relationships but I didn’t agree with the way they made Milan play.

“I’ve told Allegri that we’ve started well and we have to continue this way. We have a great relationship and the important thing is that he shares the club’s ideas.”