THREAD:
#Zlatan @Ibra_official spoke with @sportbladet's @ErikNiva after winning #Guldbollen & made some powerful remarks.
Swedish speakers read it here: https://www.aftonbladet.se/sportbladet/fotboll/a/EplAy2/zlatan-arligt-jag-saknar-landslaget

Below a translation in English on some topics why #ACMilan, #Kulusevski, playing for Sweden again

On the injury: "It's nothing serious. 1-2 weeks."

On signing for #ACMilan: "I was like this. 'Enough now. I wanted to enter a new chapter of my life. Be with my kids everyday. But then @MinoRaiola said: "You have to finish in Europe. You have to show that you are back at the -->

highest level. That you can do it. Just do 6 months in Milan and then retire. Then people will remember that you finished your career in Europe. At the top.
I spoke a lot with Mino. He was on me: "You can't quit. He wants me to play until I rot away. He wants me to continue
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and continue. And he knows how to trigger me. He said: "It's too easy to quit in the USA and it's not supposed to be easy.
Mihajlovic became sick. I spoke to him. He said "come to Bologna." I told him: "Listen, for you I'll come for free. No problem. I'll come and help you."
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But the situation was if I should finish my career or not. So I told him: "This is not the Zlatan like he was 10 years ago. How you are used to seeing Ibra in Milan Inter & Juventus. It's someone different."
Then they [Milan] lost in a disgusting way to Atalanta.
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And they started calling me. So it was between Bologna and Milan. For me it is about adrenaline. In order to go through waking up at 7-8 in the morning when your body is aching it is about adrenaline and feeling motivated. So I asked Mino: "Who needs me more?"
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"he said: Milan! Only you can take them to where they were 10 years ago." OK call them.
In my head I had one vision. The challenge was not impossible nothing is impossible but it was very difficult. The first question I was asked was: "everyone who has returned to Milan
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has failed. Why will you succeed? And I replied: "because I have never lost the passion I have for what I do."
People don't get it, when they all say he's 39 what can he do, that's what triggers me. This is why i get out of bed at 7 am when my body is aching. I'll get there!
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Now I will show them that I can, that I will. That's the pressure I out on myself. That feeling when something is difficult and you succeed...It's impossible to describe it.
I told those above me at the club "keep that headache off the pitch so we can work." The first 6 months
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were not easy given how the year turned out. Given who the coach and players were. We didn't know if the coach would stay, I didn't know if I would stay.
But then we changed step by step and today we are very strong.

On racism in Sweden:
"The new Sweden. I'm a living example: you can make it, even with my background. There's been a lot of talk about this in Sweden, not just about football but about everything. I'm pushing all the time: "You can make it."
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"I give hope to everyone out there that feel they can't do it, that they don't get a chance, that they wont succeed because they are who they are. I'm living proof that you can make it, and I give them hope and it feels that when Janne [swedosh coach] came in he killed that hope.

And that is not ok for me. That is not ok because I feel that I am their example and a leader for them. I open doors for them, it is up to them to decide if they want to go through or not, but it felt like he closed those doors and it all ended there.

"Let's take Dejan [Kulusevski]. I KNOW who Dejan is. Not starting him in a game...for me either you don't know your job or you don't want to see the whole picture. If you think Dejan is like Zlatan, no. I know who Dejan is. Dejan runs for 11 people. He's the perfect example.
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"So if you tell me that he doesn't fit in - which is to me completely wrong - then you don't know who Dejan is. He wont score 20 goals but he's the one who will contribute to 20 goals. He's the guy who runs for 4 people. If he can't play for the national team, given the level
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he is at with Juentus who spent €40-50m...We all know that Juventus know what they are doing when buying players for that sum. Him not playing is strange. It gives the wrong image of Sweden & everyone questions it. We are Sweden. Where are we ranked?
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How high is the Swedish league ranked? How high is Italy and Juventus ranked?
I mean if he can't start for Sweden, how are we representing Swedish football? What is our approach to the world, who we are? And this is what I meant by saying "ignorant people in wrong places."

When I see Swedish football today, it is like it was 40 years ago. Maybe even further back than that. What do we want to teach the young in Swedish football?
That we want them to develop into? The player we had 40 years ago or the modern player we have today? It starts there.

"I care about Swedish football, I am a part of it. I have never seen myself that I am not Swedish or not part of Swedish football. I am the best player in the history of Swedish football, no discussion. I know I am. I say that with pride. But now it is about giving back.

Returning to the national team: "I miss it. I put out a photo the other day in the Swedish national team jersey and said that I did it to annoy people. I want to take that back. I had missed a penalty during that game & just wanted to get rid of the question.
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If Janne Andersson calls me: "I'll say I'll think about it. But it has to come from him. If he thinks Im a distraction, then Im not interested, but if he thinks I have something to give, then I'll think about it.
It's like my time at Barcelona.
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When I arrived I told Guardiola: "if you dont think Im good enough or if I dont do what you want me to do, I'm not gonna make any trouble. I just say goodbye. That's how I am."

"I don't know Janne [swedish national team coach]. I dont judge people unless I know them. I statements on him have been about his selections. And I stand by that. I stand by all of it. It feels everything Ive built up fr 20 years was taken away in 1 day. Yes that bothers me.
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On how he views his career for the national team: "I remember every game. I was proud to play for Sweden. But did I win anything? No. So if you ask me "have you succeeded?" in mu world no. For me, if you haven't won anything you have failed."
THE END