KEV MAKES MUPPETS OUT OF PUPPET MASTERS
City ace deals blow to Mino ’n Co
THE news will have had the likes of pot-bellied agent Mino Raiola choking on one of his favourite espressos.
Kevin De Bruyne, arguably the finest footballer in the world, had just signed a new deal with Manchester City – and he negotiated it himself.
That’s right. The Belgium superstar didn’t feel the need to have an agent holding his hand throughout the talks.
Instead, over a period of a few weeks, De Bruyne spoke for himself and even thought for himself. Who’d have thought it, eh?
He outlined his importance to the team, studied how well his side are set up for success in the coming years – based on the age and qualities of the current squad – and told Etihad bosses what he thought he was worth. It all added up to a two-year extension, taking him to 2025, worth almost £400,000 a week – around £83m.
But the best part of the story is that not a single penny was used to line the pockets of an agent in return for him working his client from behind like some sort of ventriloquist dummy.
City director of football Txiki Begiristain described the deal as “a very significant moment” for his club.
Let’s hope it proves to be one for the game in general, too, because De Bruyne has acted like some sort of pioneer. He has pointed the way forward towards a future in which the game is not held hostage to those who have become the scourge of the sport. Recent figures showed that in the last 12 months top flight clubs spent a staggering £272m on agent fees.
This despite many of those clubs suffering – and bleating about – major financial losses due to the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic, while lower league clubs were facing bankruptcy.
It’s safe to assume De Bruyne was on solid ground when it came to impressing upon Begiristain just how crucial he was to the team’s hopes of success in the future.
He is unique in this regard, but the fact remains that thousands of modern footballers around the world still view their respective agents as being the biggest influences on their careers.
Raiola is one of the central characters in Zlatan Ibrahimovich’s modestly entitled autobiography “I Am Zlatan”, someone who once described contract talks as “my matches”. Someone who snubs suits for jeans and trainers because it leads club bosses to underestimate him.
But what De Bruyne has shown is that many other footballers actually underestimate themselves when it comes to striking a deal.
It’s not rocket science lads so wake up – because now we have actual proof that agents can be overrated.