Mino Raiola disagrees with the allegation that he is money-hungry. The personal merits of the agent are regularly highlighted: reported in 2017 Football Leaks for example that Raiola was left with a total of 49 million euros from the transfer of Paul Pogba from Juventus to Manchester United in 2016. In an interview with the BBC Raiola calls it ‘not nice to always hear the same prejudice’, namely: that he is stingy.
In the book Football Leaks: The Dirty Business of Football It could be read that in 2017 a quarter of the transfer fee for Pogba, 27 of the 105 million euros, ended up in Raiola’s pockets. During Pogba’s contract, the super attorney would earn an additional EUR 19.5 million over five terms. His total earnings would be around 49 million euros. People might also think: if that man is so stingy and so bad, why are all his players so happy with him and why are they staying with him? I would be lying if I said it doesn’t bother me, ”said Raiola, citing one of his best-known clients to defend his performance as an agent.
“How can you judge from the outside whether I am a good agent for Zlatan Ibrahimovic? The only one who can judge that is Ibra myself “, emphasizes the Dutch Italian.” I have no power and no influence …. My job is to close the best possible deal for my player. Nothing more or less. To do that, I have to assist my player in all kinds of ways that people don’t know about at all. My players don’t call me a parasite, and I work for them. I just care what my players call me. “
Raiola caused a stir in December when he indicated just before Manchester United’s decisive Champions League group match against RB Leipzig that it would be best for Pogba to find a new club in January. Dimitar Berbatov called the statements ’embarrassing’ and ‘ill-timed’, but Raiola does not believe he influenced Manchester United’s shape. “I just gave an opinion. I didn’t want to cause any problems. I don’t think it really panicked anyone as Manchester United have put in a fantastic series of games and they even topped the league.”
“Do you really think people like Paul Pogba and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, who have won everything, will panic because of what Mino Raiola says?” The advocate wonders aloud. “Come on, please say. But I’m not talking about it anymore. That might be a bit boring, but it is what it is. If I give my opinion, then the whole of England goes crazy, and I’m suddenly the worst or right. the best agent. The clubs are so panicked by public opinion and journalists that I have learned not to talk much about it anymore. “