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Zlatan Ibrahimovic has become accustomed to glory. Moving to the Major League Soccer in the U.S. might not be the biggest of steps, but boy are we in for a good time watching him play in the States.
For a player whose name has become synonymous with creating and breaking records in the round leather game, Ibrahimovic got heads turning and tongues wagging once again as he made his debut for LA Galaxy. The Swede scored twice as he helped his new club complete a perfect comeback from 3-0 down to win the El Trafico derby against Los Angeles FC 4-3.
The first of his two goals was a wonder strike close to the half-way line. By so doing he has made history as the first player to score twice to win a game on his MLS debut with a 3-0 deficit.
After moving to LA Galaxy from Manchester United at the end of March, Ibrahimovic started his career with the club by scoring on his debut just as he had done for the Red Devils. But this is just the beginning. It is certain that the Swede will create and break new records in the MLS.
Here are 5 reasons why:
#1 Zlatan is still hungry for goals
For a player whose career has been based on goal scoring, Zlatan is still as hungry as ever. After having been caged in Man United for the majority of this season, the real Ibrahimovic is about to be unleashed on the MLS.
His comments on his debut performance give an indication of what is to come. “I heard the crowd shouting ‘We want Zlatan! We want Zlatan!’ so I gave them Zlatan,” he stated.
One thing that has distinguished Ibrahimovic from many others of his peers is that he always wants more. Goals are the Swede’s food. He loves to score goals and spectacular ones as well. After all, that’s what the game is about at the end of the day – scoring goals and winning. That’s Zlatan’s stock in trade.
He was top scorer in the Serie A, same thing in France in three out of his four seasons there. Ibrahimovic was central to PSG’s Ligue 1 dominance that has continued till now. He will love nothing more than to repeat the feat in the U.S. with LA Galaxy and win trophies too with the club.
Having announced himself already with two important goals on his debut, you can expect more to come. His goals for Man United led to him being named in the six-player shortlist for the PFA Player of the Year award in his only season in the Premier League. He was also named in the UEFA Europa League squad of the season. More importantly, the goals also yielded trophies for the club. More of the same can be expected of his time at LA Galaxy
#2 He wants to make a statement
When you clock 30 as a football player, many begin to think your days in the game are numbered. This is the stage most players call it quits. But certainly not players like Ibrahimovic. The unorthodox Swede could have called it quits after his time at PSG as he was already well advanced.
The age of 34 is very much a retirement age for most players. But he chose to open another chapter and create a little more history by going to England. Manchester United, the most successful club in the land was his preferred destination.
While there, in his very first season he won three titles. He won the Community Shield, the League Cup and the Europa League. There were trophies in which he played a key role to secure. He scored the match-winning goal for the Community Shield. He scored his first hat-trick for the club in a 3-0 win over Saint-Etienne in the Europa League. He scored two goals in the 2017 EFL Cup final and his second was the winning goal for United to clinch the trophy.
Ibrahimovic will want to prove he is the difference maker at LA Galaxy as well. That is what he has set out to do from the very beginning of his time with the club. His match-winning performance has been the talk of the town both online and in the mainstream media.
Everyone has got to know Zlatan is in town! More performances like these are what will keep the spotlight on him and have him speaking to the world as he likes to do.
#3 He is back to full fitness
Ibrahimovic suffered a meniscus and cruciate ligament damage to his knee in April 2017. It was feared in many quarters that the injury could spell the end of the Swede’s career. This was the only major injury he had suffered in his illustrious career so far. But given the timing, as it was coming late in his playing time on the pitch, it seemed the injury would bring the curtain down on his career like we have seen in some other cases.
Several media outlets reported that he would be out until the end of the year or until the new year. Given his age, many felt he would not regain his goal-scoring form after the injury. But Ibrahimovic loves nothing more than proving people wrong. His career has been one of going beyond the norm and doing the extraordinary.
Not only did he recover ahead of schedule, he was back in business once called upon. He scored in his first start of the season against Bristol City in the quarter-final of the EFL Cup. Ibrahimovic apparently won’t stand by and watch his career wind down without much action. There, therefore, arose the move to cancel his contract with Man United and move on to the MLS.As he once said, “An injured Zlatan is a pretty serious thing for any team”. The opposite may be as true. A fit Ibrahimovic is a weapon of mass destruction for any team. Fit and back on the pitch and with the opportunity to play regularly, it’s only a matter of time before he begins to rewrite the record books with his feet.
#4 The MLS is relatively less competitive
The Premier League and other top leagues in Europe are considered more competitive than the MLS. This sets the stage perfectly for Ibrahimovic to excel. Scoring goals will definitely be easier when facing relatively weaker defences. The former Serie A and Ligue 1 top goal scorer will definitely relish the chance to torment opposition defences in the MLS.
In fact, Zlatan can afford to take things easy and still break records. With a talent that is beyond ordinary, he may well be a big fish in a small pond. And despite what may seem like a negative factor as he has already clocked 36, the Swede has shown no sign of slowing down yet. That may be bad news for the opposition but it sets the stage for new records to be set and broken in the MLS.
#5 He loves the attention
No one loves doing the extraordinary more than Ibrahimovic. And when it’s all done, let the media rumble on about it. Special moments have been a constant feature of his career and he is not about to stop now. Far from it, Ibrahimovic is only beginning and both the MLS and the media are yet to get a full dose of some zLAtan.
Yes, this is just the beginning for Ibrahimovic as far as the MLS is concerned. Everywhere he’s been he has left a mark. The former Swedish international is the only player in the world to have played club football for seven different leagues in seven different countries.
He has played for Malmo in Sweden, Ajax in the Netherland, Juventus, Inter and AC Milan in Italy. He also played at Barcelona in Spain, Paris Saint-Germain in France, Manchester United in England and now LA Galaxy in the U.S.
Ibrahimovic is one of the most decorated footballers in the world. He has won a total of 33 trophies in his career. He is the only player to have won three to four straight league titles in two different leagues. He won three consecutive Scudetti in Italy and four straight Ligue 1 titles with PSG in France. Up until recently, he held the record as PSG‘s all-time leading goalscorer. He is also the first player ever to play Champions League football with seven different clubs.
As an international for the Swedish team, Ibrahimovic holds the record as his country’s all-time leading goal scorer with 62 strikes. He also holds the record for the most awards of Guldbollen (the Golden Ball). This is an award given to the Swedish player of the year. He has won it a record 11 times, ten of those consecutively.
All these show a man who has an appetite for grabbing headlines. He has begun on a brilliant note to put everyone on alert as he begins a new episode in the zLAtan Ibrahimovic blockbuster movie.
