Blow for Chelsea as Milan insist Andrea Pirlo will stay

Milan owner Silvio Berlusconi made the announcement following a 90-minute lunch meeting with vice-president Adriano Galliani and coach Leonardo.

"Andrea Pirlo is officially off the market - he will stay with us," said Berlusconi. "We received some important offers for him, especially from Carlo Ancelotti who wanted to take Pirlo to Chelsea with him.

"But we decided that he will stay. Leonardo told us that Pirlo is too important for our team. So we decided he will end his career here at Milan."

The Italians had rejected an offer of £7m plus striker Claudio Pizarro for Pirlo but before today it was thought they would do business for £15m.

Chelsea manager Ancelotti was ready to pay that amount for his former player as he had earmarked him for a key role in the team's new diamond formation.

Ancelotti will now have to rethink those plans but there was some good news for him today as Real Madrid announced that their mammoth £220m summer spending spree is over.

The Spanish club see the £30m deal for midfielder Xabi Alonso, who passed a medical today ahead of his move from Liverpool, as the final piece in the Bernabeu jigsaw.

After splashing out on Cristiano Ronaldo, Kaka and Karim Benzema, Real's decision to stop spending is good news for Blues manager Carlo Ancelotti, who now has a clear path to go for Franck Ribery.

Manchester United have seemingly cooled their interest in the attacking midfielder but Chelsea have continued to hold back on a bid for the Bayern Munich star as they feared Real Madrid would gazump them.

Ribery had said Madrid were the only club he'd move to but that won't now happen, according to the Spanish club's director general Jorge Valdano.

"The club needed a shake up," said Valdano. "Some very good players have come in to strengthen every position and the fans are very excited.

"With this move we end the search for new players. We continue searching for an exit for those who are surplus to requirements."

Bayern's official position now is that he can move for the exorbitant price of £85m, though it now appears down to the London club to see if that price is negotiable.

Ribery's arrival would be particularly welcome at Stamford Bridge in light of the news that Salomon Kalou could be on the verge of a move to Arsenal.