The great race for Kaká has started.
On Thursday the Brazilian midfielder claimed he is on the way out of Real Madrid, despite scoring twice in a friendly with Deportivo La Coruna.
“I have less and less of a place on the team,’' says Kaká. “The club knows that I would like to leave and I want it to help me find a solution for my exit.”
And while a move to Major League Soccer has long been rumored for the former World Player of the Year, the Madrid playmaker believes staying in Europe is his only option and also ruled out a switch to any Brazilian sides.
“I cannot go to Brazil because the market is closed, the exit would be within Europe,” Kaká said. “I don’t want to talk about clubs because I have none at this stage.”
But why has Kaká all of a sudden decided to change his tune after largely being a squad player over the past three seasons at Madrid? His quality is undoubted but under José Mourinho, Kaká's talents just didn’t fit into the managers philosophy. The 31-year-old Brazilian superstar may have thought things would change under new Madrid manager Carlo Ancelotti, Kaká's manager at AC Milan during the best years of his career, but he still finds himself on the fringes of Real’s starting lineup.
“Things are difficult for me here, there is less room in the squad all the time,” Kaká explained. “I am ready every day to train and work but that does not mean that I am happy.”
An unhappy Kaká has once and for all made it clear: he wants out of the Spanish capital.
But where can he go? Plenty of clubs would want to sign him, of course, but his huge wage demands whittle it down to just a few. But first things first, Kaká would have to take a huge wage-cut to move elsewhere and these comments suggest he is now willing to do that. A return to his former club AC Milan could be on, especially as Milan are to set to offload attacking midfielder Kevin-Prince Boateng to Schalke later today.
(MORE: Kaká set to loose number 8 shirt at Real Madrid)
The most likely option is that Kaká will head back to Milan to regain his happiness and play for the team where he won the Champions League and numerous other titles. But could a move to the Premier League with Manchester United or Arsenal also be in the reckoning?
Both teams are on the lookout for influential attackers who have played at the highest level and can operate across the midfield, surely they must consider making a late swoop for the Brazilian as he looks to get regular soccer to try and break into Luis Felipe Scolari’s Brazilian national team before next summer’s World Cup.
With three days to go until the window shuts, Kaká's search for a new club in Europe will have to be a quick one. But who wants him?