Mino Raiola has died aged 54, the agent's family has confirmed.
Raiola, one of football's most recognisable agents, was the representative of a host of household names including Paul Pogba, Erling Haaland and Zlatan Ibrahimovic.
Raiola had been in a critical condition at a Milan hospital. Reports of his death circulated in the Italian media on Thursday, though this speculation was furiously denied by a spokesperson.
However, a statement released by Raiola's family on Saturday confirmed he had passed away.
The letter, which was released on Raiola's official Twitter account, 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."
On Thursday, a tweet from Raiola's account said: "Current health status for the ones wondering: p****d off, second time in four months they kill me. Seem also able to resuscitate."
It was reported in January that Raiola had undergone emergency surgery. However, a post on his Twitter account stated he had only been in hospital for checks.
Haaland, one of Raiola's highly sought-after clients who has been linked heavily with a move to Manchester City ahead of next season, was in action for Borussia Dortmund when the news was confirmed.
In response, the Norway striker's father, Alfe-Inge, tweeted: "R.I.P. The best."
Southgate lauds 'extraordinary' England record-breaker Kane
Gareth Southgate felt the "extraordinary" Harry Kane showed his "mental strength" by scoring a record-breaking goal in England's 2-1 Euro 2024 qualifying win against Italy.
The Three Lions gained a measure of revenge for their loss to the Azzurri in the final of the last European Championship at Wembley with a victory in their Group C opener at Stadio Diego Armando Maradona.
Declan Rice opened the scoring and Kane become England's outright leading goalscorer with a penalty at the end of the first half in Naples on Thursday.
A debut goal for the Argentina-born Mateo Retegui in the second half and Luke Shaw's late red card could not prevent England from securing a first away win over Italy since May 1961.
It was a special night for Kane, who broke a record he shared with Wayne Rooney by scoring his 54th goal for England.
A commanding first-half display enabled Southgate to become the third England manager to celebrate 50 victories in charge of the national team after Alf Ramsey (69) and Walter Winterbottom (78).
Southgate hailed his captain, who stepped up to make history in the Three Lions' first game since he crucially missed a spot-kick in a World Cup quarter-final defeat to France in December.
He said: "Kane was extraordinary. Breaking the record in these conditions demonstrates all the mental strength he has.
"It's truly an exceptional achievement; the players cheered for him and this is a reaction both to the record and what he had to go through in Qatar."
England were a cut above Italy in the first half, but it was a different story after the break and Southgate felt they made life difficult for themselves following such an impressive start.
"We had an exceptional first half, while it was a very tough second half," he said. "We showed two different faces; we controlled the game very well in the first half as soon as we escaped the first line of pressing and at the interval it might have been 3-0.
"At the beginning of the second half we made some wrong decisions and the momentum changed."
Ronaldo's commitment and experience crucial for Portugal's new cycle – Martinez
Roberto Martinez believes Cristiano Ronaldo's experience and commitment is crucial to Portugal's new cycle.
Ronaldo became the most-capped men's player of all time when he took to the field in Lisbon on Thursday for his 197th Portugal appearance.
The 38-year-old marked the occasion with two goals, scoring from the penalty spot before lashing in a free-kick to complete a 4-0 rout over Liechtenstein in Euro 2024 qualifying Group J.
Joao Cancelo put Portugal ahead early on and Bernardo Silva netted shortly after half-time, with Martinez's tenure getting off to the simplest of starts.
Ronaldo was dropped to the bench by previous coach Fernando Santos for Portugal's World Cup knock-out games, but Martinez wanted to get the five-time Ballon d'Or winner into his starting XI.
"It's a new cycle," Martinez told Portuguese media outlets.
"It's important for a player to show commitment and [to know] that we can use his experience, and Cristiano shows that."
Posting on social media, Ronaldo expressed his pride at sending yet another record tumbling.
"Such good feelings to play and score again for our national team, in a special stadium for me," Ronaldo wrote. "Proud to be the [most-capped] international player ever."
Reflecting on his team's dominant display, in which Portugal had 35 attempts and accumulated an expected goals (xG) of 3.9 to Liechtenstein's 0.03, Martinez said: "We have to enjoy situations like this.
"I realised that when you play for Portugal it's special. The players follow that line, it was a step forward to prepare for the next game.
"Of course it's an opportunity for me to get to know the players, the interaction, see how to take better advantage of the qualities. But I'm left with the attitude and willingness to work. I'm very proud of the result."
Portugal continue their qualification campaign against Luxembourg on Sunday.
Kane passes Rooney record to become England's top goalscorer
Harry Kane has become England's all-time top scorer in men's international football, passing Wayne Rooney with his first-half penalty against Italy.
The Tottenham forward converted from the spot to grab his 54th goal for the Three Lions after a VAR check deemed Giovanni Di Lorenzo to have handled the ball.
Kane had been tied with Rooney following the World Cup in Qatar, missing the chance to own the record outright when he blazed his quarter-final penalty over the crossbar against France.
That delayed the England captain until this latest international break, in which he belatedly eclipsed Rooney's 53 goals.
Having netted his landmark goal as he earned his 81st cap, Kane required considerably fewer matches to make history than Rooney, who played 120 times for his country.
Rooney had moved beyond Bobby Charlton's long-standing record of 49 back in 2015, later also beating the World Cup winner to become Manchester United's all-time leading marksman.
Kane already owns the Tottenham record after surpassing Jimmy Greaves earlier this year.
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