Arsenal: Zlatan Ibrahimovic Would Have Never Worked

Many think that Arsenal missed out on Zlatan Ibrahimovic, but there is a really good chance that he would have never worked out with the Gunners.

Zlatan’s move to Manchester United is obviously a big deal. The Swedish Behemoth has come to England after nearly two decades of being a professional footballer. However, he waited until the very end of his career. He’ll be 35. While many think that Arsenal missed out, I’m of the other opinion.

Originally, I was in full support of Zlatan coming to Arsenal. One of the best ever? Absolutely. But somewhere along the way, the fact that he was going to be 35 and the money he’d be making, plus the way he plays, made me think twice.

And then, watching him play at the Euros, I thought a third time.

Zlatan simply would have never worked at Arsenal. After all of the razzle-dazzle and super stardom had died down, Arsenal would be in a rough spot. And there are several reasons why I believe this seemingly absurd claim.

For starters, he plays the exact same style as Giroud. He uses his strength to establish position and he finishes. He may finish a bit more consistently, but there is no evidence that he would be able to continue to do that in England. In fact, all potential evidence is to the contrary.

Plus, while Arsenal could potentially use a stop gap solution, it’s far more beneficial to invest in a long term solution that can bridge the gap between Giroud and the next generation of strikers at Arsenal, which now includes Takuma Asano, in case you haven’t heard.

Arsenal need to be investing wages in people like Alexis, Mesut Ozil and Laurent Koscielny, who need contract extensions. I find that far more prudent than signing up an ego star like Zlatan who is far past his prime.

(Photo by Laurence Griffiths/Getty Images) /

And don’t give me the ‘he’s never scored more than in France’ jazz. While France may be included in the big five divisions in European football, they are far and away the fifth. If you’re on PSG, you win everything. If you’re not, you don’t. I would be more impressed if Zlatan was scoring that many goals with say, Nice. Or Lyon. Oh yeah, then there is Alexandre Lacazette, a much better option.

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The matter of Zlatan’s ego hasn’t even factored into it yet. Arsene Wenger has a storied history of avoiding egos. They aren’t exactly conducive to the environment he is building. Zlatan has one heck of an ego. He wants to be front and center of everything. If a guy overshadows him, like Lionel Messi, he shorts out.

So what if he struggled at Arsenal and the Gunners found it in their best interest not to start him? Imagine the scenes…

Naturally, it is mainly that one really loud, not entirely famous Arsenal fan griping about Zlatan on twitter, but the gist of it is that Zlatan just doesn’t fit with what Wenger wants. Why would we want to submit ourselves to more frustrations like what Giroud brings?

Next: The Good, The Bad, The Ugly Of Asano Transfer

Lastly, the Euros. For the first time in recent memory, Zlatan looked absolutely frustrated and out of answers. It was not a good audition for his next role. I am very curious to see how he works out at Manchester United, but even there, some people are not so fond of him.

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