MINO RAIOLA
Paul Pogba's return to Manchester United dragged this summer
as his move to England became the main transfer saga of the window as Juventus
looked to drive a hard bargain.
However it has now been revealed that his £89million return
to Old Trafford actually needed two years' work by super agent
Mino Raiola for the deal to be completed.
Raiola, who has a growing influence at United having also
facilitated moves for Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Henrikh Mkhitaryan to join Jose
Mourinho's side, insists Pogba could have joined any of Europe's elite clubs.
The Italian-born Dutch agent, speaking to the Financial Times, said of the world record deal: 'Look,
Pogba could have gone to all the top clubs. But Real Madrid had just won the
Champions League.
He’d have been a trophy player there.
'Barcelona — their three trophies are Messi, Neymar and
Suarez. What you see is the final result of years of sculpting. I spent two
years working on Manchester United’s deal with Paul.'
Ibrahimovic has struck up a close bond with Pogba during the
early stages of his Old Trafford career and Raiola believes the Swede will also
lift the pressure off Anthony Martial and Memphis Depay.
'Martial and Depay come in and say, "We have to carry
Manchester United, a giant institute?" So already in 2015 I told the
people at United, "You’ll have to put in a guy like Zlatan to restore the
balance". Then the attention goes to Zlatan. He has the experience, and
dares take the responsibility.'
Mourinho benefitted from a healthy relationship with Raiola
during United's negotiations for Pogba, Ibrahimovic and Mkhitaryan but they
haven't always seen eye-to-eye.
'I knew Mourinho from Inter, and there we’d had a bad
relationship,' admits Raiola.
'I said things in the newspaper. But I think Mourinho is
intelligent enough to understand what I do. At clubs that understand me, I have
three or four players. Now at United, and before at Juventus, Milan, Paris
Saint-Germain.'
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