Blues boost in Fabrizio Miccoli chase

Birmingham's chase for Italian striker Fabrizio Miccoli was given a shock boost today after his club Palermo confirmed they are willing to sell.

Blues have already had a £4m bid rejected for the 30-year-old but the Serie A outfit admit they will bow to Miccoli's wish to leave.

Palermo slapped a hands- off warning on the striker earlier this month but now Rosenaro sporting director Walter Sabatini says they will reluctantly sell him.

"Our president was very clear about Miccoli, but if he wants to play in the Premier League then we will try to please him, even though we know he is an important part of our squad," he said. "Palermo know how to manage certain players, but we do not want to stress the will of the player."

Miccoli scored 19 goals as Palermo finished fifth in Serie A last season, just missing out on a Champions League spot.

He is keen on Blues and will meet with the Palermo hierarchy to try to force through a move to St Andrew's. "It's a normal offer, I will speak to the president about it," he said.

Blues have been tracking Miccoli all season and he is a like-for-like replacement for Christian Benitez. Miccoli fits the bill after an impressive career in Europe since bursting onto the scene at

Juventus in 2002. He moved to Fiorentina for £6m before being loaned out to Benfica ahead of joining Palermo in 2007.

He has scored 40 goals in 86 league games for Palermo and has been capped 10 times by Italy, scoring twice.