Behind the great players are always hidden men in the shadows…but who could sometimes take the light. Mino Raiola was one of those characters. The famous 54-year-old Italian agent, who died this Saturday following an illness, had taken many football stars under his wing, not without a few splinters. He notably took care of the career of French world champion Paul Pogba and therefore played a major role in his transfer from Juventus Turin to Manchester United in 2016. An operation for which he received a triple commission of an amount total estimated at 49 million euros.
A name long linked to PSG
But that’s obviously not all. The name of Mino Raiola is certainly no stranger to Paris Saint-Germain supporters since many players, past or present at the club, belonged to the Raiola “galaxy”. The two Italians Marco Verratti and Gianluigi Donnarumma for example but especially Zlatan Ibrahimovic, 3rd best scorer in the history of the club. The Swedish striker was the base man of the raiola empire, the one on which the agent built his reputation as a robust negotiator. He had recovered the rights of Zlatan’s best friend, a certain Maxwell.
The 2018 world champion Blaise Matuidi, who wore the Parisian jersey between 2011 and 2017, was also one of Mino Raiola’s foals, as were Alphonse Areola and even Moise Kean, on loan to PSG last season.
Abroad, Raiola was also the agent of new Norwegian star Erling Haaland and would certainly have had his work cut out next summer, with the Dortmund striker being tracked by many European teams. The Dutch defender of Juventus Matthijs De Ligt had also placed his trust in the Italian.
Among the iconic players in the bosom of Mino Raiola, we can mention the Italian striker Mario Balotelli, passed by Inter Milan, AC Milan or even OGC Nice and Olympique de Marseille in France. In the 2000s, he was also the agent of the Czech midfielder Pavel Nedved, a true legend of Juventus Turin and winner of the Golden Ball in 2003. The Brazilian Robinho or the rough Dutchman Mark Van Bommel also did business with Mino Raiola. The iconic agent leaves behind a vast empire with an uncertain future.
