Mino Raiola

Raiola died after a long illness, his family confirmed on Saturday. He had been undergoing treatment at Milan's San Raffaele hospital, where he was visited by ...

Raiola compared FIFA to a mafia organization in 2013 and called the governing body’s then-president Sepp Blatter a “demented dictator.” “Mino touched so many lives through his work and wrote a new chapter in the history of modern football. Raiola died after a long illness, his family confirmed on Saturday. He had been undergoing treatment at Milan’s San Raffaele hospital, where he was visited by Zlatan Ibrahimović this week. As usual, Mino made us proud and never realized it.” Raiola was a youth team soccer player and administrator before starting his career as a sports agent by assisting in the transfer of Dutch players to foreign clubs. “In infinite sorrow we share the passing of the most caring and amazing football agent that ever was,” read a post from “The Raiola Family” on his social media accounts.

The son of Italian immigrants to the Netherlands rose to be one of the game's most feared and influential dealmakers.

Mino Raiola, one of the most high-profile agents in world football, has died following illness.

Raiola remained in football, despite not making it as a professional player, to become an agent, initially working for a company called Sports Promotions. "We thank everybody for the huge amount of support received during these difficult times and ask for respect to the privacy of family and friends in this moment of grief." As usual, Mino made us proud and never realized it.

Tributes have poured in for Mino Raiola after the super-agent, who represented Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Paul Pogba among others, passed away at the age of 54 ...

Always fought for his players no matter who was sitting on the other side of the table!!' Rest in peace Mino Raiola, sleep and dream while I arrive, we still have a second time to play,' Lozano wrote. He was a game-changer. Rest In Peace, Mino Raiola.' He wrote: 'I still can’t believe , you took me out from the streets and you made me learn so many principles in life… 'Pain is temporary, someday I'll get over it, and it will go away, instead your memory will live forever in me. Raiola's cousin, Vincenzo, paid tribute on Instagram, posting a photo of the pair and writing: 'For years this has been my mood, to admire and listen to you. I'll never stop missing you. Moise Kean posted a video of the pair smiling together to Instagram to pay his respects Bianconeri player Moise Kean, who is on loan from Everton this season, and client of Raiola posted a video of the pair smiling and laughing together to Instagram. Borussia Dortmund striker Haaland, one of Raiola's top clients, posted a photo of the pair on Instagram and wrote: 'The best' along with a heart emoji. The news was met with sadness by the football community, with a number of players, clubs and fans taking to Twitter and Instagram to pay respect to Raiola.

Mino Raiola, one of football's most powerful agents whose high-profile clients included Paul Pogba and Erling Haaland, has died, his family announced.

He began his working life at his family's pizzeria in the medieval city before beginning his long march to becoming one of the most powerful agents in football. As usual, Mino made us proud and never realised it." Raiola was born in Nocera Inferiore in southern Italy but in 1968, still only a one-year-old, he was taken with his family to Haarlem in the Netherlands.

Super-agent Mino Raiola, who passed away on Saturday aged 54, worked his way up from the family pizza restaurant to negotiating multi-million pound deals ...

Born in Italy, Raiola and his extended family moved from Salerno, in the south of the country, to Haarlem in the Netherlands in 1968. I am here to be loved by my family and by my players. “When I walk on the streets of Italy, in Holland and in France, I have the respect of all the people. Raiola was not a fan of wearing a suit or anything approaching smart clothing. Raiola couldn't care less about Ferguson, or anybody else’s opinion of him, so long as he and his client were happy. He got to know Luciano Moggi, an important football executive, and really made an impact in 1996 by overseeing Pavel Nedved’s move to Lazio from Sparta Prague. Still in his teens, he was already showing an eye for business: he would use his language skills to negotiate with banks on behalf of his father, or even visit Haarlem’s mayor. Raiola reached the very top of his profession as a football agent, but he was by no means destined for greatness. The boom in Serie A after Italia 90 came at a good time, allowing his company, Intermezzo, to move into football. His youth helped Raiola learn Dutch faster than the rest of his family. As the agent of Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Mario Balotelli, Paul Pogba, Erling Haaland and many others, he was constantly under the spotlight. He was outspoken, hard-working, controversial and unavoidable in football.

MINO RAIOLA died at the age of 54 on Saturday.

