Zlatan Ibrahimovic’s return to AC Milan was confirmed yesterday, but he will also be a RedBird Capital Partners employee and will be trusted with a double role.
La Gazzetta dello Sport (seen below) writes how Ibrahimovic will be an operating partner of RedBird, Senior Advisor to the ownership and Senior Management of Milan, but behind the titles what will Ibrahimovic’s new realm of influence be?
The definition that most interests Rossoneri fans is the one that concerns Zlatan’s involvement in the club. No precise tasks are indicated and there are no pre-established boundaries meaning Ibra will offer his collaboration to all areas of the club, first and foremost the sporting one.
Agreement with the coach
For Stefano Pioli, the Swede could be an exceptional interlocutor with whom to discuss technical and tactical issues. Ibrahimovic will not have daily appointments at Milanello or even weekly; rather he will be present when the moment requires it, in agreement with Pioli.
This is why the manager continues to consider him an added value and will not feel overshadowed by his light. Ibra will once again be a possible point of reference for the dressing room, and Leao was the first to welcome him on social media.
Zlatan had built his career as a centre-forward on determination and fighting spirit, even before talent, returning to exert his competitive pressure and once again taking on the role of motivator who transfers a sense of discipline, commitment to training, physical care.
So, it won’t be surprising if photos of Zlatan in conversation with Theo Hernandez bounce around Milanello, as Paolo Maldini did until last season. The Swede’s scope of action also includes ‘player development and training for high performance’, as announced in the appointment press release. Which translates into helping the team to grow also from the point of view of the individuals.
Ibra will talk to them, many of whom were team-mates until a few months ago, and will support them as he did as a player. Even though he is not a sqyad member, he will be able to go down to the San Siro changing rooms and perhaps speak in front of the cameras (his skills as a frontman are widely proven).
Helping the club
Limiting the perimeter of Ibrahimovic’s influence to the sporting area alone, however, would be reductive, because Zlatan will also have a say in the corporate field (even without having an office at Casa Milan, the club’s headquarters).
He will be a consultant to the owners – or rather to Cardinale – and to the top management, the president Paolo Scaroni and the CEO Giorgio Furlani. And a consultant, by definition, advises and provides opinions.
Will Ibra have his say on the transfer market? Will he be able to suggest the name of a possible next coach? Double yes. The great experience as a man on the field, the profound knowledge of the subject are a guarantee: for this reason the point of view of the Malmo champion – however detached, because Ibra is not part of the team – could prove to be a precious analysis tool for those who are in charge.
If his role in the club will be broad but not well defined, it is due to a specific intention: the role is tailor-made to Zlatan’s personality and eclecticism. Above all he is evolving, he will adapt to events. On behalf of Milan, Ibrahimovic will be involved in commercial initiatives but not only that, he will participate in projects'”of strategic importance, including the new stadium’.
It was RedBird’s number one who wanted Ibra back in the team. The global influencer, with 123 million followers on social media, will offer his image to the fund’s projects.
