On the field, he was one of those who are not born often - a unique football maestro, a man who lived for this game, goals, victories...
Always different from everyone else, arrogant to many, but also a great football master to all of them, a striker who brought entertainment, moves and goals that will be told about as long as football exists.
Football legend Zlatan Ibrahimović was the new guest on the show (Un)Success of the Champion, hosted by his former colleague Slaven Bilić.
In the first part of the conversation, Ibra shared his life story with Bilić, talking about life after his professional career, his advisory role at Milan, his childhood in Rusengo, the mentality of a winner, as well as the challenges and experiences that shaped his path.
The former captain of the Swedish national football team also talked about his beginnings, family, identity, and the ambition that has accompanied him throughout his career.
"To make it clear to the viewers, our show is planetary in terms of the size of the guests and the careers they have made... But it is still oriented towards our region and the people from that area - that is a priority. It would be great if we tried to speak in a language that the people from that area understand, whatever they call it. Kudos to you - and it is also proof of your greatness and courage, that you decided: let's try it...", Bilić pointed out.
Zlatan Ibrahimovic confirmed:
"Okay, we'll try it in our own language. If it doesn't work, we can do it in Swedish, English, Italian..."
Bilić reflected on Ibrahimović's new role at Milan after his playing career ended and raised the question of whether the position can replace the feeling and adrenaline he had on the pitch. Zlatan Ibrahimović spoke openly about the experiences that shaped him:
"Everything I've experienced as a player has shaped me as a person. What I've learned, the mentality I've had around me, the people around me, the players and people outside of football - they've made me the person I am today... The goals I have are the goals of a winner's mentality. It's not that I don't know how to lose - I've lost - but my world is not one of losing. I have to win, I want to win and I know how to win. That's who I am. I always seek to be the best. Anything less than that doesn't fulfill me. I want to be different from others. If I'm different from others, then I'm the best."
Slaven opened up about coaching and the question of whether the role of a coach can give a player the same feeling as when he is on the field.
Ibrahimovic spoke about the difference between a player and a coach, as well as how much he misses the competitive field:
"When a player was at the top level, it's not the same as when you're a coach. Coaching is a different thing. It doesn't help - it helps a little - if you were a player, but that's a different situation. Players make the mistake of thinking that they'll be great coaches just because they were great players. Those are two different situations. Now I'm suffering because I can't play, because I can't help my teammates, I can't contribute to the result. When I was playing, I felt alive. That was my world. It's either you or me. One will win. I'll do everything to win... when I get on the field, I get the mentality of a winner. If I don't win, it's like I'm not alive. That's why it's hard for me today that I can't help my teammates... I'm learning a different way to help the team. But - it's hard."
Speaking about the comparison between the role of a player and the role of a manager, the icon of world football emphasized that he remained true to himself, but that today he views football from a new perspective:
"I'm the same. I'm the same as I was as a player. I just see football from a different perspective now. Now I have answers to questions I didn't have when I was a player. I have a complete picture of the entire club... The club is like a company - it needs sponsors, fans, television rights. That's what I'm learning now, that's where I grow and that's where I'm humbled. I watch, listen and learn from professionals in those areas. When it comes to football itself, I'm more offensive - I know more about it and I talk more. Those are two different situations... now I go 'step by step'. When I was playing, it was a different situation."
Life in the ghetto that wasn't a ghetto for me
Bilić returned to Ibrahimović's childhood and upbringing in Rusengord, which the legendary striker spoke about with particular pride:
"I was born in Malmö, in the Rusengord area. They say it's a ghetto, but for me it wasn't a ghetto... It was multicultural... we were all there and we were together. My father is a Muslim from Bosnia and Herzegovina, from Bijeljina, my mother is a Catholic from Zadar, and I was born in Sweden. Until I was 16, 17, I had never been to the center of Malmö. Football, school and my apartment were in Rusengord. We were all there. I didn't need to go to the city. We didn't even go on school trips to the city."
