Football agent Mino Raiola has sadly died at the age of 54.
One of the most well-known figures in football, Raiola represented several of the game's most high-profile players including Paul Pogba, Erling Haaland and Zlatan Ibrahimovic.
The Italian-Dutch agent was admitted to hospital in January, when he underwent treatment for a lung disease.
Italian reports on Thursday had indicated that Raiola had died that day, however they were soon corrected.
But on Saturday a statement from his family read: "In infinite sorrow, we share the passing of the most caring and amazing football agent that ever was.
"Mino fought until the end with the same strength he put on negotiation tables to defend our players. As usual, Mino made us proud and never realised it.
"Mino touched so many lives through his work and wrote a new chapter in the history of modern football. His presence will forever be missed.
"Mino's mission of making football a better place for players will continue with the same passion.
"We thank everybody for the huge amount of support received during these difficult times and ask for respect to the privacy of family and friends in this moment of grief."
Larger than life Raiola was known for getting into several scrapes with managers and directors in pursuit of deals for his players, and would often clash with the biggest figures in football.
In a clash with Pep Guardiola and Johan Cruyff over Barcelona's use of Ibrahimovic, he once quipped: “You bought a Ferrari and drove it like a Fiat."
He then added: “I think Cruyff and Guardiola can go to a mental hospital together, shut up, sit there and play cards together. They would do football and Barcelona a great service.”
In a separate barb at Guardiola he said: “Pep Guardiola, the coach, is fantastic. 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.
“I went for him that night in the corridors at Wembley [after Barcelona beat Manchester United in the Champions League final in 2011] – only Adriano Galliani, AC Milan’s chairman, stopped me. Lucky for Guardiola.”
After Liverpool sold another of his famous clients, forward Mario Balotelli, Raiola hit out at Jurgen Klopp, saying: “At the end of the day the Liverpool directors admitted Klopp was unfair.
“I won’t judge him as a coach, even if for me he isn’t a great tactician. It’s not enough to say Klopp was unfair: he was a piece of s***.”