He was all for the players.” Raiola developed a reputation for being one of the shrewdest, and most-difficult, agents in the game. Questions will be raised over the futures of his client, with the futures of Pogba and Haaland particularly uncertain. However, it was then confirmed on Saturday that he’d passed away at the age of 54 - with his family confirming the news via a statement. MINO RAIOLA died at the age of 54 on Saturday. Express. Home of the Daily and Sunday Express.

Former Liverpool striker Mario Balotelli has posted a tribute to super-agent Mino Raiola after he passed away on Saturday.

“Mino touched so many lives through his work and wrote a new chapter in the history of modern football. On Saturday, the Raiola family released a statement confirming Mino's passing, read: “In infinite sorrow we share the passing of the most caring and amazing Football Agent there ever was. Famous faces across football have posted tributes with Balotelli becoming one of the latest.

He was a born trader and hardball negotiator who prided himself on his small stable of players.

The super-agent died on Saturday aged 54, leaving an unforgettable legacy on football's transfer marker.

He considered Haaland one of the finest jewels of his time as an agent and was proud to have brought him to his agency when the forward was at RB Salzburg, before the world had noticed the Norwegian. Raiola made sure he fulfilled the promise he made to Haaland and the player’s father, Alfie: to bring the best possible offers from Europe’s top clubs, each with a similar salary, to allow the choice to be entirely in the striker’s hands. It was a snapshot of who Raiola was in the football industry: a smart man ready for anything who certainly would not have wanted to be “beatified” after his death aged 54 on Saturday. For fans and managers Raiola could be a dream and a nightmare. Communication was his priority, dividing public opinion to win the trust of his clients. “Mino, Mino, Mino …” The song was pretty clear and a laughing Raiola greeted the fans before answering the inevitable questions from journalists about his commission Matthijs de Ligt was expected to arrive at the Juventus Stadium, and hordes of enthusiastic fans had come to greet him. Gamechanger. There is no better way to describe Mino Raiola and his impact on the transfer market, a crazy and unpredictable world where he fitted perfectly.

Football agent Mino Raiola, who represents players such as Paul Pogba, Erling Haaland and Zlatan Ibrahimovic has died at the age of 54.

From there Raiola rose to the top of the his field, and pulled no punches when he got there. As usual, Mino made us proud and never realised it." It was Raiola who took Nedved, the elegant Czech midfielder who is now a director at Juventus, to Lazio in 1996 when Serie A was the world's strongest league and the Roman outfit one of its best teams. He began his working life at his family's pizzeria in the medieval city before beginning his long march to becoming one of the most powerful agents in football. Raiola was born in Nocera Inferiore in southern Italy but in 1968, still only a one-year-old, he was taken with his family to Haarlem in the Netherlands. "In infinite sorrow we share the passing of the most caring and amazing Football Agent that ever was," the Italian's family said in a message on Twitter.

Manchester United midfielder Paul Pogba has posted an emotional tribute following the death of his agent Mino Raiola - who passed away, aged 54, ...

Pogba is set to leave United on a free transfer for a second time during the summer transfer window. Pogba shared a montage of pictures with Raiola on his Instagram profile. Mino fought until the end with the same strength he put on negotiation tables to defend our players.

Raiola was one of the most influential agents in football, representing a number of high-profile players including Pogba, Erling Haaland and Zlatan Ibrahimovic.

Thank you Mimi", followed by the heart emoji. He posted a picture of them together to Twitter, alongside the caption: "The best." As usual, Mino made us proud and never realised it.

Raiola's death came amid two of his biggest clients – Manchester United midfielder Paul Pogba and Borussia Dortmund striker Erling-Braut Haaland – in the ...

An exception would have been that the agent could represent the buying club and player, if all parties involved agreed. Sir Alex Ferguson described his relationship with the Dutch agent as ‘oil and water’ in his biography. During his time as a super-agent, the economics of football transformed in favour of agents to such an extent that the world body of the sport (FIFA) decided to go out on war against the middlemen of the sport, a move that incensed Raiola. He was also known for his combative nature and had fallen out with many managers across leagues and clubs over the handling of his players. Raiola successfully inflated the prices of certain football players under his wings through simply sowing discord in the current club of the player. He once said that Pep Guardiola should be sent to a psychiatric hospital for keeping Ibrahimovic on the Barcelona bench. Raiola was going through a long illness, underwent surgery in January this year and was wrongly considered dead only a few days ago.