Our Terms & Conditions | Our Privacy Policy
Former Manchester United and Paris Saint-Germain striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic has named an ex-Barcelona star as the best footballer to have ever played the game – and it’s not Lionel Messi. The Swede had an ill-fated spell at the Catalan outfit, spending just one season at Camp Nou after struggling to gel with the Argentine and manager Pep Guardiola.
While his time at the club may not have gone according to plan, he is clearly still appreciative of the legendary names that came before him. Back in 2021, the legendary frontman was asked about who his footballing GOAT was, and he named a player who was an iconic figure throughout the 1990s and 2000s.
3:05
Related
35 Greatest Football Players Of All Time (2024)
The 35 greatest footballers of all time have been named but who comes out on top; Messi, Ronaldo or Maradona?
Ibrahimovic Names Ronaldo ‘Il Fenomeno’ as the Greatest Player Ever
The two-time Ballon d’Or winner was one of the most dominant forces during his prime
Speaking with beIN Sports, Ibrahimovic claimed that two-time World Cup winner Ronaldo Nazario was his pick for the best player to ever play the game, with the 43-year-old going as far as to describe the Brazilian as football itself.
“I always tell everyone who plays with me: Ronaldo is football. That Ronaldo is football. The way he moved, the way he did those stepovers, those mazy runs. In my view, he is the best player in history, no doubt about it.”
Interestingly enough, there are plenty of parallels that can be drawn between Ronaldo’s and Ibrahimovic’s careers. Both men saw their big breaks in European football come in the Netherlands (Ronaldo at PSV, Ibrahimovic at Ajax). They also went on to play at three of the same clubs – Inter Milan, Barcelona, and AC Milan.
In terms of silverware, both are among the best players to have never lifted the Champions League, though it is the former Swedish international who won more collective honours, managing 32 across his storied career in comparison to his counterpart’s 16.
The two unfortunately never had the chance to play alongside each other, with Ronaldo leaving AC Milan two years before Ibrahimovic would make the move to the red and black half of the city.
Related
Zlatan Ibrahimovic ‘Hated’ Four Players During his Career
Zlatan Ibrahimovic collided with four teammates, including a Manchester United star, during his chaos-filled career.
All statistics courtesy of Transfermarkt – accurate as of 16/01/2024
Images are for reference only.Images and contents gathered automatic from google or 3rd party sources.All rights on the images and contents are with their legal original owners.
Aggregated From –
Comments are closed.