Mario Balotelli is poised to fly to Italy as early as Monday evening ahead of a proposed medical as Manchester City and AC Milan moved to conclude negotiations over a transfer for the striker, Goal.com reports.
The 22-year-old said his goodbyes to team-mates and club staff after completing training at Carrington on Monday morning, and could travel to Milan over the next 24 hours.
Super agent Mino Raiola was in Milan last week in an attempt to resolve the Italy international’s future and Rossoneri Vice-president Adriano Galliani suggested on Sunday evening that there had been new developments in the saga.
On Wednesday, Goal.com revealed that City owners had lowered their asking price to €23m having dismissed Milan’s proposal of €29m to be paid over six years, preferring a lesser fee spread over a shorter period of time.
The Premier League champions had also demanding a 15 per cent sell-on clause as an agreement with Milan appears increasingly likely before the transfer window closes on Thursday night.
AC Milan, according to reports, is willing to sell defender Philippe Mexes in order to free up around €4.5m-a-year on their wage bill and fund a move for Balotelli, with the Italian international willing to take a wage cut on his current €129,000-a-week salary.
The former Inter Milan star has scored only one league goal for City this season and his relationship with manager Roberto Mancini took another turn for the worse after a training ground bust-up earlier this month.