Bold, honest, arrogant, greedy. all descriptions were directed against him and even worse by Sir Alex Ferguson. He created an image with which he often enjoyed. Even his accounting firm was named Maguire Tax and Legal, as a tribute to Oscar-nominated film Jerry Maguire, where the character of Tom Cruise’s agent coined the phrase “Show me the money.” However, behind the hard facade, Raiola was a sensitive soul, a family man, hard loyal and protective of all he represented. He took the murder of Ferguson’s character as a compliment. The Manchester United coach said that he and Raiola were like “oil and water”. Football agent Mino Raiola passed away at the age of 54 on Saturday after a battle with illness “There are one or two football players I just do not like and Mino Raiola, Paul Pogba’s agent, is one of them. “I did not trust him from the beginning,” Ferguson said, before continuing to call him a “sh ** bag.” Raiola would just laugh before explaining to Sportsmail: “When Ferguson criticized me, that was the biggest compliment anyone could give me. “I had two meetings with Mr Ferguson. The first was ugly on his part, but the second, I had never had fun in my life! “He is an emblematic coach, but I still believe that the fact that the Glazers called in to sign Paul Pogba confirms that I was right to do what I did.” Raiola had even warned Pogba not to go to Juventus for fear that his young star would not have a great chance, but the Frenchman told him that he wanted to prove himself “in the difficult way”. Raiola was considered honest, rude and greedy by many in football before his death The legendary former Manchester United coach, Sir Alex Ferguson, called him a famous “bag” But behind the face, Raiola was a sensitive soul who was protective of those close to him. When asked directly what it was like to be called a “parasite”, Raiola left his guard and admitted that he would have lied if he had not upset him. “It’s not nice to always hear this bias, but maybe the audience might as well think, ‘If this guy is so greedy and so bad, how are all his players happy and staying with him?’ “The only ones who can judge are my own players.” His testimony was his amazing client list. When Moise Kean’s move to Tottenham from Juventus collapsed, the angry Raiola did not hesitate to condemn the club’s top personalities, Daniel Levy et al, for how they had disappointed his client. “It was fearless, it was not a nice experience,” said one of the club’s acquaintances. “However, somehow you had to admire him for having the balls to do it. “It was all for the players.” Born in Italy, Raiola’s family moved to the Netherlands as a baby. His father, an engineer, was trained with the help of his grandmother to set up the family restaurant business. “I worked hard, I cleaned dishes, I waited at tables, I was a bartender, but I never baked pizza in my life – despite what has been written.” He was a common, witty, affectionate company and could converse in seven different languages. A very intelligent man, who could speak seven languages, Raiola was talkative, witty and affectionate in company. Although you could never leave a voice message on his phone, you could text him or, if he was lucky, he would answer or call you. After gaining his trust, he kept in touch, sending messages for birthdays and “Happy New Year to you and your loved ones”. Never politically correct, he answered questions that were substantive, although direct questions about a transfer often met with a polite rebuttal. When the paper called him “The Godfather of Agents”, he shuddered at the comparison of the mobsters, a description used by his friend Zlatan Ibrahimovic. He laughed at the allegations that he was going to buy Al Capone’s old house in America. “The media has to create content. “Sometimes it’s not fair,” he said, knowing full well how to handle it himself. “Sometimes they do not know what is behind the image. I would love to represent Paul Gascoigne. Gaza was my player and my personality. “When I see images conveyed by some of the media,” it’s not right. Raiola’s tragic departure this weekend will leave the football world less and less colorful His departure will leave the football world less and less colorful and questions will be asked about the future of his star stable. However, Raiola was only meticulous and with the disease on him he had made plans for his players. His trusted associates, such as lawyer Rafaela Pimenta, and family members have continued to work to ensure that Pogba’s next move, possibly to Paris Saint-Germain, is not jeopardized, as with the expected transfer of Erling Haland from Borussia Dortmund in Manchester City. These big summer moves can even give the epitaph for one of the great football traders.
