Zlatan settles the Messi vs Ronaldo debate, but insists that someone else is the best of all time
Zlatan Ibrahimovic joined Jimmy Kimmel in Los Angeles this week revealing his lucrative and unscripted new World Cup TV role for Fox Sports.
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A very expensive voice
While currently serving as a senior advisor for AC Milan's ownership group RedBird, the Swedish icon is temporarily shifting his focus to American television.
Speaking on Jimmy Kimmel Live, Ibrahimovic detailed his new gig as a studio analyst for Fox Sports covering the ongoing World Cup.
True to form, he confirmed he is operating entirely without a script. Earning what he described as a "very, very expensive" salary, the former striker promised to inject pure chaos into the broadcast claiming traditional American pundits put viewers to sleep and that he intends to judge even his closest friends without mercy.
The ultimate GOAT debate
Never one to shy away from controversy, he also weighed in on his new broadcasting peers.
When asked if he would emulate the outspoken style of NBA legend Charles Barkley, Ibrahimovic quickly pointed out that unlike Barkley, he actually possesses championship medals.
Furthermore, when pressed on the eternal Lionel Messi versus Cristiano Ronaldo debate, he acknowledged that the Argentine's recent World Cup triumph essentially ended the argument, before predictably declaring that "Zlatan" remains the absolute greatest of all time.
The curse of the World Cup stage
While Ibrahimovic is quick to remind audiences of his countless domestic triumphs, his self deprecating admission on the show about never scoring in a World Cup highlights one of football's strangest anomalies.
Despite registering 62 international goal for Sweden and dominating leagues across Europe, his actual World Cup footprint is surprisingly minimal.
He featured in both the 2002 and 2006 tournaments logging five total appearances without ever finding the back of the net. He joins a frustratingly elite club of prolific global superstars, including legends like Portugal's Luis Figo and, until the 2022 tournament, Poland's Robert Lewandowski, who terrorized club defenses for over a decade but suffered bizarre, prolonged goal droughts when football's ultimate global prize was on the line.
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