At the age of 41, Zlatan Ibrahimovic decided to stop playing football. He said his retirement from football at the San Siro, in an emotional tribute ceremony that AC Milan gave him.

The announcer lost his voice when he caught the beat to chant the name of Zlatan Ibrahimovic. Lots of tears were shed. The stands on the San Siro field cried when the Swedish star was about to say goodbye to the team. His teammates also couldn't hold back their emotions, Sandro Tonali's eyes filled with tears. Even Ibrahimovic himself could not stop the flow of his emotions. The leader of the group also has a soft moment, a strong and courageous man sometimes has to cry.

It was an emotional farewell. In the stands, from the very beginning of the match against Hellas Verona, AC Milan fans held up a tifo with the words "God Bye" to say goodbye to their legend. AC Milan finished the 2022/2023 season well: The team finished the season in the top 4 and went further than imagined in the UEFA Champions League arena. With Ibrahimovic, he has also done his duty with this team to end a great football journey.

In the eyes of many, Ibrahimovic can be a brat. But to the Milanistas, he is a true hero, someone who can and does. In 2010, he joined Milan and immediately became an inspiration in attack to bring the Rossoneri to the first Scudetto in 7 years. It was the last golden age of the "Grande Milan" players who reached the Champions League final three times in the 2000s. Ibrahimovic simply played with the champions.

And AC Milan that he returned to in 2019 is a completely different team. It is a team that has been covered by darkness for a long time and has no winning spirit. At that time, Ibrahimovic's contract with LA Galaxy was about to expire and "super agent" Mino Raiola told his client that retiring in the US was too easy, but he needed to go back and show everyone himself. still able to play football in Europe. Ibrahimovic asked which team needed a player like him the most, and Raiola replied that it was AC Milan. And the deal was quickly completed.

At that time, although there were young and talented faces in the team, they did not have enough strength to revive a tired team. The culmination of the disappointment was the 0-5 loss to Atalanta in December 2019. And then seasoned veterans like Ibrahimovic (with Simon Kjaer or later Olivier Giroud) appeared. They "blown fire" into the whole team, becoming role models for the whole team to follow with both expertise and working style. A lost AC Milan gradually finds the light because young players are no longer disoriented when there are seniors like Ibrahimovic on the pitch.

Technical director Paolo Maldini once said: “In the world in general and football in particular, many things develop but some concepts are always true. One of them is competition in training, which is the only way to improve. Zlatan is the master of that. He never wanted to lose, even when playing cards." Adriano Galliani - former CEO of AC Milan - shared: "I remember he used to push his teammates against the wall because they didn't practice passionately."

The Scudetto title for the 2021/22 season is a worthy reward as well as a testament to the success of a team that unites and fights for each other, when young players with desire and talent combine with experience. experience and the role model of the seniors. And that is the promise that Ibrahimovic has made.

“The team has done great things since my return and now we only lack one thing: the title. We are fighting to get there. I will not leave until I win a title with Milan", that is the share of the Swedish striker at the beginning of 2022.

To fulfill that commitment, what did Ibra do? He bet his health on the whole team campaign. For 6 months, he accepted to play with a torn knee ligament, ready to inject pain relievers and suck fluids continuously to be able to play whenever possible to shoulder the responsibility of a goal-scorer. as well as a leader. Do not forget, earlier in 2017 Ibrahimovic also suffered a ligament injury that had to be out for 7 months. For a young player, it was a serious injury, not to mention an old general like him. However, the Swedish player returned from that injury, returning from the time he was considered "retired" in the US to continue to shine in Italy.

In the first 2 seasons in the second period with AC Milan, Ibrahimovic really contributed a lot professionally with 10 goals in 18 appearances in the 2019/20 season and 15 goals in 19 matches in the season. 2020/21. Then, it is necessary to recognize the fact that in the 2021/22 season, having to play football with a broken knee because of an injury makes Ibra no longer maintain his scoring form. However, the Swedish star still has very important goals,