Mino Raiola gives update on Erling Haaland's future & discusses relationship with Sir Alex Ferguson

We can all moan about the pitfalls of modern-day football and how we long for the days of players not being treated like superstars, but unfortunately we've created a beast and it's here to stay.

One of the most infuriating parts of the game nowadays has to be the term 'super agent'.

Gone are the days of transfer sagas being conducted in cafes with agreements scribbled on the back of napkins. Instead, we're forced to endure months of speculation as countless parties attempt to get a piece of the pie in any potential deal.

Mino Raiola and Jonathan Barnett are undoubtedly two of the biggest names in the super agent game right now, and the pair have taken part in a candid interview in which they discuss a whole host of topics including their relationships with the likes of Sir Alex Ferguson, Pep Guardiola and each other.

Erling Haaland's future

A whole host of Premier League clubs have been linked with a move for Erling Haaland this summer, and - as his agent - Raiola is likely to have a big say in where the Norway international will be playing next season.

90min recently revealed that Haaland is wanted by City, along with Borussia Dortmund teammate Gio Reyna.

Raiola refused to speculate on a possible move, though he did add that the youngster could play for any club he wanted.

"Maybe I was too careful when I said, ‘Oh no, let’s move to Dortmund instead of I-don’t-know-where’," Raiola told The Athletic. “This boy - I’m 100% convinced and everybody’s convinced - can move to any club, wherever he wants, already on this level.

"But maybe last year there were still teams [saying], ‘Oh, he was in Red Bull, can he do it in another club?’. He is quicker than his own prediction. So yeah, Haaland is the talk of the town.”

Sir Alex Ferguson and Pep Guardiola

Raiola's relationship with Ferguson was turbulent at best, with the former Manchester United boss criticising his handling of Paul Pogba. Guardiola has also publicly lambasted Raiola at times, though he insists he is unfazed by the pair.

“When Ferguson criticised me, that was my biggest compliment anybody could give me. Ferguson is used to people coming in and, ‘Yes, sir. Yes, sir. Yes, sir. Yes, sir’," he said.

“All I have to say that when Ferguson left Manchester United the club’s owner [the Glazers], by buying back Paul Pogba, told me that I was right. Because I didn’t want to take Paul Pogba away. He [Ferguson] didn’t believe in Paul Pogba.

“So when Ferguson says, ‘I don’t like him’, it’s the biggest compliment that I could have. It’s like saying Sepp Blatter says, ‘I don’t like him’. Fantastic. I don’t care what Ferguson says.

“As for Mr Guardiola, I’ve closed the book already a long time ago. Everybody knows what I think of him personally and he can say what he thinks for me personally. For the rest, I think he’s a great trainer. And that’s how it is. I will not shut up for anybody. I’ll give my opinion, I think that it is my right.”

“With Mr Ferguson or Guardiola, I have this problem - and I think that it is changing now - that [they believe] we should submit to them because ‘otherwise, tomorrow, you don’t do a player with Manchester United’. I don’t give a f*** if I never do another player with Manchester United. I’m not in their hands. 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.”

Impact of the pandemic

With the opening of the transfer window just a few months away, speculation is already beginning to grow over the futures of some of football's finest talents - many of whom are on the books of either Raiola and Barnett.

However, as clubs looks to tighten the purse strings following the loss of matchday revenue due to the coronavirus outbreak, it seems increasingly unlikely that any big-money moves will materialise.

Barnett has conceded it's going to be tough to get deals over the line, though, he still expects plenty of movement this summer.

“It is going to be harder," he said. "I’m expecting three or four very big deals of my own that will break a lot of records.

"Hopefully, they’ll come about. For the smaller clubs, I think there won’t be as many transfers. We have some very good players. We have probably the best young player in the world in Camavinga. We’ve got Grealish. We’ve got Konate at Leipzig. But then I’ve got over 100 players.”