Zlatan Ibrahimović (pronounced [ ˈzlatan ɪbraˈhiːmovɪtɕ], pronunciation; born October 3, 1981 in Malmö) is a Swedish football striker of Bosnian origin who plays for Italian Serie A club Internazionale and the Swedish national team. He is famous for being capable of many deft tricks and skills with his feet despite his large height.
Club career
[edit] Malmö FF
Ibrahimović signed with hometown club Malmö FF in 1995, and moved up to the senior side for the 1999 season of Allsvenskan, Sweden's top-flight league. That season, Malmö finished 13th in the league and were relegated to the second division, but returned to the top flight the next season. Arsène Wenger tried to persuade Ibrahimović to join Arsenal F.C. but Malmö did not allow the transfer. AFC Ajax coach Leo Beenhakker also expressed interest in the player after watching him score an amazing goal in a training game against Norwegian side Moss F.K. On March 22, 2001, a deal between Ajax and Malmö regarding Zlatan's transfer to Amsterdam was announced, and in July, Ibrahimović officially joined Ajax for a record-breaking €7.8 million, the highest transfer fee ever paid to a Swedish club.
[edit] AFC Ajax
Ibrahimović received little playing time under manager Co Adriaanse, but when Adriaanse was sacked on November 29, 2001, new coach Ronald Koeman inserted Ibrahimović into the starting lineup as Ajax won the 2001-02 Eredivisie title. The next season, Ibrahimović scored twice in a 2-1 victory over perennial French champions Olympique Lyonnais in his first career Champions League match on September 17, 2002. He scored four CL goals overall for Ajax, who were eliminated in the quarterfinals by A.C. Milan.
In his final season with Ajax, Ibrahimović netted a goal against NAC Breda on August 22, 2003 that was eventually voted the goal of the year by Eurosport viewers. He continued to flourish domestically, but also made headlines in a CL group stage match against Milan on September 16, when he was booked for tugging on the jersey of Milan midfielder Gennaro Gattuso as both were vying for the ball late in second-half injury time, after which Gattuso was sent off after backhanding Ibrahimović in the face. Ibrahimović scored his only European goal against Celta Vigo on October 22 as Ajax were eliminated in the group stage.
On August 18, 2004, Ibrahimović injured fellow Ajax teammate Rafael van der Vaart during an international match against the Netherlands, which led to accusations from van der Vaart that Ibrahimović had hurt him intentionally. This led to Ibrahimović's sudden sale to Juventus F.C. on August 31, 2004.
[edit] Juventus
Ibrahimović moved from Ajax to Juventus for a €19 million transfer fee. He quickly made it into the starting eleven due in part to top scorer David Trézéguet's injury problems, and scored sixteen goals. Near the end of the season, Juventus reportedly rejected a €70 million bid for him from Real Madrid C.F., which was later revealed to be a publicity stunt initiated by Ibrahimović's agent, Mino Raiola, in order to increase his market value. Ibrahimović was nonetheless voted the fans' player of the season in 2004-05, and he finished eighth in the voting for the 2005 FIFA World Player of the Year. On November 14, 2005, he was awarded the Guldbollen, a prize awarded to the best Swedish footballer of the year.
The following season was a more turbulent one for Ibrahimović. His role in Juventus's attack changed, and he became less of a goalscorer. He moved more and more to the sidelines, taking much part in the build-up play, especially as a target player, a role that complemented his physical strength, and his assist numbers increased. However, criticism against the lack of goals started to increase both in Italy − where fans and journalists preferred Juventus icon Alessandro del Piero, often sidelined for Ibrahimović's benefit − and in Sweden. Even so, he retained his place in the starting eleven and Juventus eventually won the Serie A again.
Juventus were stripped of their last two Scudetti as part of the verdict from the Calciopoli scandal, and were relegated to Serie B. The new staff tried to persuade Ibrahimović, and other top players, to stay with Juventus, but the player and his agent were adamant to move, while Raiola threatened legal action in order to extricate Ibrahimović from his contract.
[edit] Internazionale
Ibrahimović signed a four-year contract with Internazionale for € 24.8 million on August 10, 2006.[1] He revealed that Inter was his favorite club as a child, gaining him immediate popularity with the Inter supporters. He started his spell at the club by scoring one goal and assisting another against ACF Fiorentina. After a close 4-3 win over A.C. Milan, Inter went on to a record seventeen consecutive league wins en route to Inter's first Scudetto on the field since 1989, and Ibrahimović was coach Roberto Mancini's first choice in attack.
Towards the end of the 2006-07 season, tension arose between Ibrahimović and the Inter hierarchy when he said that Inter missed a "Luciano Moggi-type" figure. His comment struck a nerve with the team and the fans, as Moggi, then the general director of bitter rivals Juventus, was the main culprit in the Calciopoli scandal. Ibrahimović claimed his words were taken out of context, and the animosity between the player and club eventually dissipated.
On September 16, 2007, he played his 100th Serie A match. He scored two Champions League goals in the group stage against PSV Eindhoven on October 2, which marked his first European goals since December 2005 and his first goals overall in an Inter jersey.
Ibra: Mourinho Most Complete Boss Ever Goal.com, Switzerland - 45 minutes ago Zlatan Ibrahimovic has showered praise on new Inter coach Jose Mourinho, describing him as the ?most complete boss" that he has ever had. ...
Ibrahimovic: We Dominated The Match Goal.com, Switzerland - 24 Aug 2008 Inter Milan won the Italian Super Cup on penalties this evening and Zlatan Ibrahimovic believes that his team deserved the triumph as they were the better ...
Sweden picks squad for World Cup qualifiers - International Herald Tribune
08/27/2008 04:26
Sweden picks squad for World Cup qualifiers International Herald Tribune, France - 27 Aug 2008 ... inclusion for the start of Sweden's campaign to qualify for its third consecutive World Cup, spearheaded by Inter Milan striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic. ...
Ibrahimovic Returns For Inter Goal.com, Switzerland - 2 Aug 2008 Zlatan Ibrahimovic returned to training on Saturday morning and now the race is on to get him fully fit ahead of Inter's Italian Super Cup date with Roma in ...
Wrong signing for PAOK SkySports, UK - 20 Aug 2008 When PAOK's official website announced the signing of Inter Milan's Sweden international striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic fans could barely believe their eyes. ...
