Zlatan Ibrahimovic has given a long interview ahead of his World Cup punditry work, covering several aspects of being at a club like AC Milan.
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Ibrahimovic has been given the keys to Milan in order to redesign the sporting side how he sees fit, or at least that’s how it appears from the outside. On Monday, the sackings of Massimiliano Allegri, Igli Tare, Geoffrey Moncada and Giorgio Furlani were announced in the same statement by the ownership.
The Swede will play a key role in selecting certain strategic positions within the club, such as the sporting director and head coach. This is the final decision made by Gerry Cardinale immediately after the defeat on the pitch against Cagliari, but soon Zlatan is heading to the USA to work for Fox Sports.
Speaking of which, Ibrahimovic gave a long interview to FOX Sports, speaking with Tom Brady about all things to do with his upbringing and his new life as a director at Milan. His words are via MilanVibes.
At what age do you remember starting to aspire to become a professional athlete?
“Obviously, I came from a different social background than others. Many people with my same background didn’t have the success I did, precisely because I started from a difficult situation.
“Looking forward, I know I opened the door to many athletes who came from the same circumstances as me. When I was 17, a teammate of mine, who was trying out with us at Malmö in Sweden, told me after a week, ‘If you don’t make it, it’ll be all your fault’.”
“That phrase made me think deeply about its true meaning. I realised that it was all up to me, that I had to decide my own destiny and that I simply had to work hard to achieve it. I’ve always had complete faith that I could do it.
“Because of the situation I was in, I had to work much harder than others to stand out and get opportunities. When I signed my first professional contract, I literally felt like I was flying.”
Did you ever imagine yourself having the career you had at the beginning, or was it a process of small steps?
“I’ve played many teams in my life. I’m not the type of player who stays at the same club for 20 or 25 years, because I’ve always liked to challenge myself. My first experience abroad, outside my comfort zone, was at Ajax.
“It was the perfect team to develop with, even though they regularly played in the Champions League. The overall level of the league, however, wasn’t the same as the Premier League, Serie A, or La Liga. I went there precisely to develop my style of play, thanks to their way of behaving on the pitch.
“It was difficult at first, so much so that in the first year I called my old club saying I wanted to go back. By the third year, however, Ajax had become my comfort zone and my true home. The first coach I had there didn’t speak to me for eight months.
“I often spoke to the sporting director to ask him how things were going, but that method didn’t work for me because I felt a bit lost. Then I moved onto the big stage, playing with players I’d previously only played with on PlayStation.
“At first, they saw me as someone with no respect, but on the pitch, I showed everyone that I was stronger than anyone around me.”
When you were young, who was your role model?
“Ronaldo the Phenomenon was my all-time favorite. When you look at great players and try to copy them, he was exactly that type of player. I constantly searched for him on YouTube to memorise every single play he made on the pitch; he was my only true role model.”
What was it like scoring that famous overhead kick against England?
“English fans never really liked me, simply because I’d never scored against them before and they just saw me as a prima donna with a ponytail. Even though it was a friendly match, I told myself I’d show them who I really was. We were winning 3-2, and I ended up scoring three goals in total.
“During that move, the goalkeeper cleared the ball over me. As he jumped, I immediately turned my back, because I knew more or less where he wanted to send the ball behind me. As soon as I turned, I went for it. As a true striker, I always know exactly where the goal is.
“I can assure you that nine out of ten players would never have done something like that, because they would have preferred to block the ball and waste time. Only geniuses do what I did at that moment.
“You have to take risks to succeed, otherwise you will never succeed in life, and I was used to always taking risks. It’s a purely mental issue, and I think the mind counts for more than 50% of the game.”
Do you see yourself as a leader?
“You can be a leader in many different ways. For example, we have Modric at AC Milan now. He’s an absolute leader, but he’s not one of those who speaks a lot. He doesn’t speak much, yet he’s a total leader on the pitch. He leads on the pitch with his immense quality and extraordinary skills.
“Then there are leaders who are more forthright and talkative. It’s all about the mental side of a footballer. I grew up in a very aggressive environment, but for us that fury was normal. If someone from the outside were to watch it now, they’d think it was too aggressive.
“I gave my best when I was angry, so I was always looking for that mental trigger to ignite my anger. When I was angry on the pitch, I paid much more attention to every detail.”
Do you feel a constant need to win?
“I’ve never fully enjoyed any of my career victories. I’ve always wanted something more, right afterward. But even now, as a person, when I look back, I know I’ve accomplished great things, yet I’m still not satisfied because I want more. And this happens to me even though I don’t even play football anymore.”
You must have been booed a lot?
“I remember well when I arrived at Ajax and I was practically a complete unknown. No one knew who I was, and a journalist asked me, ‘Do they boo you when you play away or not?’
