Super-agent Mino Raiola's saucy demands revealed, Haaland going nowhere
Mino Raiola and his list of clients are known to be some of the most high-profile individuals in the modern football world. From Manchester United’s Paul Pogba and AC Milan’s Zlatan Ibrahimovic to Chelsea’s Romelu Lukaku and Paris Saint Germain’s Gianluigi Donnarumma, the names don’t get any more important.
However, there is one certain Borussia Dortmund prodigy in his books who has floored audiences and Bundesliga defences for the past three seasons.
Erling Haaland is playing his third consecutive season with Die Schwarzengleben, but has long been linked with a move away from the club – with some of Europe’s cream of the crop such as Chelsea, Manchester City, Real Madrid and Bayern Munich all having set their sights on him.
However, there is one certain Borussia Dortmund prodigy in his books who has floored audiences and Bundesliga defences for the past three seasons.
The 21-year-old striker is Raiola’s most valued client at €130m in the transfer market, according to transfermarkt.
However, that has not deterred the player's agent from making ridiculous transfer demands – most recently asking Chelsea for a €50m/year five-year contract deal that would amount to a staggering €300m in total – including an intermediary fee of €40m, according to Sport BILD.
TRUE ✅ Mino Raiola demanded a wages of €50m/year for Erling Håland from @ChelseaFC this Summer, in addition to agents fees of €40m
— Christian Falk (@cfbayern) August 25, 2021
His weekly salary would amount to around the €1m/week mark – an obscene financial undertaking, to say the least. Thus prompting the Blues to turn to Belgian powerhouse Romelu Lukaku instead, who is also handled by Raiola.
This is not the first time Mino Raiola has appeared in the breaking news, having lashed out at Paul Scholes for saying there was ‘a lack of leaders in the team’ when Pogba captained Manchester United to a disappointing loss at Brighton in the 2018/19 Premier League season.
Some people need to talk for fear of being forgotten. Paul Scholes wouldn’t recognize a leader if he was in front of Sir Winston Churchill. @paulpogba
— Mino Raiola (@MinoRaiola) August 21, 2018
Although the legendary Manchester United midfielder didn’t reach the same heights as a pundit as he did as a footballer, it cannot be denied that Pogba, at least then, failed to justify the €105m Red Devils paid to Juventus for him two years earlier. The transfer from which Raiola pocketed around €20m.
In 2017, it was revealed that former Manchester United boss Sir Alex Ferguson had remarked Raiola as a ’sh*tbag’ – five years earlier, when he had already established himself as a prominent agent, having brokered moves for Pavel Nedved, Dennis Bergkamp, Frank Rijkaard and Ibrahimovic early in his career.
Some of this transfer window season’s most illustrious deals have been conducted by the Italian-Dutch agent, including world class talents such as Donnarumma, Donyell Malen and Denzel Dumfries.
Dumfries recently commented on Inter's official website of how his ‘agent’ teammate and fellow Dutch international Stefan De Vrij helped him convince his €12.5m transfer to Inter from PSV Eindhoven – they both incidentally employ Raiola to take care of negotiations.
Sir Alex Ferguson on Mino Raiola in 2012: "Paul Pogba? He just had a bad agent, a sh*t bag." #MUFC pic.twitter.com/is6oVGOIJk
— United Zone (@ManUnitedZone_) December 7, 2020
BVB value Haaland around the €150m range and do not intend to sell the Norwegian until next year. Perhaps, this is just one of Raiola’s moves to deter the player from moving clubs at any cost.
Haaland has scored 62 goals in 63 appearances for Dortmund so far – much to the anticipation of the close transfer market derbies that will erupt between the European elite when his release clause of €75m triggers in June 2022.
One thing is for sure, one top club is bound to lower their guard to the debauched demands of one of the most powerful men in football.