Zlatan Ibrahimovic’s quotes about Ronaldo, Ronaldinho and Cristiano have made it to the world media this morning, as he was asked by ESPN Brasil to compare the three players.
But apart from the comparison, the interview turned out to be pretty interesting due to some other subjects, such as José Mourinho, the Ballon D’Or and his opinion on other players.
Speaking about the possibility of being the Premier League’s top scorer this season, Ibrahimovic said: “I’d prefer to win the Premier League and do a small amount of goals. But I think if I do a small amount of goals, we don’t win the Premier League. So I need to keep scoring to keep the team on top. But it’s not the main focus, it’s just a bonus, let’s say.”
The ESPN reporter commented that from Paul Pogba’s three assists this season, all of them turned out to be goals scored by the Swedish striker. And he revealed the secret behind their relationship: “The situation, as I said before, is easy. I talk, Paul listens. And that’s the way we work. He’s been listening very well.
“Like I explained before, when he came, I think he wanted to demonstrate too much who he was. And the hype was big. I think now he needs to cool down the situation. He’s playing more mature, more Pogba, he knows how to play and how he’s supposed to play.”
Zlatan also commented on the players’ relationship with José Mourinho, which according to him, has been good due to the team’s recent form. “It’s good, as long as we win. When we don’t get the win, it can be different. He’s been winning, I’ve been winning. He’s used to winning, I’m used to winning. And we’re here to win.
“So we’re working good together. We have a good relationship, let’s say. He’s the boss, I’m the follower. I follow him and what he says, we do.”
The striker even talked about the possibility of joining the Special One as an assistant in the future: “That would be curious, who’d be the bad boy in the situation. Me or him?
“But I’m open minded, whatever happens. You build up a career not in one day or one week, you build it up in fifteen to twenty years. One decision can change the whole situation. But I’d love to work with him. Let’s see what happens.”
Speaking of the best player in the world, Ibrahimovic thinks it’s not really FIFA or journalists who should decide it: “I think when we talk about Ballon d’Or and all these kind of things. Let’s say, I don’t need a prize to know I’m the best. I’m not so cheeky. Because I’m a bullet proof mind. I don’t need trophies or something to tell myself I’m the best like somebody else.
“When you come to those things, it depends on what you’re doing during the season. I don’t know what they look at. If you had a individual fantastic year or a collective fantastic year. Because there have been seasons where players should be winning and they didn’t. So it’s all about… it’s because it’s a little bit political.
“But I don’t want to judge any players, because I think they’re great players. I played with Messi, I know who Messi is. For me, Messi is the best. There’s nobody else. And everybody that plays football… if they say that Messi is the best, it means he’s the best. Not the people that follow football, or people who talk about football, because it’s a different situation.
“Because if you talk with players that play the game everyday, they know what the game is. And if they say that Messi is the best, it means that Messi is the best.”
Asked about Neymar, Ibrahimovic revealed the Brazilian star is his son’s idol: “Maximilian, my big son, it’s his favourite player. He likes to have his boots… and Neymar is all over my house. I’m happy for him. I think he’s a good example for football players and the children. Because he’s the kind of player that children want to be. They’re copying his way of doing the things, and he’s doing a lot for football, he’s a little bit of a showman.”
