Mino Raiola Brands Pep Guardiola 'a Coward, a Dog' in Remarkable Verbal Assault
Super-agent Mino Raiola has launched a brutal verbal attack on Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola, branding the Spaniard 'a coward' and 'a dog'.
Raiola is the agent for many high-profile footballers including Paul Pogba, Mario Balotelli and Romelu Lukaku. He has helped to broker some of the most lucrative transfers in football history, including Pogba and Lukaku's moves to Manchester United.
Quoted by the Mirror, Raiola begrudgingly admitted his respect for Guardiola's managerial credentials, but laid bare the extent of his personal dislike for the former Barcelona manager.
“Pep Guardiola, the coach, is fantastic," said Raiola. "As a person he’s an absolute zero. He’s a coward, a dog.
“He’s a classic priest. ‘Do as I tell you – don’t do what I do....’ If Manchester City win the Champions League this season it will emphasise what a good coach he is – but I’ll hate it.”
The feud between the two dates back to Zlatan Ibrahimovic's time under Guardiola at Barcelona. The Swedish superstar never completely settled at the Nou Camp and was forced out on loan to Milan in 2010/11 before completing a permanent move the following summer.
It meant that Ibrahimovic missed out on a Champions League winner's medal when Barcelona beat Manchester United in the 2011 final, and Raiola revealed that he nearly came to blows with Guardiola after the game.
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“I went for him that night in the corridors at Wembley - only Adriano Galliani, AC Milan’s chairman, stopped me," Raiola said. "Lucky for Guardiola."
He also explained that Guardiola had been distant with Ibrahimovic during his time in Spain.
“Guardiola told Zlatan to go to him if he ever had any problems or complaints. But then he just ignored him and wasn’t playing him," Raiola explained.
Raiola has brokered seven consecutive transfers for Ibrahimovic, the latest of which was just this week as the Swede left Manchester United for LA Galaxy.
