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2016-17 Performances


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RRCE

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After a quick check this seems to be legit. fake news paranoia is strong in me
Unreal.
Moving to PSG and feasting on weaker French opposition didn't hurt either. Not to take anything away from his accomplishments, but his totals would certainly be lower had he been playing in England for the past 4 years (although I'm sure they'd still be impressive).
 

FujiVice

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Moving to PSG and feasting on weaker French opposition didn't hurt either. Not to take anything away from his accomplishments, but his totals would certainly be lower had he been playing in England for the past 4 years (although I'm sure they'd still be impressive).
Why bring it up then? If Messi and Ronaldo werent playing in a league where the drop off from the top 4 is significantly massive, their rates would be lower as well. You still have to put the ball in the net.
 

diarm

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Moving to PSG and feasting on weaker French opposition didn't hurt either. Not to take anything away from his accomplishments, but his totals would certainly be lower had he been playing in England for the past 4 years (although I'm sure they'd still be impressive).
His stats in his first year in the Prem, aged 35, suggest he'd have 200 goals in 300 games so he's not far off it.
 

RRCE

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Why bring it up then? If Messi and Ronaldo werent playing in a league where the drop off from the top 4 is significantly massive, their rates would be lower as well. You still have to put the ball in the net.
Obviously.
 

RRCE

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His stats in his first year in the Prem, aged 35, suggest he'd have 200 goals in 300 games so he's not far off it.
Maybe. As I said, his numbers would still be impressive. I'm not ripping the player, so any Zlatan fanboys have no need to lose their minds.
 

Acole9

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His record is phenomenal, the best in the box striker we've had since RVN.
 

klayton88

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Serious question - When do we look to buy a long term out and out striker? This summer and give him a season to fit in before Zlat retires? Rashford is nowhere near ready (and rightly so - I'm not having a dig) to be our main man.
 

Kamprad

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He scored 28 goals in 32 games his last season in serie A. Out of the four top leagues Serie A is the toughest to score goals. The teams play defensive and there's less goals per game. So he started accelerate his goal scoring before moving to France.

There was a discussion here after the Watford game about his conversion rate. Maybe he had a few bad games where he missed a few chances but to say he is a bad finisher is nothing but ridicolous. He is a goal scoring machine. Still he is not just a striker but also a playmaker.
 
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Serious question - When do we look to buy a long term out and out striker? This summer and give him a season to fit in before Zlat retires? Rashford is nowhere near ready (and rightly so - I'm not having a dig) to be our main man.
Nar, anyone who is good enough to replace Zlatan in the side will demand a starting place immediately, so unless we're gonna do what PSG did with Cavani and play a striker of that caliber on the wing, we'll let Marcus have more chances next season and then buy big the following Summer if Mourinho feels Rashford isn't ready (which is obviously the most likely).
 

DWelbz19

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There was a discussion here after the Watford game about his conversion rate. Maybe he had a few bad games where he missed a few chances but to say he is a bad finisher is nothing but ridicolous. He is a goal scoring machine. Still he is not just a striker but also a playmaker.
It sounds weird but I don't think the two are mutually exclusive - you can be a bad finisher but still be a goal-scoring machine. And I feel like that's what Ibrahimovic is.
 

Henrik Larsson

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It sounds weird but I don't think the two are mutually exclusive - you can be a bad finisher but still be a goal-scoring machine. And I feel like that's what Ibrahimovic is.
He's a bit of an enigma for sure, back at Ajax he had the stigma of being brilliant at difficult stuff, while at the same time he was messing up the simple things. I guess we still see shades of this at times. It's also interesting, I'm sure there are strikers out there who relatively score more goals. But then looking at the absolute amount, hasn't he been scoring 20+ goals for 10 straight seasons now? I'm not even sure if it's logically possible to claim that someone who managed to bang in 50 goals in a calender year is a mediocre finisher, let alone a poor one, regardless of how much chances he has actually missed.
 

Eire Red United

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Serious question - When do we look to buy a long term out and out striker? This summer and give him a season to fit in before Zlat retires? Rashford is nowhere near ready (and rightly so - I'm not having a dig) to be our main man.
If Rashford got this season and next season under Ibra do you think he would be ready? Maybe Griezman if he comes is an option as a striker?
 

RedMaestro

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If Rashford got this season and next season under Ibra do you think he would be ready? Maybe Griezman if he comes is an option as a striker?
Well I think Rashford could be the striker to take over after Ibra. And we mustn't forget that he's still 19 and his physique still needs time - weighs 70 kg. He still neeeds to "bulk up" to be more ready to handle the defenders. But a few years of hard training with the help of Ibra and Mourinho will probably have him ready to "lead the line"

Besides, if Griezmann is coming, then he can also share the job with Rashford until he's ready - maybe one extra season.
 

Chaky_Best

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I had a bet with a friend before the season that Ibra won't score more than 20 goals in PL.

I must admit that he's closing my mouth.