Ibra continued:
"It's no secret now that I stole a lot of bikes to go to training. I didn't take the bus because I didn't have money. I either walked, or ran, or stole a bike to get to training or to school. That was my world... I went to the city for the first time when I was 16. That was when I saw a green bus for the first time... When I first went to the city, I noticed that everyone was blue, they had blue eyes. I said that's not possible. Where I grew up, I didn't see Sweden as Sweden... It was like another world opened up to me. At that time, I hadn't played in Malmö yet. I played for the smaller clubs FBK Balkan and Malmö BI. I realized that there was more to it than what I saw. After that, I went to a trial in Malmö and after two days they invited me to play for them...
The former captain of the Swedish national football team recalled:
"I was wild. I can't speak for the Balkans, but in my family there was no hugging. It was more of an 'aggressive' situation. 'Old school I love you'. 'Aggressive'. That was also my way of showing others and when I played it created a lot of problems for me. When I shouted at my teammates on the pitch, it seemed too aggressive, but that was normal for me. They said: he is not an example for others... They made me feel different... They didn't see me as a Swede, but I saw myself as a Swede. That was the problem... In Malmö at the beginning there weren't many foreigners playing. And that's where I opened the door for everyone... That's what I'm most proud of."
One of the greatest strikers of his generation, among other things, spoke about his parents, as well as the values he took with him from childhood:
"My parents gave me everything they could give me. For me, it was great and I had everything I needed. Why? I didn't know there were other things. I only saw this... and if I had known there were other things, I wouldn't have asked... I'm grateful for what I had and I pass that on to my children. You should be grateful for what you have. If you want more, work and earn it."
He also spoke about discipline, upbringing, and the circumstances in which he grew up:
"Milk, bread and bolognese. Three things. I tell my children – if I could succeed with those three things, then you can succeed with those three things too… I have more money than my parents. Money makes life easier, but it won't give you happiness… I teach my children discipline, respect and independence. If they are not independent by the age of 18 – I have failed."
Only my kids in LA didn't have drivers to school.
He recalled:
"We were in Beverly Hills – I'm not saying this to make myself look big now, I did it that way. I was playing in Los Angeles at the time. The kids were going to school, and they all had drivers. I only saw two bikes at school – Vincent's and Maximilian's. I bought them two bikes and said: take the bikes and go to school yourself. I was tough and strong, but always for their good – consistent."
The top scorer of the Swedish national football team also reflected on his footballing beginnings in Malmo.
"It was hard. Everyone was there before me, signing contracts. But I was so good that they couldn't remove me or block me. I was too good and in the end we signed a contract... then everything exploded. I wasn't like the others. Everyone said I was arrogant. Even then I was saying I was the best. There is no Swedish player better than me... the first time I signed a contract, I made a promise to myself that I wouldn't change. And maybe that's why I paid for never winning the Ballon d'Or."
He also spoke about the idols who inspired him.
"In the beginning it was Muhammad Ali, because of my father. He put me in front of the TV and I watched Muhammad Ali... I watched him speak. He wasn't arrogant, he had confidence. That's a big difference... He was my idol. I wanted to be like him... I also started watching a lot of football and for me the Brazilian Ronaldo was... I always say: when you see a player and then you try to do what he does - he's a top player. He's the best player."
Zlatan Ibrahimović also spoke about the media attention, as well as the support of his family during the period when his rise was in the spotlight:
"There was a time when there was 'Zlatan fever'. Every day, newspapers, television... It's not like Father Šefik said: listen, it has to be this way or that... Mom cleaned, she had three children... The first time I signed a contract with Ajax, mom saw my picture on TV and thought I had died. When someone dies, they show them a picture on TV. She didn't know Swedish very well... she called me and asked what happened. I said I was going to Ajax to play football. And she: No, no, what happened? I say: I'm going to become a professional. She answers me: You're always joking around - and hangs up... No one believed in me. I looked for a way myself, I found it and fought - and in the end it came. If I can succeed with three things, anyone can, because I'm living proof that it works."
Plazma Youth Sports Games, the largest European amateur sports event for children and youth, as the owners and rights holders of the show (Un)Failure of the Champion, after Maari Stanić and Mirza Džomba, through cooperation with Slaven Bilić, continue to build another platform that will inspire the young generation.
Bonus video:
