WGL Sports Performer of the Day (2/26/17)
Manchester United Forward Zlatan Ibrahimovic (2 goals)
All Zlatan Ibrahimovic does is win. Over the course of his career, the 35-year-old Swede has done it all, playing for Malmo FF, Ajax, Juventus, Inter, Barcelona, AC Milan, and Paris Saint-Germain, scoring goals and piling up trophies throughout. He is also Sweden’s all-time leading scorer with 62 goals. During his most recent stay at PSG from 2012 through 2016, Ibrahimovic scored 113 goals in 122 appearances and led the French club to four straight Ligue 1 titles, three Coupes de la Ligue, and two Coupes de France. Still, that was not enough to keep Ibrahimovic in Paris for another season, as he proclaimed last summer that the only way he would re-sign with PSG was if they replaced the Eiffel Tower with a statue of him. PSG’s loss became Manchester United’s gain, as Ibrahimovic joined the English side on a free transfer.
So far in 2016-17, Ibrahimovic is proving to have not missed a beat. With the season’s first major trophy on the line yesterday in the EFL Cup Final, Ibrahimovic led Manchester United to a 3-2 win over Southampton. It was a thrilling encounter that gave United their 41st major trophy, tying Liverpool for the most all-time among English clubs. Ibrahimovic got the scoring started in the 19th minute, scoring a stunning free kick from 31 yards out. A goal from Jesse Lingard gave Man U a 2-0 lead, but Southampton answered back with two goals of their own. With the score tied 2-2 in the dying minutes, Ibrahimovic showed why he is still one of the world’s best strikers, burying a header from close range to win it for Manchester United. He now has scored 20 goals in his last 22 games in all competitions. For the season, he has 26 goals in 38 matches across all competitions. Ibrahimovic signed just a one-year deal last summer, but he does have the option to sign on for another year. No one knows what the future holds for Ibrahimovic, but as long as he can continue defeating father time and rise above the highest levels of competition, expect United fans to plead with him to come back next year for one more run.
