Finally, there’s a distinction between Zlatan and Swedish football.
For years, Swedish football and Zlatan Ibrahimovic have been inseparable. In fact, the definition of Swedish football was “Zlatan.” A Google search of “Swedish football” brought ‘Zlatan.’
It’s easy to see why, too. Zlatan is the country’s all-time leading goal scorer with 62 goals in 116 caps. He was playing everywhere, too–at Ajax Amsterdam, Juventus, Internazionale, Barcelona, AC Milan, Paris Saint Germain, Manchester United, and (today) at LA Galaxy.
Zlatan won the Swedish footballer of the year award eleven times. Eleven!
And, let’s make no mistake about one thing: Zlatan has a strong personality. He can be nasty at times and is almost always outrageous, if not bombastic, saying things like “Swedish football doesn’t exist without Zlatan.”
Courtesy: Scroll.in
But here’s the thing. Zlatan retired from international football after failing to guide his charges to the knockout stages of EURO 2016. That may have been a blessing in disguise for Swedish football. It meant that the national team had to start with a clean slate.
And they excelled! To get to World Cup 2018, they beat the Netherlands and Italy. Then, they went on to beat the mighty Germans and Mexico in a group where nobody gave them a chance. Switzerland qualified for the quarterfinals!
Was that enough to put Zlatan in his place? No! He continues to claim that he would have played better than senior Swedish players.
In reality, they did play above their weight. The result? The won.
And, more importantly, there’s finally a distinction between Zlatan and Swedish football. One can be defined without the other.
Yes, Zlatan holds a bevy of records but, despite those records, he never led his team to a championship of note. That’s is not to say his contributions are unnoticed or unappreciated. But it is to say that it’s impossible for him to say “the Sweden national team doesn’t exist without him.” The Swedish team made HIM what he is today and HE contributed to Sweden’s success.
There’s an English adage that “No individual is greater than any football team.” Collectivism, not names, wins you games. Right, Zlatan?
