FOOTBALL'S FIXERS

PROFESSIONAL FOOTBALLERS SOMETIMES HAVE UNUSUAL REQUESTS IN THEIR PERSONAL LIVES ... AND THERE IS OFTEN SOMEONE ON HAND TO FULFIL THEM

- Mark Gleeson

Need a jumping castle for little Johnny's party? A marriage proposal while on safari? A last-minute trip to Dubai? Tickets for the basketball at Madison Square Garden in New York? These are among the many requests that the multi-millionaire footballers have.

And for all of those requests, there is someone who can solve them. Welcome to the world of the fixers who sort everything out.

It was not that long ago that former Barcelona, Manchester United and Netherlands forward Memphis Depay posted a call for a new personal assistant, a so-called 'PA', on Instagram.

The footballer was looking for someone who was willing to dedicate her whole life (Depay used a feminine form of address) entirely to the footballer.

"Be warned: it's not easy and requires a lot of dedication. Send me a message," Depay wrote.

In a previous documentary about his life, you see Depay's then PA preparing a sandwich, and then quickly stirring his fresh orange juice, just as the footballer is on his way to breakfast.

The television documentary provided a striking insight into how the striker lives: surrounded by a circle of friends and colleagues, who travel with him as a kind of personal brigade - both literally and figuratively. It gives him stability and confidence, Depay has said about it.

Brazilian star Neymar is surrounded by an army of famous and notorious friends.

His father has been at the head of a motley crew for years, complete with a photographer and cameraman, a chef, a commercial manager and a personal trainer.

The majority of those 10 people have been travelling the world with Neymar for years and have now moved to Riyadh with the striker.

This is certainly not new in South American circles. As early as 1982, Diego Maradona moved from Buenos Aires to his new home in Barcelona with a posse of childhood friends, acquaintances and family members.