The ManicaPost
Manchester United are within their rights to pay agents multi-million pound sums as part of transfers, FA chairman Greg Clarke has said – but the sport needs a debate about the issue.
Fifa boss Gianni Infantino has called for more transparency around transfers. World football’s governing body is looking into Paul Pogba’s world-record transfer from Juventus to Manchester United.
It follows claims that Pogba’s agent will earn £41m from the deal.
“If that’s what they’re (Manchester United) going to pay, that’s what they’re going to pay,” Clarke told BBC Sport.
“They are accountable to their owners; they’re accountable to their fans. How much should we pay for players? How much should go to agents as a commercial transaction?
“If football wants to change that and limit the amount of money that agents get we’re going to have to sit down as a game, led by the professional game, the Premier League and the EFL and the clubs and talk about that. I just think picking on one transfer and demonising it is not that helpful. Knee-jerk reactions don’t often yield good outcomes. What we want is some thought about how much money stays in the game so it can be invested in long-term productive things.”
The money reportedly earnt by Pogba’s agent this week prompted Accrington Stanley chairman Andy Holt to criticise Premier League clubs over the amount of money they spend, saying they were “destroying the game”.
In an interview with BBC Sport, he added that their actions filter down to adversely affect clubs in the Football League, which he said was “like a starving peasant begging for scraps”.
The Premier League responded to his comments, saying: “We will be writing to Mr Holt to ask him if he wishes the Premier League to continue the support we currently provide for his and other clubs in the EFL.”
Fifa has written to the Premier League club “to seek clarification on the deal” that took Pogba from Juventus to Manchester United in August 2016. It is believed its inquiries centre on who was involved in the £89.3 million transfer, and how much money was paid to them.
A book published in Germany this week – The Football Leaks: The Dirty Business of Football – and reproduced in media reports includes what it claims is a breakdown of the Pogba fee and alleges his agent Mino Raiola earned £41 million from the deal. – BBC.
