RAI RAP
Paul Pogba’s agent Raiola slams Solskjaer as ‘out of line’ and admits star is only committed to Man Utd until summer
MINO RAIOLA slammed Ole Gunnar Solskjaer as "out of line" and admitted Paul Pogba is only committed to Manchester United until the summer.
Raiola and the Red Devils' bitter feud escalated over the weekend as Raiola said his star client Pogba was ready to move back to Juventus.
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Solskjaer hit back saying: "I will decide what happens to Paul Pogba, not you."
But then the agent released a tweet 17 minutes before United's game at Chelsea kicked off saying "you cannot own a human being" and that he hopes Solskjaer is not suggesting Pogba is his "prisoner".
He added: "Paul is not mine and for sure not Solskjaer's property, Paul is Paul Pogba's."
Asked about the comments after the game, the Manchester United boss responded and said: "I’ve not spoken to Mino that is for sure. And, no, I haven’t sat down and told Paul to tell Mino what he should say. Paul is our player and not Mino’s."
But speaking to on Tuesday morning, Raiola added further fuel to the burning fire by insisting Solskjaer was taking his comments out of context and responded to criticism that he is offering his player to other clubs.
Raiola said: "The outcome was good for Man United [vs Chelsea] so maybe I should do it more often.
"In all seriousness, I thought what Solskjaer said was out of line. He took parts of sentences of an interview of mine, and acted a little bit offended that I was offering Paul Pogba to other clubs without permission.
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"If you read the whole interview I was asked if Paul would fancy Italy, and I said Italy is a second home, but that is not the case now as he is concentrated on Manchester United and getting back in the team as soon as possible and to make a great end of the season."
Asked about the comment from Solskjaer about Pogba being "our player, not Mino's", Raiola continued: "I’ve never said he is mine, but that doesn’t mean if I’m being asked something I cannot answer.
"The question was ‘would he like Italy?’ – what has that got to do with being Manchester United’s player. And saying that you are Manchester United’s player – are you owned by the club?
"I have been asked if he likes Italy, and I am answering as Mino Raiola. Am I not allowed to do that?
"Am I not allowed to talk to you about things? Am I not allowed to talk about players I represent because they are owned by Manchester United, or Juventus, or Barcelona, or whatever other clubs there are in the world.
"It’s a very strange thing to say as a journalist as the only thing you journalists do is talk about players and how they move and don’t move.
"Ole said he is owned by Manchester United as if somebody cannot have an opinion on a player, and that is what I took as an offence.
"I really think this is a strange way of questioning; I was not talking about Pogba in relation to Italy, I was asked something by an Italian journalist if Paul Pogba likes Italy. That was it.
"Ole said he is owned by Manchester United and I have a principal problem with that. He is an employee, he is not owned by Manchester United. And being employee doesn’t mean I cannot have an opinion or say something I want to say.
"I have never spoken about Ole in the papers or the press, he always speaks about me. Whether it is about [Erling] Haaland, or Pogba’s injury, or Pogba’s surgery, he is always talking about me – I’m not talking about him.
"I have a right to have an opinion, and I have a right to represent my players in the way I want and if that does not suit you that is your problem. The only thing I’m interested in is my players and they are happy to be represented that way."
Pogba is under contract at Old Trafford until the summer of 2021, with United having a 12-month extension option, but has played just eight times this season due to ankle problems.
But as he continues to be linked with a return to Juventus or a transfer to Real Madrid, Raiola was adamant the French World Cup winner is only committed to his current club until Euro 2020 - and then he will discuss his future.
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The agent added: "United fans should read the whole interview. He is only committed to Manchester United until after the European Championship.
"The only focus there is is to get back as soon as possible into the team to help the team, and to have a good end of the season for Manchester United.
"He is committed to Manchester United only until the end of the European Championship, and then we will talk to the club if we need to."
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