8. PSG and Sweden striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic
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Zlatan Ibrahimovic is a player who just seems to get better and better with age. The enigmatic Swedish forward has been around for a long time now, and has really shaken off his reputation for being something of an inconsistent talent and established himself as one of the most talented attackers on the planet.
Now 31, Ibrahimovic is playing at his seventh club, and has just won yet another league title in another country with PSG. He started his career in his native Sweden with Malmo, before being snapped up by Ajax. It was in Amsterdam that he started to make a name for himself, scoring one of the goals of his career against NAC Breda in 2004 after some breath-taking skill to beat a host of defenders.
However, his attitude problems continued to blight his career, and he was shipped out by the Dutch giants after a dispute with his team-mate Rafael van der Vaart. He made his way to Serie A with Juventus, but failed to reach top form with the club. He then moved to Inter Milan following Juve’s relegation for match-fixing, and it was there that his career really took off, particularly under the management of Jose Mourinho, who joined the club in 2008.
Ibrahimovic’s fine form attracted a big-money offer from Barcelona, and he became the club’s record signing when he moved to the Nou Camp in 2009. The Swede helped Barca to the La Liga title, but left after just one season due to having a poor relationship with manager Pep Guardiola.
He returned to Italy with AC Milan, and made it eight consecutive league title wins in a row for himself as he helped the Rossoneri become champions in 2010/11.
Ibrahimovic is currently the most expensive player of all time in terms of combined transfer fees, and the only player to have scored for six different clubs in the Champions League. Records aside, he is a joy to watch due to his great combination of physical strength as well as technique and flair. He is known not only for being a great goal-scorer, but for scoring great goals.
Perhaps the best of his impressive collection came last year on international duty for Sweden. Ibrahimovic was already on a hat-trick as his side led England 3-2, and added an amazing fourth towards the end of the game, as he beat goalkeeper Joe Hart with a long-distance over-head kick. This strike earned him numerous plaudits, and is a perfect example of the player’s tremendous confidence in his ability.
In total, he has 41 goals in 90 caps for Sweden, and 269 career goals at club level. Despite his impressive record with league titles, and a good goal-scoring record in Europe, he has never actually won the Champions League, and his talent certainly deserves the biggest prize of all.
Ibrahimovic could be on the move again this summer, with both Chelsea and Manchester City said to be interested in him, and it would be great to see how he could do in the Premier League.