The restless and talented Ibrahimovic
Not many footballers can pull off what Sweden's star striker has been able to in recent years. The exceptional ability of the country's number 10 can be explained by going through a particular segment of events on 7 September, 2005, at the Ferenc Puskas Stadium in Budapest.
The Swedish national team had travelled to the stadium to face Hungary in a qualifying match for the 2006 World Cup. As the night wore on, the cold September winds swept in over the players and what had become a stale encounter looked certain to end as a goalless draw — which would have been a frustrating away result for the Swedish team.
But after one of Sweden's many corners in the second half, this one occurring in stoppage time, the ball is played back into the Hungarian penalty box. The tall, powerful number 10 receives it in the far right corner of the area, closely marked by Hungary's left-back.
The striker fakes going right as his body is turned to the goal, before he turns around and faces the defender. During half a second — lots of time given the ticking clock — he awaits the defender's first move before jolting his body to the right, toward the touch line, bringing the ball with him in his stride. The striker has half a yard to spare, and that is all he needs to get the shot away. From an acute angle, the ball flies directly into the near top corner without anyone on the pitch, not even the goalscorer himself, realizing that it had gone in.
Zlatan Ibrahimovic has produced many such moments of magic for his country. In 2008, his rocket from outside the area gave Sweden the lead against Greece in the first match of the European championships, while his back-heeled goal against Italy in the same competition four years prior earned his team a point against vastly superior opponents.
As national team coach Lars Lagerback said after that night in Hungary: "When you have a world class player like Zlatan Ibrahimovic to score such a goal, you can always win, even if you did not play well."
Ibrahimovic has produced similarly decisive moments for every club he has played at. Even during his short spell at Barcelona, the Swede managed to score both the team's goals away to Arsenal in the quarter finals of the Champions League.
Talent blossomed in Sweden
Ibrahimovic's exceptional talent first became known in 1999 when he was playing with his local club Malmo FF in Sweden, a team he joined in 1994. Raised in Malmo by a Bosnian father and Croatian mother, Ibrahimovic played a full season for Malmo FF before it was relegated to the first division in 2000. Once back in the top league in 2001, the skilful and unpredictable striker needed only half a season to impress the top clubs in Europe.
In July that year, Dutch team Ajax signed Ibrahimovic for €7.8 million, the highest fee for a Swedish player to date. He scored 49 goals in 109 league appearances for the club, becoming one of its outstanding number nine strikers in the middle of the three-man attack in Ajax's 4-3-3 system.
His scoring record has been consistently high at all of his club teams, with 57 goals in 88 league appearances for Inter Milan being his best record to date. Ibrahimovic won the Italian league title in all five seasons he spent in Italy, though his two Scudettos won at Juventus were later stripped of the club due to doping charges. He won the Spanish La Liga when he played for Barcelona during the 2009–2010 season.
Controversial breakups
But aside from his unquestionable striking talent and proven scoring record, there is another story to be told from his long professional career: his tendency to switch clubs regularly, often amid unresolved internal conflicts.
Commentators have speculated that the controversial circumstances surrounding his departures have been a tactic employed by Mino Raiola, Ibrahimovic's agent since just before his contentious move to Juventus in 2004, to lower his price and ensure that a move is inevitable. Despite lucrative contracts and high transfer fees, Ibrahimovic has been able to leave Inter and Barcelona whenever Raiola has driven up a media storm. He will now spend the 2010–2011 season on loan to Italian side AC Milan.
But despite the controversies, the striker's goalscoring talent and crucial contributions to the big games of the season leaves him in demand at most of Europe's clubs.
And Erik Hamren, Sweden's new national team coach, will be delighted that his captain decided to return to the national team for the 2012 European championship qualifiers after a self-imposed hiatus. The fate of the Swedish national team rests on the broad shoulders of its number 10.
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