Zlatan Ibrahimovic did not seem concerned in the least.” I think in Malmo they respect this… I think they’re happy for me,” the Swedish star said after his announcement about the purchase of a stake of about 25% of his hometown club’s rival. Ibrahimovic couldn’t be more wrong.
Malmo fans’ reaction to the news that the greatest figure in the club’s history is now one of the owners of Stockholm-based Hammarby has been ruthless and relentless. Several people vandalized Ibrahimovic’s property in central Stockholm on Wednesday night, on whose facade they wrote, among other things, the word “Judas” and, according to reports, in the main access they poured “surstroming” _una specialty of Swedish gastronomy consisting of fermented sardines.
In Malmo, a tarp now surrounds the golden statue of about three meters (10 feet) from the image of Ibrahimovic _develada just the month pasado_ it was a display of pride outside the football stadium in the south of the city. That was because a group of angry Followers of Malmo set fire to the base of the statue and sprayed a discriminatory message on the front. Before, the seat of a toilet had been hung from one of the statue’s arms and the face had been covered with a plastic bag. Security guards are guarding the area.
Ravages of vandalism at Zlatan Ibrahimovic/AFP statue
“The best way to resolve it is to remove it and put it somewhere in Stockholm or something,” Kaveh Hosseinpour, vice president of Malmo’s official support group, to The Associated Press.Jens Fjellstrom, former Player and Former Assistant Malmo Coach, said in a podcast that Ibrahimovic’s decision was “a declaration of war” and that the 38-year-old striker should be considered a “rival” of the club. Ibrahimovic, usually very unwrapped and frank, has remained silent in the midst of the furore.
However, some commentators wonder if this episode is just an excuse for everyone who hates the player to cause damage and vent their discriminatory opinions. Ibrahimovic was born in Sweden to immigrant parents from the former Yugoslavia. One of five children was raised in a low-income area in Malmo ravaged by gangs.
The statue of Ibrahimovic after suffering the vandalism/AFP
Football was his means of escape and then became one of the most charismatic footballers in the world, lifting trophies with many of the best clubs in Europe and shining with the Swedish national team. In the last two seasons, he has played for the Galaxy of Los Angeles, in the U.S. league.However, he has never forgotten his roots and was a source of pride when the Swedish Football Association determined that the Ibrahimovic statue would be placed in front of Malmo Stadium.
“If you visit Sweden and want to see something that really matters to the world, then you should see the statue,” Ibrahimovic said the day he unveiled the monument on October 8. “Not the king’s statue. This is the royal statue. With all due respect to the king.” A month later, the statue is under police protection, and Ibrahimovic’s legacy in Malmo has apparently been left in ruins.
