Is now Zlatan’s time to shine?

Zlatan Ibrahimovic is like marmite; you either love him or you hate him. Never has a single player caused so much one sidedness over opinion of the Sweden international. Some perceive him to be an over-rated carthorse that fails to excel when put up against English opponents. To others, he is a genius of a player that has excelled at every club he has turned out for.

Up until the 2011/12 season, he had won the domestic title in every country he had played in, starting from 2004 with Ajax, despite the two Serie A accolades he won with Juventus in 2005 and 2006 being revoked due to the Calciopoli. A career total of 234 goals during his 13 years of professional football showcase his ability on the grand stage.

Nevertheless, Ibrahimovic still has his doubters, irregardless of his performances. Some feel he doesn’t live up to the hype when the focus is on him and many feel he will choke again this summer. With 30 international goals for Sweden in 76 games, an impressive return for a striker who tends to drop deeper than most conventional number nine’s.

The European Championships is the perfect stage for which the 30-year-old can prove the naysayers wrong, especially with Sweden to come up against England during the group stages of the tournament. However, despite his exceptional ball control, strength and eye for goal, the powerful AC Milan striker will still never be everyone’s favourite front-man. A decent showing this summer will go a long way to proving the cynics wrong and what better time to do it than during Europe’s front-running competition. 

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