Football
Ben Gladwell, Italy correspondent 8y

Mario Balotelli to return to Liverpool from AC Milan - Silvio Berlusconi

AC Milan president Silvio Berlusconi has confirmed that Mario Balotelli is on his way back to Liverpool having failed to earn a new contract with his club, while Alex, Philippe Mexes and Kevin-Prince Boateng will also be leaving the San Siro.

Balotelli, 25, scored only one Serie A goal during a season-long loan deal with the Rossoneri and he has just been left out of the Italy squad for Euro 2016.

His poor form has also convinced Milan not to make use of an option to buy which they had arranged as part of the loan deal with the Reds, and Berlusconi has confirmed he is no longer a Milan player, adding that several others are also going to be released this summer.

"Balotelli's contract with us has expired and there are going to be many players leaving us," Berlusconi told Telelombardia. "Players like Alex, Mexes, Boateng and Balotelli are all out of contract and there will be others released too.

"Even if the Chinese [investors] arrive, they still want me to be responsible for the transfer market."

Berlusconi added that the likelihood of the latest takeover bid being successful is high, saying he has a good feeling about the group of Chinese investors who are currently in negotiations with him to buy Milan.

"I have made my intentions to sell Milan clear," Berlusconi said. "Thirty years is a long time and I've given a lot to our Milan and the final act is to find people who are serious and have money, and I'm still waiting.

"There's this American study [group] in contact with Chinese investors who appear to be serious. One of their conditions is that I stay on [as president] for three years. I'm confident. I hope that my impression can also become a decision.

"I need to pass the club into the hands of somebody who is capable of injecting the necessary funds to ensure Milan become protagonists again and that kind of money either comes from China or from oil, and I am in contact with both of these worlds."

Berlusconi has been Milan's owner for 30 years, although the last three years will go down as the most unsuccessful in those three decades, with Milan failing to qualify for Europe for three years in a row.

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