On-loan Los Angeles Galaxy star David Beckham could stay on at AC Milan until the end of the season on a 'timeshare' agreement, although the Italian club have said no deal has been struck yet.
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David Beckham: Loan is up on March 9
The future of the England international is reportedly close to being concluded, but AC Milan chief Adriani Galliani told the club's official website: ''I have read that everything is resolved but that is not the case. The deal is not resolved.
''We are in fact working on the possibility that he remains on loan until June 30 but no agreement has been reached.''
On Monday, Galliani confirmed the club's intention to sign Beckham, but revealed their idea was now to extend his loan until June - after which point he will return to LA Galaxy, and then in January he will join the club for free as he has a clause in his contract which allows him to leave the MLS in November.
"I hope I succeed in sorting it out that he stays until 30th June," Galliani told the club's television station. "After that he can go back to Los Angeles, before returning to us next January.
"That is what we are trying to do. It is complicated as we always knew it would be, but we are still trying."
Galaxy have insisted that Beckham will return to the States on March 9, but the player has already publicly confirmed his desire to stay in Italy beyond his current loan agreement.
If his loan is extended he will rejoin the American side midway through the MLS season where he would have already missed 17 games and would then be free to transfer to Milan in the new year.
Milan are keen to sign Beckham to a permanent deal but are unwilling to pay £10 million - the valuation LA Galaxy have put on the midfielder - for the star who has impressed in Italy making nine Serie A starts and scoring twice.
Coach Carlo Ancelotti has also revealed he had no intention of playing Beckham when he showed up to train with the Rossoneri but was quickly won over by his work ethic.
''At the beginning he (Beckham) was set to train with us for two months and I didn't think about playing him,'' said Ancelotti in an interview with Foot Magazine. ''Then, I saw how he trained and I had no choice. We tried to get him four years earlier and two years ago but the negotiations faded away.
''I can say he is a great player. He has won me over with his performances and his character.''
Ancelotti believes the 33-year-old former Manchester United and Real Madrid star has improved with age and even said aspects of his game were better than former FIFA World Player of the Year Kaka.
''On the pitch, Beckham sees everything before everyone else,'' said Ancelotti. ''His vision of play is better now than during his time in Manchester and in that respect, he has nothing to envy Kaka for.
''He is slower but much stronger tactically and technically. He is very intelligent and works a lot.''
Ancelotti followed up his praise for Beckham with criticism of Ronaldinho. The Brazil playmaker has failed to impress following his move from Barcelona with the Milan boss hinting he was not working hard enough on the training field.
''Players like him (Ronaldinho) base everything on talent,'' said Ancelotti. ''I have coached many great players and the majority think they can make the difference just with talent. This is not true.
''In modern football if you don't have good physical condition and work in training it's difficult to shine in a game.''
ChristofKoepsel/GettyImages
David Beckham: Loan is up on March 9
The future of the England international is reportedly close to being concluded, but AC Milan chief Adriani Galliani told the club's official website: ''I have read that everything is resolved but that is not the case. The deal is not resolved.
''We are in fact working on the possibility that he remains on loan until June 30 but no agreement has been reached.''
On Monday, Galliani confirmed the club's intention to sign Beckham, but revealed their idea was now to extend his loan until June - after which point he will return to LA Galaxy, and then in January he will join the club for free as he has a clause in his contract which allows him to leave the MLS in November.
"I hope I succeed in sorting it out that he stays until 30th June," Galliani told the club's television station. "After that he can go back to Los Angeles, before returning to us next January.
"That is what we are trying to do. It is complicated as we always knew it would be, but we are still trying."
Galaxy have insisted that Beckham will return to the States on March 9, but the player has already publicly confirmed his desire to stay in Italy beyond his current loan agreement.
If his loan is extended he will rejoin the American side midway through the MLS season where he would have already missed 17 games and would then be free to transfer to Milan in the new year.
Milan are keen to sign Beckham to a permanent deal but are unwilling to pay £10 million - the valuation LA Galaxy have put on the midfielder - for the star who has impressed in Italy making nine Serie A starts and scoring twice.
Coach Carlo Ancelotti has also revealed he had no intention of playing Beckham when he showed up to train with the Rossoneri but was quickly won over by his work ethic.
''At the beginning he (Beckham) was set to train with us for two months and I didn't think about playing him,'' said Ancelotti in an interview with Foot Magazine. ''Then, I saw how he trained and I had no choice. We tried to get him four years earlier and two years ago but the negotiations faded away.
''I can say he is a great player. He has won me over with his performances and his character.''
Ancelotti believes the 33-year-old former Manchester United and Real Madrid star has improved with age and even said aspects of his game were better than former FIFA World Player of the Year Kaka.
''On the pitch, Beckham sees everything before everyone else,'' said Ancelotti. ''His vision of play is better now than during his time in Manchester and in that respect, he has nothing to envy Kaka for.
''He is slower but much stronger tactically and technically. He is very intelligent and works a lot.''
Ancelotti followed up his praise for Beckham with criticism of Ronaldinho. The Brazil playmaker has failed to impress following his move from Barcelona with the Milan boss hinting he was not working hard enough on the training field.
''Players like him (Ronaldinho) base everything on talent,'' said Ancelotti. ''I have coached many great players and the majority think they can make the difference just with talent. This is not true.
''In modern football if you don't have good physical condition and work in training it's difficult to shine in a game.''