Zlatan Ibrahimovic has left the door open to the prospect of joining a Premier League club this summer in a move that will alert Jose Mourinho as he plans how to revamp Manchester United’s squad if, as expected, he lands the Old Trafford job.Swedish striker Ibrahimovic is in the final months of his Paris Saint-Germain contract and is widely expected to quit France at the end of the season.
French sources claim Ibrahimovic has not taken up the lease on his flat in Paris, which, like his contract, runs out in the summer and a move to Miami is believed to be in the pipeline with the 34-year-old buying an apartment there.
PSG’s Qatari owners are in talks to buy a stake in David Beckham’s Miami Major League Soccer franchise, which Ibrahimovic is expected to join with the club aiming to start playing in the MLS in 2018.
That leaves Ibrahimovic needing a new home for one season before he can start playing in Miami and Mourinho will consider offering him a deal to join United if he succeeds Louis van Gaal as manager.
Ibrahimovic made a pointed effort to speak to English journalists after PSG’s Champions League victory over Chelsea on Tuesday night and, asked if he could play in England before he retires, said: “I have another three months here and then what will happen? Big things will happen. Let’s see what happens.”
Pressed on whether the Premier League is an attractive option, Ibrahimovic cryptically added: “Let’s just say I am in shape.”
Mourinho has remained close friends with Ibrahimovic since managing him for one year at Inter Milan, when the Italian club won the 2008-09 Serie A title and the forward finished as the league’s top scorer with 25 goals and was voted ‘Foreign Player of the Year’.
The pair regularly communicate by text message and Ibrahimovic even stepped in as peace maker when his Swedish international team-mate Jonas Olsson fell out with the Portuguese.
Mourinho branded Olsson a ‘Mickey Mouse’ player in 2013 during a tunnel bust-up after Chelsea had earned a 2-2 draw against West Bromwich Albion with a controversial last-minute penalty.
But Ibrahimovic stepped in to ease the tension between the pair a few days later by sending Mourinho a text message of a picture of him and Olsson giving the thumbs up sign.
There is no effort on either side to disguise their admiration for each other, With Ibrahimovic even remarking after PSG’s last-16 first leg victory over Chelsea this week that “he (Mourinho) should have been here.”
Ahead of the match, in which he scored, Ibrahimovic said: “I think everybody will miss Mourinho in the game. But I believe he will be back soon in football and if you are a little patient you will soon see him managing another club.”
A year earlier, Ibrahimovic had underlined his respect for Mourinho before last season’s Champions League tie between PSG and Chelsea by saying: “We worked together for one year at Inter The feeling was great between us and my only regret is that we were together for only one year.
Mourinho likes to shake up his squads by signing a proven winner or big character and Ibrahimovic certainly falls into both of those categories.
During his second spell at Chelsea, Mourinho first signed Samuel Eto’o and then Didier Drogba, Diego Costa and Cesc Fabregas. He believes the ripple effect and uncertainty of adding big players to a squad helps to motivate the rest of the team to raise the level of effort and performances
Mourinho blames the fact he did not land a superstar during his last pre-season at Chelsea as one of the main factors as to why the club started the season so badly and believes Pedro Rodriguez arrived too late in the transfer window to have the immediate desired effect. The gamble on Radamel Falcao failed.
It would not be a mistake Mourinho would allow to happen again at United and Ibrahimovic would in many ways be the perfect statement signing, both to the current squad and the club’s rivals.
United will try to sign a new striker in the summer, but may face a battle to land any of the world’s best who are in their prime without the lure of Champions League football.
Whether or not United chiefs would be so keen on entering an auction with clubs from China and the Middle East over Ibramovic’s salary remains to be seen. He currently earns £250,000-a-week at PSG, but could double it by agreeing to play in the Chinese Super League for one season. There would also be interest from Italy, where Ibrahimovic has played for Inter, Juventus and AC Milan.
Whether or not United could offer Ibrahimovic the kind of playing guarantees he would want is questionable, although the player has previously spoken of the fact he would like to have played with Wayne Rooney.
Without Mourinho at the club, Chelsea are unlikely to make a move for Ibrahimovic while he does not suit the style of incoming Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola.
Ibrahimovic famously turned down a trial offered to him by Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger and the pair do not seem destined to work together, which leaves United and Mourinho as his best hope of adding England to the list of countries he has played in.
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