Milan don’t have the money to bid for Manchester City striker Mario Balotelli in the January transfer window, the Serie A club’s owner Silvio Berlusconi said yesterday.

“There is absolutely no negotiation taking place for Balotelli, we can’t allow that sort of thing anymore,” he insisted in reference to the weakened financial might of his club and the Italian league in general in the current economic crisis.

Speculation over Balotelli’s possible return home from Manchester City intensified on Friday a day after the striker’s daughter was born in his native Italy.

The Italy international, who is enduring a turbulent season at the English Premier League champions, has admitted to supporting Milan, with domestic media also claiming that his former club Inter and champions Juve are also chasing the player’s signature.

La Gazzetta dello Sport carried a front page picture of Balotelli wearing a jersey with the colours of all three Italian clubs.

While both Milan and Juventus are said to be looking for an out-and-out striker in the mould of Balotelli, Inter reportedly have a buy-back option on the man they sold to City for €22 million in August 2010, a sale on which the Nerazzurri made a profit of over €21 million.