I always said that he's a great player, I'm still not confident whether he can be our talisman, the man who will score the winner at Chelsea in FA Cup, the one who will score against City and Arsenal when we'll need the points.

Van Persie looked like a real savior, Zlatan is more like the finisher. And our situation (6th) recquires more a savior now
 

SteveW

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I know people like to say Messi and Ronaldo will go down as the GOAT but for me Ibra is more worthy of that accolade as he has played for a lot of different clubs and won with all of them, or almost all if he hasn't won with all. That for me is something more worthy of praise than a player spending his life with one club and another who spent his winning with just 2.
You think Zlatan is the greatest footballer of all time. :rolleyes:
 

Classical Mechanic

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You think Zlatan is the greatest footballer of all time. :rolleyes:
I'm saying he has proven himself in multiple leagues. Messi plies his trade in a league with no real challenge.
This is the great thing about the CAF, last week Zlatan had many detractors (me included) claiming that he wasn't good enough to just being kind of average at the top level, now after a hattrick against St Etienne and a goal against Blackburn he has been declared the greatest player of all time.
 

Stringer

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I'm saying he has proven himself in multiple leagues. Messi plies his trade in a league with no real challenge.
La Liga is a better league than Serie A or Ligue 1 where Ibrahimovic has played the vast majority of his career.

There's also the fact that you can simply watch the pair of them and it becomes clear immediately that Messi is far superior.
 

Raees

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He's a bit of an enigma for sure, back at Ajax he had the stigma of being brilliant at difficult stuff, while at the same time he was messing up the simple things. I guess we still see shades of this at times. It's also interesting, I'm sure there are strikers out there who relatively score more goals. But then looking at the absolute amount, hasn't he been scoring 20+ goals for 10 straight seasons now? I'm not even sure if it's logically possible to claim that someone who managed to bang in 50 goals in a calender year is a mediocre finisher, let alone a poor one, regardless of how much chances he has actually missed.
It is a strange one. Andy Cole was another who was very hit and miss with his finishing, yet could score some peaches and look downright lethal at times.

Then you have guys like Owen who you just know will hit the back of the net, but maybe get themselves in less positions to score goals.

I think Zlatan is that talented, he just makes opportunities and makes even harmless situations into goalscoring chances.. and that is why he is still able to rack up such a goal tally despite being a less than clinical finisher.
 

Kamprad

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It sounds weird but I don't think the two are mutually exclusive - you can be a bad finisher but still be a goal-scoring machine. And I feel like that's what Ibrahimovic is.
I guess everything is possible. Still a good finisher IMO.

I had a bet with a friend before the season that Ibra won't score more than 20 goals in PL.

I must admit that he's closing my mouth.

I always said that he's a great player, I'm still not confident whether he can be our talisman, the man who will score the winner at Chelsea in FA Cup, the one who will score against City and Arsenal when we'll need the points.

Van Persie looked like a real savior, Zlatan is more like the finisher. And our situation (6th) recquires more a savior now
Now suddenly he is a finisher but not a savior. There are so different views in here that it actually gets me groggy reading everything.

So you think he's better than Messi?
This is the great thing about the CAF, last week Zlatan had many detractors (me included) claiming that he wasn't good enough to just being kind of average at the top level, now after a hattrick against St Etienne and a goal against Blackburn he has been declared the greatest player of all time.
Haha, well he is not that far from being the greatest of all time. Messi is for me. I can't really judge Maradona, Pele and every other player playing pre-mid90s so it's really greatest since the 90s. But there's not that many ahead of him since. We have Zidane, Messi of course. Ronaldo and Ronaldinhos peak was higher than Ibras and they've won WC but Zlatan has stayed on the highest level for at least a decade and played for Sweden so WC isn't an option. I'd actually choose Ibra ahead of Cristiano and Henry if I owned a club. But they have won the CL, euros and Henry the WC. I guess they should be ahead of him too. At least Cristiano. There's a few defenders maybe that can be discussed. Buffon, maybe Neuer. Hard to compare goalkeepers. But who else? His ability to stay on the highest level at 35 is almost unique in history of football. He has almost single-handledly carried his teams to win championships. He haven't won CL. Could be a coincidence or maybe a team that rely so much on Zlatan, as his teams has done, is not enough to win CL. Then it's a problem because he more or less demand the teams to be build around him. If he can't get them further than QF he should have been able to back down and let other players help out to carry the load. So that's a big minus.

A long post but to sum it up he is at least top 10 of the players I've seen.

I should probably also mention I'm Swedish...
 

RedMaestro

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People need to get this idea out of their heads, there is simply no chance in the World that a Mourinho team will play with a midget forward.
People used to say that Mourinho just likes to "park the bus" and would be wrong for Manchester United, but he's proved many doubters wrong.

However, I do agree with you about him preferring to use a "powerhouse" as his lone striker, but if the forward has the right work rate to occupy the defenders, can hold on to the ball (don't necessarily need to be big and strong for this, important thing is good control of the ball and keeping it close to your feet) and linking it with the others.

