Mino Raiola, agent of football stars Paul Pogba and Erling Haaland, dies aged 54

Carmine “Mino” Raiola, the Italian sports agent who represented a number of well-known football stars, has died at the age of 54.

He was one of the most powerful agents in the world of football and represented Manchester United’s Paul Pogba, Borussia Dortmund’s Erling Haaland and AC Milan’s Zlatan Ibrahimovic.

In a statement posted on Twitter, the Raiola family said: “Mino touched so many lives through his work and wrote a new chapter in the history of modern football. His presence will be forever missed.”

They added “Mino fought until the end with the same strength he put on negotiation tables to defend our players.

“Mino’s mission of making football a better place for players will continue with the same passion,” the family added.

He is understood to have been suffering from a recent illness.

Mr Raiola was known for brokering some of the biggest transfers in the game’s history, including Paul Pogba’s return to Manchester United from Juventus for £89m – then a world record.

In his defence of his player’s interests the agent was notorious for igniting the fury of fans and of managers, including Sir Alex Ferguson, Pep Guardiola, and Jurgen Klopp.

Mr Raiola had endured a particularly controversial relationship with Manchester United, whose former manager Sir Alex Ferguson blamed him for Paul Pogba’s early exit from the club.

However he represented several players who later joined following Sir Alex’s reign, including Zlatan Ibrahimovic, although his involvement was reported to be among the reasons the club did not pursue Erling Haaland.

Asked about whether his acrimonious relationship with Manchester United might mean he never took another player to Old Trafford, he said he did not care – albeit using stronger language – in an interview with The Athletic.

“I’m independent. We have only one party that we take care of – our players – and as long as our players like us, you do what you have to do,” Mr Raiola said.