Ibrahimovic on argument with Raiola: “He would have swept her away”
GER ONLY Zlatan Ibrahimovic Mino Raiola
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Zlatan Ibrahimovic recalls a heated argument with his agent Mino Raiola and gives an insight into bizarre demands.
In his latest autobiography, superstar Zlatan Ibrahimovic has published a heated argument with his longtime agent Mino Raiola and explains why he didn’t want Raiola to flesh out his contract negotiation during his time in the US with the Los Angeles Galaxy.
Specifically, it was about the contract extension for 2019. “I decide to stay in America for another year and that’s why I’m negotiating the contract extension. All alone and without telling Mino anything about why he’s so upset. It’s the worst quarrel we ever had,” says the 40-year-old in his book Adrenaline. What I haven’t told you yet.
Ibrahimovic on Raiola: “Would have asked for anything”
“Ibra” simply feared that Raiola would torpedo an agreement with his extravagant demands. “If Mino had entered negotiations after my first year in America, he would have asked for everything, including shares in the Lakers and a bike. Mino was too strong for the people there. He would have swept them away, destroyed everything, and I would have no longer played in MLS,” he writes.
This solo effort by the striker has put a lasting strain on the relationship between the two to this day. “He took it very badly: ‘You shouldn’t have done that, Zlatan. That’s my job. I should have taken care of it.’ He was right, of course he was right. But I was afraid that everything would fail. I explained that to him. He never forgave me. Not until today. I disappointed him,” explains Ibrahimovic.
The star striker knew exactly what demands Raiola is capable of. Because in the contract negotiations before moving to Paris Saint-Germain, there was a whole list of them. “Mino writes everything down on a piece of paper, and eventually he’s got the whole sheet full of extras. ‘Don’t you want a bike too, so you can ride around town?’ he finally asks me after this endless set of demands,” he writes in his biography. However, Ibrahimovic agreed – and finally got his bike from the PSG officials.