Kieran Maguire: Man City ready to join forces with Uefa as they ‘go to war’ against Fifa
Man City will likely take the side of Uefa in their battle against Fifa regarding the earning power of agents.
That is the view of finance guru Kieran Maguire, speaking exclusively to Football Insider about the conflict between the governing bodies of global and European football.
Fifa are currently attempting to introduce a cap on agent fees – three per cent of a player’s salary and 10 per cent of any transfer they engineer – but have been met with resistance from many of the game’s stakeholders.
The Daily Mail reported last Friday (23 December) that Uefa are refusing to throw their weight behind the new legislation.
Man City have been one of the biggest spenders on agent fees in recent years and are believed to have splashed out £34million in intermediary costs for the signing of Erling Haaland alone.
But Maguire suggests that the reigning Premier League champions will side with Uefa when it comes to the agent dispute.
“Fifa have decided to go to war with football agents,” he told Football Insider’s Adam Williams.
“That is not necessarily reflected at club level or indeed at Uefa level.
“I think that is why we have seen Uefa take a much more cautious stance in terms of the planned changes to the way intermediaries are rewarded and how they conduct themselves.
“What appears to be the case with Fifa is that Gianni Infantino is going down the populist route and positioning himself as the saviour of football. He is using agents the baddies in all of this.
“If you talk to club executives, many say there are good agents and bad agents. The good ones do a very effective job in looking after the interests of their clients. A happy client equals one that is less likely to switch agents.
“At the same time, there are agents who are stirrers, but they are in the minority. I think a club like City are likely to be on the side of the agents because they tend to have very good relations with them.“
In other news, pundit shares intriguing Erling Haaland verdict after “huge” behind-the-scenes Man City reveal.