Diego Milito, during his Inter period wasn't exactly built as Ibra or Drogba, but he did a good job for Mourinho. Besides, Griezmann would only be used as a sort of a back-up for Rashford when his "experience" movement wise could be lacking in some "important" games. But Mourinho would mostly use them both as a partnership if he can't find a suitable striker after Ibra.

But this is just an opinion and I really don't think Mourinho will leave anything to chance. So when the day arrives, with Ibra unfortunately leaving, a new striker will come. Who it will be is another story - a bit depending on if Ibra will stay for 1,2 or even 3 more seasons. A lot can change in a few years, new "stars" can turn up.
 

RedMaestro

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@Kamprad I really don't like it when some people bring up titles. One shouldn't base things they've won - some play for "lesser" NT, some play during a generation when a couple of teams are dominating, these things makes it almost impossible to win. Besides, you win titles as a team and not as an individual.

That's why I would prefer it if people could just explain what's "good/bad" with the players, their characteristics, their physical and mental "features". Or else it's a bit unfair, because some players have a lot of titles, but have barely even played for the teams or when they have, maybe not been the strongest "contributor" to the win.

But maybe I'm too picky...
 
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People used to say that Mourinho just likes to "park the bus" and would be wrong for Manchester United, but he's proved many doubters wrong.
That was something I always argued against though as he first Chelsea team was an incredibly exciting watch as was his Madrid side. One thing that has never changed though is his desperation for a "proper" striker, even resulting to sticking Eto'o on the wing.
 

Kamprad

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@Kamprad I really don't like it when some people bring up titles. One shouldn't base things they've won - some play for "lesser" NT, some play during a generation when a couple of teams are dominating, these things makes it almost impossible to win. Besides, you win titles as a team and not as an individual.

That's why I would prefer it if people could just explain what's "good/bad" with the players, their characteristics, their physical and mental "features". Or else it's a bit unfair, because some players have a lot of titles, but have barely even played for the teams or when they have, maybe not been the strongest "contributor" to the win.

But maybe I'm too picky...
If you're too picky you can't compare players at all. It's just impossible. So these lists are never objective.

Football is still a team sport. It's about helping your team win. Individual attributes are measured by how they help teams be stronger IMO. Not who is the fastast or scores the most goals. And it is also an attribute to be able to help your team be stronger even if it means you take a smaller role or a role where some of your best attributes doesn't show. At the same time, if you do that every year than no one knows you're best attributes and how good you are.

I mean Etoo played winger in Inter and they won CL. Would they have won that season if Zlatan replaced Etoo and still played in and carried the team? Impossible to answer of course. Same with Suarez and Neymar. They took a smaller role in Barca and the team is maybe working better than if peak-Zlatan was there right know. Then again you could say none of Zlatans teams would have been better if Zlatans was replaced with some of the players mentioned. I'm not sure Milan or PSG would have been better if he was replaced by Messi himself. It's just impossible to do a fair list. I still have Zlatan far higher up than Etoo, Suarez and Neymar in my list but those things also count somehow. Even though it's easier if you just do it your way.
 
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SfcNervion

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True. That's one. And he played til 41. Any forwards? I remember Roger Milla played a WC when he was 42. Even though he wasn't quite at the same level. Sheringham maybe.
Yeah, I honestly can't think of any (except for Maldini and Zlatan) that maintained on the highest level for so long. Maybe Cafu as well. But no strikers, let alone attacking players. Players like Zlatan, who still perform at this age, are a very exclusive club.
 

MagooDad

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It sounds weird but I don't think the two are mutually exclusive - you can be a bad finisher but still be a goal-scoring machine. And I feel like that's what Ibrahimovic is.
I've read that in Italy they say that he will not be remembered as one of the greatest goalscorers of all time, but instead as probably the best scorer of great goals.

His Serie A career was in many ways the opposite of his former teammate Inzaghis. Ibra could not poach or score easy goals. He always tried the beautiful or hard solution.

In PSG that changed, and nowadays he gets a lot of easy goals.
 

RedMaestro

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Yeah, I honestly can't think of any (except for Maldini and Zlatan) that maintained on the highest level for so long. Maybe Cafu as well. But no strikers, let alone attacking players. Players like Zlatan, who still perform at this age, are a very exclusive club.
Francesco Totti is also an exception...
 

Cassidy

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Yeah, I honestly can't think of any (except for Maldini and Zlatan) that maintained on the highest level for so long. Maybe Cafu as well. But no strikers, let alone attacking players. Players like Zlatan, who still perform at this age, are a very exclusive club.
Zanetti
 

MagooDad

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Franco Baresi and Billy Costacurta as well.

It might make sense though that most older players mentioned, except Sheringham, played in Serie A. Serie A is famous for being more tactical with a lower tempo and lower pressure.

Maybe makes Zlatan feat even more impressing.
 

CM

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He's made some great runs tonight, a bit unfortunate that Pogba's the only one providing any kind of service.
 
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