“Italy is my second home, there’s infinite passion there,” Zlatan Ibrahimović remarked recently, the striker asked about a possible return to AC Milan, a club where he enjoyed remarkable success before heading to Paris Saint-Germain. While he seems set for a move to Manchester United rather than a second stint at San Siro, the 34-year-old is going to facing some very familiar opponents on Friday afternoon.
The Sweden-Italy clash in Toulouse marks the third time the two nations have met at the Euro finals, with goals from Luigi Di Biagio and Alessandro Del Piero handing the Azzurri a group stage win back in 2000. Henrik Larsson could only grab a consolation for the Scandinavians that day, but they would get their revenge soon enough.
Four years later – after Antonio Cassano had once again put Italy ahead – Ibrahimović conjured up a remarkable back-heeled volley to take a share of the points. That result ultimately led to Giovanni Trapattoni’s men being eliminated at the first opportunity, ushering in a new era under Marcello Lippi that saw them lift the World Cup in 2006.
The enigmatic striker who beat Gigi Buffon that day needs no introduction. He has since gone on to become Sweden’s all-time leading scorer, netting 62 goals in 114 appearances, and will once again be at the centre of everything positive they produce against Antonio Conte’s men. But just as he has blossomed into one of the best and most-feared players in the world, his next outing will see him come up against arguably the finest backline in the competition.
Despite their advancing years, neither Andrea Barzagli nor Giorgio Chiellini were at Euro 2004, but both are now vital figures for the Azzurri. The latter has a long-standing rivalry with Ibrahimović, often coming to blows with the fiery Swede during their domestic clashes in Serie A, although they appear to share a mutual respect from those battles.
However, as he proved in Italy’s first outing, Leonardo Bonucci is now the most important member of the three-man Juventus-based unit. Playing in the centre of the trio, it is he who organises, leads and controls that backline. He is also a valuable playmaker for club and country, as his wonderful long ball to create Emanuele Giaccherini’s opening goal against Belgium highlighted.
Pep Guardiola confessed that the 29-year-old is “one of my all-time favourite players” last season, while his performances over the past two years have seen him compared to none other than Franz Beckenbauer. That has been due to vastly improved defensive awareness and timing, combined with that ability to step out and pass like the sweepers of years past, but the Juventus linchpin knows he has a long way to go to be considered one of the very best.
“[Alessandro] Nesta was always the player I looked up to, but now everybody calls me ‘Bonnie-Bauer,’ even the fans!” he explained to reporters earlier this week. “I get messages on Twitter about it. They make me smile, but to get to that level I’ve still got a lot of work to do.”
Even so, there is little doubt that Italy’s remarkable display against Belgium was a masterclass of defensive ability and tactical acumen, with Bonucci playing a starring role as the Azzurri shackled one of the pre-tournament favourites. The likes of Kevin De Bruyne, Romelu Lukaku and Eden Hazard had little joy against the Viterbo native, yet that performance is unlikely to trouble Zlatan and his unshakeable self-belief.
But, while clearly dangerous – and with a black belt in Taekwondo to fall back on – he may have met his match in Bonucci. Back in October 2012, the defender was at a Ferrari garage in Turin with his wife and infant son when an armed robber attempted to steal his watch. The gun pointed at his head yet he refused to hand it over and instead punched the would-be thief, then even giving chase as the assailant fled on a scooter.
That won him cult-hero status in Turin, which is no easy feat for a player who grew up in a family of Inter supporters and joined the Nerazzurri youth sector back in 2005. There he would win a national championship as a team-mate of Mario Balotelli, progressing to the first-team just in time for the arrival of Ibrahimović. He would make just four appearances – the two men never once taking to the field together – and Bonucci would move on in a series of loan spells before ultimately joining Juventus in the summer of 2010.
Initially shaky and inconsistent, he has blossomed into the superb all-round performer that the world saw in that clash with Belgium. Alert to the danger posed by opposing forwards, Bonucci has excellent timing to make tackles and interceptions, while also able to comfortably switch between playing in three or four-man defences. His passing has shown similar improvement and he is no longer guilty of overplaying the ball, while he has often weighed in with vital goals for both club and country.
Make no mistake; the Sweden captain is a superb striker and has arguably just enjoyed the finest season of his career. But in Toulouse, he will face a man who can claim to be the best defender in the world today, and Leonardo Bonucci will not fear going head-to-head with Zlatan Ibrahimović.
