'A thug and a bully' - Journalist SLAMS Zlatan Ibrahimovic

Tom Weber

27 Mar 2023 15:59 BST
3 min read

Zlatan Ibrahimovic: I told Milan I was going to retire in the summer — © ProShots

Swedish journalist Alex Schulmann had some choice words for Zlatan Ibrahimovic over his Qatar comments.

That Zlatan Ibrahimovic is a contentious figure is not news. The 41-year-old Swede has racked up a laundry list of controversies throughout his long career, and his recent comments on the questionable 2022 Qatar World Cup have sparked a new bout of outrage.

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The striker, who recently broke Dino Zoff's record to become the oldest player to feature in a Euro qualifier (a record that was then immediately broken again by Gibraltar's Lee Casciaro) and who is also Serie A's oldest-ever goalscorer, talked about the Qatar World Cup in glowing terms.

Sweden did not qualify for the tournament yet Ibrahimovic was asked to give his thoughts on the showpiece event, calling it a 10 out of 10 despite Qatar's spotty human rights record. “It was fantastic," Ibrahimovic said. "As awesome as it gets. I was there for two days with the family."

Zlatan Ibrahimović became the oldest player ever to appear in Euro qualifier match, aged 41 🌟🇸🇪

“I want to continue playing football, of course if I feel good this is my priority. I feel very good at Milan, if they want me to keep me I’m happy. I’m available”, he said. pic.twitter.com/d7Vcwh0ABX

— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) March 25, 2023

READ: Zlatan Ibrahimovic called up by Sweden at 41: Five other old internationals

What did Schulman say?

Swedish journalist Alex Schulman took exception to the AC Milan star's comments and slammed the striker. "He plays badly and is a bully," Schulmann wrote. "Even when he says something stupid about Qatar, people don't react."

"He came to life when he had to give his speech in tribute to the oppressive state," he continued, "and the strangest thing happened, it was as if during the very answer Zlatan accumulated more and more anger towards the journalist who asked the question. The more he loved Qatar, the more he hated the reporter."

READ: AC Milan wages: How much does each player earn?

Particularly worrying for Schulman "was the silence that followed and those eager laughs, which sent a chill down my spine. I was thinking how strange it is that we're still rooting for Zlatan."

He concluded: "Few say enough is enough, we are in the year 2023 and still no one dares to contradict Ibrahimovic."