During his time at Barcelona, Zlatan Ibrahimovic once famously compared himself to a Ferrari. While it was in reference to his lack of playing time, the two certainly have commonalities. Powerful yet graceful. Stylish and precise. But after scoring his 100th league goal for PSG over the weekend, perhaps a more pertinent comparison is fine wine. Since he turned thirty, Ibrahimovic has scored at least an astonishing thirty five goals per season, higher than any other stretch of his career. This season, at the age of 34,Ibrahimovic is having one of his best seasons to date. During PSG's most recent 9-0 dismantling of Troyes, he scored four goals, including a sublime, acrobatic one-time finish and a side-footed volley that darted into the top right corner. With the goals, he raised his tally to 27 league goals on the season and, in doing so, secured PSG their fourth consecutive Ligue 1 title.
After the game, Ibrahimovic confirmed that this will be his last season in the French capital. In typical Zlatan fashion, he joked that he would only stay with PSG if the Eiffel Tower was replaced with his statue. While PSG fans will certainly be unhappy with the news, it is hard to blame Zlatan for wanting to move. His four years playing in France have undoubtedly been successful, winning 10 domestic trophies there, but there will always be those who say it came too easily. I mean, let's be honest, PSG could go the whole season in second gear and win the title. In fact, the current gap between them and second place Monaco is such that Monaco is closer to relegation than they are to first place. After conquering his third major European league, Ibrahimovic needs a new challenge.
This raises the question, where will he go next? Some suspect he will follow in the footsteps of other aging European stars and move to the MLS or China. For me, he will stay in Europe. I just think he still has something to prove. As he has already had successful spells in Italy, Spain and France, I suspect he will move elsewhere. That leaves Germany and England. While a move to Bayern Munich or Borussia Dortmund could certainly be on the cards, all signs point to England. Ibrahimovic has all of the qualities to thrive in England. He has the strength to withstand the physical play, the technical quality to score brilliant goals and the personality to perform consistently on the biggest stage in the world.
If Zlatan does indeed want to move to the Premier League, he will be welcomed with open arms. It is hard to deny that this Premier League season has been flat. While Leicester City’s surprising title challenge has certainly been captivating, the performances of the league’s top sides have been disappointing. Manchester United have never been in this bad of shape in the Premier League at this stage of the season. Manchester City, the highest scorers of the past two seasons, have scored fewer away goals than newly promoted sides Bournemouth and Watford. The Premier League needs a spark. Hopefully Zlatan will provide it.
