Legendary AC Milan striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic retires from football

The legendary Sweden striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic announced his retirement from football at the age of 41 after AC Milan beat Verona in their last Serie A game on Sunday, June 4. Regarded as one of the best strikers of his generation, Ibrahimovic ended his illustrious and eventful career at San Siro.

Ibrahimovic was on the sidelines since suffering a hamstring injury in March this year and watched Rossoneri thrash Verona 3-1 at home from the stand with his family. Recurring injuries restricted Ibrahimovic to only four appearances in Italy's top flight this season where he scored the only goal in a 1-3 loss against Udinese. His goal made him the oldest goalscorer in Serie A history but it also proved his last professional goal.

Earlier this season, Ibrahimovic expressed his desire to continue playing beyond the 2022/23 season. But his injury-led season ended his second stint at



AC Milan and also his professional football career. The Swedish veteran thanked AC Milan fans after the Verona game and also declared that he will be a Milan fan for entire his life.

"The first time we arrived at Milan you gave me happiness, the second time you gave me love," Zlatan said. "From my heart I want to thank you fans. You welcomed me with open arms, you made me feel at home. I will be a Milan fan for the whole It's time to say goodbye to football, not you."

Ibrahimovic started his football journey with his hometown club Malmo in 1999 and went on to play for eight different clubs from seven different leagues. His best football came with French giants Paris Saint-Germain during 2012-16 where he scored 156 goals in 180 appearances. Ibrahimovic also played for AC Milan's biggest rivals Inter Milan and Juventus and European giants Barcelona, Manchester United, and Ajax.