AC Milan boss Stefano Pioli has revealed that he is very much open to the idea of working alongside Zlatan Ibrahimovic again if he were to return to the club in some capacity.
Ibrahimovic retired from playing football at the end of last season after missing a good chunk of the campaign due to injuries, but since his emotional farewell on the field at San Siro there has been growing speculation about a third Milan spell.
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La Gazzetta dello Sport confirmed that discussions are ongoing with the Swede about a potential role, though they said he has issued four demands to the club’s ownership about the kind of role he would want.
Pioli spoke to the reporters who gathered at Milanello for his pre-match press conference during which he addressed a number of different topics from recent form struggles to the injury crisis, and he was asked about Zlatan too.
“I don’t know. At Milanello I work with a lot of people, I often speak with Moncada and Furlani and the club is structured to support us,” he said (via MilanNews).
“If the club and Zlatan decide to create other situations… You know how much respect I have for him, for me there’s no would be problems. I’m a lucky coach: the club always puts me in the ideal conditions to do my job.”
He’s coming to replace you.
Wow that response is revealing. He doesn’t want him there or, at the least, feels threatened. I’m surprised he didn’t give a fake positive “We love Zlatan!” type of response.
I guess Zlatan really is coming to replace him.