Paul Pogba is set to stay with Juventus, according to his agent Mino Raiola, who has cooled talk of a move to Chelsea.
Pogba is likely to be one of this summer’s main transfer targets for Europe’s top clubs, but Raiola has dismissed reports of him joining former Juve coach Antonio Conte at the Blues.
“Pogba’s not going to Chelsea,” he told Italy’s GQ magazine. “At least not yet, but I don’t want to rule anything out.”
Raiola added that he was lucky to stumble across the France midfielder when he acted on a tip from a friend.
“He told me to go and watch him, so I did and I fell in love,” Raiola said. “My job is to help people and to believe in the incredible. I manage some amazing people.”
Meanwhile, Raiola revealed how he was close to buying Serie A side Roma before James Pallotta gained control of the Eternal City club.
“I was closer to buying Roma than Pallotta was, with a few partners,” he said. “He’s part of the club’s history, but I wanted to start over with new faces and without any heavy burdens leaving a legacy.
“At the time, [former owners] Unicredit, who had numerous outlets in the city, were not particularly enthusiastic about this.”
He would have modelled his ownership on the Glazer family at Manchester United, Raiola explained.
“They have not put a pound into Manchester United, but they have delivered management and strategy,” he said. “If you own a club in Italy, you don’t own a thing — you just have 60 wages to pay. If the team wins you’re a hero, if they lose, you’re an idiot who should be shot.”
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