Mino Raiola attacks Guardiola

SebastianBlue said:
Apologise in advance for the length my response but this is a subject for which I have a great interest.

The problem is that they aren’t even glorified accountants (which would at least be respectable): they are really the equivalent to snake oil salesmen, only they peddle human beings, making their prognostications and outlandish schemes to get rich (on the backs of their clients successes or failures) all the more detestable. Most agents (I’ve spent time with a few) don’t really care about the career outcomes of their clients beyond the impact on their bottom line. Some NGOs class them as human traffickers, which is absolutely the case with some operating in Africa, South America, and Asia, and not far from the truth for those plying their “trade” in the more established footballing corners of the world.

I’ve always said that if an agent dislikes something or someone it is almost always for one of two reasons (which one should be proud of):

1) They have been beaten at their own “game” (usually losing money and/or access in the process)

or

2) An entity exposes the “game” they are playing (also often leading to the loss of money and/or access)

Now, the “game” they are playing is a matter of livelihood (and, in more rare cases, literally life or death) for their clients, but most agents do not frame their work that way. The fact that we allow this professional practice, without placing strict, universal licensing and fiduciary requirements for entry, is abhorrent and one of the many things wrong with the modern game.

Here are just a few articles about the rampant exploitation related to agent and “agency” involvement in football, for which their are accounts Raiola has participated (directly and indirectly) through dodgy gladhanding and opaque memoranda of understanding with various entities operating in the developing world.

http://espnfc.com/news/story/_/id/1609951/young-african-footballers-being-exploited

https://www.theguardian.com/football/2008/jan/06/newsstory.sport4

https://www.sundaypost.com/news/sco...mising-young-footballers-exploited-by-agents/

I agree that agents—in their current form—should be banned from the game. But, unfortunately, the money they generate (a word I use loosely) has found its slimy way into most governing and regulatory bodies, so reform and/or dissolution is unlikely.
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They must have some financial qualifications for the finer details of a contract surely, or do they employ someone else for that?
 
paulchapo said:
They must have some financial qualifications for the finer details of a contract surely, or do they employ someone else for that?
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The majority of agents have very little training in business management, finance, or legal affairs. As @aguero93:20 said, most outsource those “client services” to accountants, business managers, clerks, and lawyers.

With very few exceptions, agents are really just curators of relationships/access. The only real “value” (again, I use that word loosely) they create is via establishing and maintaining contacts with decision makers in the footballing world. Even that role is suspect, as often agents merely capitalise on the groundwork of other people in legitimate roles (like coachs, managers, support staff, lawyers, family members, and, of course, the players themselves) have already laid. Being a successful agent is often based entirely on either putting in work on one or two positive deals or being very fortunate to fall into a positive situation or two, then riding that cache (on the back of other’s substantial efforts) for the remainder of their career (a la Raiola).

You can guess my opinion of agents.
 
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