Zlatan: The football machine with a heart

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  • The changing face of Zlatan Ibrahimovic: From Malmo to PSG.

    On October 7, 2001, two months after Stefan Schwarz had called time on his international career with Sweden, a skinny 20-year-old striker claimed an unspectacular first goal for his country – smashing the ball home from all of a yard out against Azerbaijan. Zlatan Ibrahimovic had arrived.

    The unspectacular nature of his maiden strike was certainly no indication of the career to come, with back-heels, scissor kicks and panenkas punctuating the 13 seasons that followed as Ibrahimovic’s crowd-pleasing combination of skill and swagger turned him into a true football superstar.  

    Now one of the most recognisable faces in the game, it could well have developed differently had Ibrahimovic not been nurtured properly by Malmo, his hometown club.  

    The less showy sibling of Sweden’s capital city Stockholm, what Malmo lacks in glamour it makes up for in grinding out quality footballers. Stefan Schwarz honed his cultured left foot there, winning a league title in 1988 before forging a distinguished career with some of Europe’s biggest clubs including Benfica, Arsenal and Valencia.

    The connection to Malmo was always retained and when a teenage forward named Ibrahimovic started making waves at his former club, Schwarz was not alone in taking a keen interest.

    “I can remember how everyone was talking about him at Malmo – it was like everyone knew he was unbelievable and something special,” Schwarz recalls to Sport360.

    “He was a very talented player, very strong and very aggressive. When you are young you want to show your capacity and make a name for yourself – he certainly did that. He had this reputation, not as a trouble maker but as a very stubborn young kid with lots of testosterone – like many of us were as teenagers.”

    Many coaches would have favoured a strong-arm approach to deal with such a self-assured youngster, but Malmo focused instead on fostering Ibrahimovic’s individuality.  

    “Sometimes coaches don’t properly understand players, their personalities and characteristics,” Schwarz explains. “If you are presented with a confident young man, many coaches would have an overwhelming desire to discipline. But at Malmo, there were people willing to guide him and show him the way.  

    “The special players are a little bit different from the others and though many coaches and managers want to treat everyone equal, it doesn’t work all of the time. You have to understand players on a personal level – they are not computers.”

    Malmo’s decision not to stifle their sometimes selfish starlet soon began to reap rewards as, in his first full season in 2000, Ibrahimovic fired the club to promotion to the Swedish top-flight with 12 goals in 26 games. It wasn’t long before Europe’s bigger names began to take an interest and a year later, he moved to Ajax. There began Ibrahimovic’s ascent to the very top and, despite missing out on domestic honours with Malmo, he went on to claim 11 league titles in 13 years – taking in spells with Juventus, Inter Milan, Barcelona, AC Milan and, latterly, with PSG.

    “Zlatan’s individuality is like he is signature. Every game he expresses his physical ability, his technical ability. He is a great example of how to play without fear.”  

    Through all the trophies, wonder goals and individual accolades, however, it is Ibrahimovic’s unwillingness to dim his enigmatic personality to the homogeny of modern football that has made him such a popular figure the world over.

    “Zlatan has always had plenty of character,” says Schwarz. “It’s a very tough world when you want to be a footballer and if you don’t show attitude and character, even from an early age, then someone will eat you up and take your chance and opportunity. Zlatan was never going to let that happen.

    “His individuality is like he is signature. I remember when I played the game, feeling comfortable in that place where you know you can produce and do things on the pitch. We love to be there, we love to show what we can do and express our ability. Every game he expresses his physical ability, his technical ability to the maximum. He is a great example to younger players, how to play without fear.”  

    Innovation and impetuosity have been Ibrahimovic’s yin and yang, with many comparing the Swede to Eric Cantona due to both his enduring quality and the way he has, to an extent, quelled his temperament over the years. The recent three-match Ligue 1 ban he received for admonishing a referee and the red card against Chelsea in the Champions League show that the fire still burns, but there is no question in Schwarz’s mind that he he is now a cooler character.

    “He has had to learn that there is more to football. While we want to do things individually, you can see that when you win titles it’s because you play for the team. Now Zlatan is a real leader on the pitch, too – it’s not just about flair but about helping his team-mates.

    “It’s not just scoring goals but harnessing his fantastic vision to create them. He has matured so much from when he started playing. Opponents still try to upset him and provoke him but he has become so much better at handling that situation. He has a very strong, competitive mind.”

    That mind is regularly probed by media, searching for the latest soundbite from one of football’s most quotable figures, but what Is Ibrahimovic like away from the camera’s glare.

    “On the pitch he is a machine, a winner but off the pitch he is a great guy with a great heart,” Schwarz says. “There are some fantastic stories. Sometimes with the Swedish national team, he will not take the bus after training with his team-mates to go to the hotel. Instead, he will go and speak to local boys watching training, and walk back to the hotel with them.

    “He has two sides, he is very warm-hearted guy who wants to give back to the kids but of course is incredibly competitive too.”

     Despite boasting an imperious club football CV, the omission of a Champions League medal from his list of honours remains a glaring one. Cantona lost his motivation after one continental disappointment too many with Manchester United in 1997 – will continued European failure push Zlatan into early retirement? Schwarz can’t see it happening.

    “I think he can play a few more years at the highest level. It amazes me the athleticism of someone of his stature. At 1.95m tall and around 100kg, to move that body and be explosive around the pitch for 90 minutes and for many games during the season, and important games, is incredible.

    “I think the physical part of the game is not a problem to play a few more years, it’s about the motivation. It would be interesting to see him in the Premier League. It’s more physically demanding, more intense but Zlatan could definitely help some good sides in the Premier League to get even better.

    “It seems that the motivation is still there – it has to be with these top, top players – they need the pressure, they need the adrenaline and I think he loves it. Zlatan loves to score goals, he loves to help his team, he loves to win titles; I think we all want to see him play as long as possible.” 

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