“I said yes, specifying that when they boo you, it means you’re a great player. Playing away is definitely more difficult because you have the whole stadium against you, but it gives you an incredible boost. The energy coming from the opposing crowd pumped the blood through my veins.”
Did you grow a lot at each big club you played for?
“Every club I joined taught me something important, both positively and negatively. When I started playing with the great champions, as happened at Juventus, for example, I finally understood how things worked at certain levels.
“When I arrived in elite football, there was obsessive preparation for every aspect: breakfast, physical recovery, and all these things went hand in hand. Anyone can reach the top, but the most difficult thing of all is managing to stay at the top.”
What does the World Cup mean to you?
“The World Cup is the final event of an entire season. You have to be in top form at that precise moment. I came from Sweden, and the expectations for our national team were always low, except for me.
“We had very little time to prepare for the World Cup, just a few weeks, and you find yourself having to play with teammates you don’t even know very well. Even during preparation, you couldn’t overdo the workload, because you were in the eleventh month of a season that normally lasts eight months.
“It’s just about staying in shape, recovering well, taking your time, maybe not taking a real vacation but gathering the necessary energy and mentally preparing for the competition. You’re representing your entire country, and it’s wonderful, especially because you’re competing against totally different footballing cultures.”
How do you connect with new team-mates over a three or four-week period to gain an edge over your opponents?
“Every country has its own culture and its own specific way of doing things. We used to do a lot of team building. Off the pitch, we often got together for various events and targeted exercises, both for the mind and for team spirit.
“Sweden’s culture is generally quite soft and gentle. I was totally different from them, I always demanded the best and expected more, while in Sweden the general attitude is more of a ‘let’s see what happens’ attitude.
“I came from a club situation where expectations were always very high. Either you win or the club will buy a new player to replace you, so you always have to perform no matter what. I tried to bring my Swedish teammates up to my level, because I would never have sunk to theirs.
“I tried to push everyone to their limits. Sometimes I was too tough, so much so that I even had teammates who cried because of my manner. I firmly believe that the way you train is exactly how you will play in matches, there are no secrets.
“If you perform at your best in training, you will also do so in competition. In Sweden, 80% of the players were not in the top five European leagues, so it was difficult, because my mentality was totally different from theirs.”
Your ‘last dance’ was at Milan…
“During my second spell at Milan, I didn’t play with any great players. I played with average players, but I put enormous pressure on each of them. They were good players, but I was the absolute leader of the team, and they were simply waiting for me.
“That period was truly special for me, because it was about giving something back to the club, not taking something. When you’re young, you only think about yourself, but as you gain experience and get older, you understand that it’s important to give back, because you no longer have the same ego as before.
“So, in those moments when the entire opposing stadium was booing me, a movie would play in my head and I’d think, ‘Just wait until I score, then I really want to hear you boo.'”
How do you manage fear?
“You’ll always have a shred of fear inside you, simply because things can’t always go right. But fear must never control you in any way; you are the one who must control fear.”
What is fan pressure like in Europe compared to the United States?
“The fans in Europe are totally different from the rest of the world. I’ve played in Italy, France, Spain, England, and even the United States. I think the US has the most relaxed and calm fans. The system in the US has a regular season where the only goal is to reach the play-offs.
“Even when we lost games, the fans would say, ‘Don’t worry, we just have to reach the play-offs’. I, on the other hand, was really worried, because losing is never nice.
“In Europe, the pressure is incredibly high. In Italy, where I spent a lot of time, football isn’t just about being a fan, it’s a true religion. If you play for their team, whatever it is, the club is more important than their own family.
“This happens because people are born AC Milan, Juventus or Inter fans. You’re playing for a team that belongs to them. When things are going well, everyone sings, but when things go badly, you have to be strong, both mentally and personally.
“There were times when ten thousand people were waiting for us outside the training gates. You arrive in your car and they start hitting your car, so if you have a nice car, it’s best to know what to bring.
“Sometimes we’d come to the pitch in low-profile cars, so they could kick them around without any worries. You can only imagine the pressure, the intensity, and the warmth of the fans.
“But the exact opposite happens when things are going well: they make you fly, even though you have to maintain a steady balance because when you fly, you risk becoming too relaxed.
“We’ve experienced situations where fans wanted to enter the pitch to reach the players. In my world, I don’t believe anyone would try to do something deliberately to fail, but in the world of fans, they think differently.
“We’re human beings too and we make mistakes, but the support from the fans is enormous. Pressure comes from every corner: from the club, from the media, especially when you have a big contract, and from the fans.
“I’ve always won wherever I’ve gone, so I’ve always been on the good side. There have been moments of intense tension, but I never back down from anyone because I was only there to win and make people proud.”