[ad_1]
 |
“We are one of the youngest teams in Europe even though I have raised the average age of the club a bit more. My teammates make me feel young again. They are hungry, they are never satisfied.” yourself after every game or training session.
I will take responsibility and pressure, teammates don’t need to do that. I will take on this task, they just have to focus on training, trust and follow the path laid out, “shared Zlatan Ibrahimovic after scoring to help AC Milan beat Udinese in the last match.
One jump, recline and hook the ball. Although it is not the most standard touch, the goal is still in progress. As always, Ibrahimovic spread his arms in celebration, hugging his teammates. The Swedish striker doesn’t need a captain’s armband to be the team leader.
As an older brother, the breadwinner, he himself takes on the responsibility of enduring all the pressure for his peers to see each other and progress. The positive side of young soccer teams is that they have a lot of desire, energy and physique. But the main weakness is that the team needs a man who is an example for the whole team. The appearance of Simon Kjaer and especially Ibrahimovic from the transfer window last winter brought him to AC Milan.
You know what, after beating Inter Milan in the fourth round of Serie A 2 weeks ago, said coach Stefano Pioli? The Italian military leader responded to the media: “He (Ibrahimovic) is exhausted and sometimes asks for a replacement. But this time I couldn’t hear it. Your contributions are too important.
That statement generalizes all the influence of the Swedish superstar in AC Milan.
 |
When Ibrahimovic left Manchester United to move to the Los Angeles Galaxy, most thought about the end of his soccer journey. MLS is definitely on a very different level than the major national championships in Europe. He easily conquered Los Angeles, conquered America and soccer here. 53 goals in 58 MLS games is a talking number.
When his contract with LA Galaxy expired, the Swedish forward considered his future whether or not he would stay in the United States. At this time the representative Mino Raiola appeared and played an important role.
“Mino told me ‘Retiring in America is too easy,’ Ibrahimovic said. You have to go back and show everyone that you can still play in Europe. ” I said, ‘Which team needs me the most?’ Super stork Raiola informed her clients that AC Milan were still showing interest. And after the talks, Ibrahimovic returned to Milan after 7 and a half years.
After the first few games, he boldly declared: “I am the president, the coach and the player, but I only get paid as a player. If I stay here from the start of the season, we will win the Scudetto ”. Ibrahimovic is like that. Listing the immortal words of Ibrahimovic is too much. He is frank, he is not afraid to express his opinion and he never doubts his own specialty.
But, of course, there will be doubts about this reunion between Milan and Ibrahimovic. The Rossoneri were in deep crisis at the time despite having replaced manager Marco Giampaolo with manager Stefano Pioli, especially after being beaten 5-0 by Atalanta. They were even 3 points behind the relegation group. Who would believe that a 38-year-old senior would help the team escape a crisis?
Furthermore, CEO Ivan Gazidis is determined to rejuvenate himself and this complements technical director Paolo Maldini, sports director Frederic and especially director of football Zvonimir Boban. Gazidis has been quietly preparing to bring in the mindset of an experienced coach who likes to work with young players, Ralf Rangnick, and even give immense power. That raises questions about Ibrahimovic’s future after the close of his six-month contract with Milan.
But Ibrahimovic said yes and he was, he is doing it. In the meantime, the belief and reason of the AC Milan coaching team have been rewarded. A few months ago, manager Rangnick admitted that he had refused to go to Milan because Pioli was fine, he deserved to continue his work and did not want the team to depend on older players like Kjaer or Ibrahimovic.
 |
The conclusion is that these “old men” have changed the face of Milan. Kjaer became the cornerstone of the defense and Ibrahimovic became the soul and leader of the team. Milan is experiencing a series of 24 consecutive games unbeaten in all competitions. The Rossoneri lead Serie A with 5 wins and 1 draw, while Ibrahimovic topped the tournament’s top scorer list with 7 goals despite 2 rounds being sidelined by COVID-19. Too spectacular, right?
Former AC Milan vice president Adriano Galliani once said: “I remember there were times when he (Ibrahimovic) would push his teammates against the wall because they weren’t exercising properly.” That’s the story from 10 years ago, when the Swedish superstar was still 29 years old, his career was still long and there were many older men in Milan.
Now, Ibrahimovic is 39 years old and he is the older brother of the Milan football team, there are even players who are under 20 years old. You have enough fame and recognition. Ibrahimovic’s role model has become the norm for his teammates to see, and his personality and aura throughout his career is what keeps him below his teammates.
Hakan Calhanoglu is going through a period of sublimation thanks to playing alongside Ibrahimovic. “Zlatan’s experience has helped us to go further and above all his will to win,” he said. It starts from the moment of practice. Zlatan wants to gain even the smallest exercise. He is rich in wishes and will be angry when he loses.
After beating Juventus 4-2 last season about a week ago, Ante Rebic said: “Ibra is a leader. Before the game against Juve, he told us: ‘I will teach the Juve players what it is to play football.’ That spirit of his infused us ”.
AC Milan has been falling and losing since 2012 when it was forced to sell pillars like Ibrahimovic and Thiago Silva to solve financial problems. After changing generals, changing owners and renewing the squad, one of AC Milan’s problems is the lack of a leader who carries both the professional qualities and the spirit of the champion.
 |
The return of Ibrahimovic solved it. Not only that, writer James Horncastle observed: “Instead of limiting his role, but in Italy people call him a professional leader, a leader by being an example and letting talent speak, he (Ibrahimovic) is like Diego Maradona, a simple, demanding and authoritarian person not only because of his level but also because of his prestige ”.
Of course, Ibrahimovic understood his physical limitations when he reached the threshold of 40. The joke “if I am 20 years old, I will score 4 but when I get closer to 40, I only score 2 goals” has shown how high the familiar arrogance of the Swedish striker but at the same time he indirectly admitted that he can no longer be as strong as before. The spectators who saw him play also understood and Coach Pioli was even clearer than anyone. AC Milan cannot completely trust Ibrahimovic, it would be a dangerous strategy if one day he cannot shine.
But AC Milan needed him on the field for goals, his teammates around him with someone to open up gaps and boost their spirits. Milan is sublimating, leading Serie A but the road is long and Ibrahimovic needs to be used properly to continue as the axis of the whole team.
“Why run when you can fly?” Ibrahimovic posted on social networks a photo in which he bowed in front of Udinese with a legend like that. Now in Milan, everyone is flying with him.
[ad_2]
