It’s no coincidence that Manchester United this summer signed three of his clients: Paul Pogba (for a world record transfer fee of £89.3m), Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Henrikh Mkhitaryan. This chubby, bespectacled little Dutch-Italian is arguably the world’s most influential football agent. Where exactly would I like to sit? Can he get me an energy drink? Am I too hot with my jacket on? From the moment we meet in his pied-à-terre beneath his parents’ flat, on a drab downtown avenue in the Dutch town of Haarlem, he tries to anticipate my every need. In fact, Raiola grew up working in his family’s restaurant, and his service remains impeccable.
If you had to guess Mino Raiola’s job from his appearance and clothing, you would say: small-town pizzeria waiter on his day off.
