Daybreak, Politics, Entertainment, Sport

Tag: Ibrahimovic

  • Raiola joins Ibrahimovic’s crusade over FIFA 21 player rights

    Raiola joins Ibrahimovic’s crusade over FIFA 21 player rights

    Mino Raiola has taken aim at EA Sports over player image rights in FIFA 21, insisting that too many stars are open to exploitation.

    AC Milan striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic caused a stir on social media at the start of the week as he called out FIFA and EA Sports for failing to ask for his permission before including his name and likeness in the latest version of their annual football video game.

    Tottenham winger Gareth Bale offered his support to Ibrahimovic by starting the hashtag  “#TimeToInvestigate”, with FIFPro subsequently coming out to defend their policies in a lengthy statement.

    The International Federation of Professional Footballers told The Mirror: “In light of recent media reports, FIFPRO wishes to clarify the manner in which it obtains the image rights of players, and its role in defending the employment rights of professional footballers worldwide.

    “FIFPRO, a not-for-profit organisation, acquires image rights via player unions in nearly 60 countries. These rights are made available to Electronic Arts and other clients in the video gaming industry.

    “FIFPro is reaching out to the players and their representation that have recently raised concerns so we can address their questions.

    “As the COVID-19 pandemic severely impacts the football industry, we are proud of our member unions for having supported tens of thousands of footballers around the world.”

    Notorious super-agent Raiola, who serves as Ibrahimovic’s main legal representative, appeared on talkSPORT on Thursday to discuss the issue and didn’t hold back in his assessment.

    “It’s all about money. It’s all about the important money because it’s not EA Sports, it’s not a charity foundation,” Raiola said.

    “This is about money, this is about rights, this is about who can exploit whose rights. It’s a principle. Why we don’t do things before or after is a call we will make and we won’t explain now. This is the moment now it’s come out.

    “Their statement is that I have bought those rights. That is what their statement is today. We are saying those rights cannot be bought by the organisations.

    “I’m doing this thing, because it’s very simple, this is a right of my players that cannot be touched.”

  • Serie A: AC Milan have the same spirit with or without Ibrahimovic – Bonera

    Serie A: AC Milan have the same spirit with or without Ibrahimovic – Bonera

    Daniele Bonera felt AC Milan showed their team spirit is strong even without Zlatan Ibrahimovic after their Europa League draw with Lille on Thursday.

    The Rossoneri took the lead in France through Samu Castillejo but were pegged back through a goal from Jonathan Bamba 19 minutes later.

    The Serie A leaders, beaten 3-0 by Lille in the previous Group H game, restricted the hosts to just 42 per cent of the ball only to concede from their only shot on target of the second half.

    Similarly, AC Milan found the net with their one effort on goal in the 90 minutes, as the absence of the injured Ibrahimovic appeared to take its toll.

    The 39-year-old, who sustained a hamstring injury after scoring a double in the 3-1 win at Napoli, has scored 12 goals in as many games in all competitions this season.

    Still, Milan have won six and drawn four of their 10 games without Ibrahimovic in 2020, and Bonera says that level of resolve was once again apparent against Lille.

    “This is the strong identity we now have in all of us. We’re happy with the work the boys do every day. It’s just a shame about the result tonight,” said the assistant coach, who is deputising for head coach Stefano Pioli while he self-isolates after a positive coronavirus test.

    “We showed even before this match that the group was able to make up for his absence. He is such an important player, but the spirit of this team is always the same, with or without Ibra.”

    Young playmaker Sandro Tonali was also frustrated that AC Milan could not hold onto three points, but he said they proved they could play well without their main striker.

    “We deserved to take the lead. We didn’t dominate but we held onto the ball like a great team, and that’s our biggest regret – not being able to win,” he said.

    “Playing with Ibra certainly helps; with a champion like him, it’s always easier. But we have to play well even without him and we’ve shown we can play as a great team.”

    The result leaves AC Milan second in the group after four games, a point behind leaders Lille and one ahead of Sparta Prague.

  • Ibrahimovic slams EA Sports for using his likeness in FIFA 21

    Ibrahimovic slams EA Sports for using his likeness in FIFA 21

    AC Milan striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic has slammed EA Sports, claiming they are using his name and face in the FIFA video game series without his permission.

    The former Sweden forward took aim at the makers of FIFA 21 in a social media rant on Monday afternoon, saying it is “time to investigate”.

    “Who gave FIFA EA Sport permission to use my name and face? @FIFPro?” the 39-year-old wrote on Twitter.

    “I’m not aware to be a member of Fifpro and if I am I was put there without any real knowledge through some weird maneuver.

    “And for sure I never allowed @FIFAcom or Fifpro to make money using me.

    “Somebody is making profit on my name and face without any agreement all these years. Time to investigate”

    On-loan Tottenham forward Gareth Bale also weighed in on the debate, saying on Twitter: “@Ibra_official Interesting… what is @FIFPro ? #TimeToInvestigate.”

    Though Ibrahimovic claims not to be a member of Fifpro, the global players union, he was included in the FIFpro World XI in 2013 and was present to collect his award at the FIFA Ballon d’Or ceremony in Zurich in January the following year.

    Bale has also been named in one of the FIFpro World XI reserve teams on multiple occasions and has his own FIFA Esports team.

    Earlier this year EA Sports announced an exclusive multi-year partnership with AC Milan and their city rivals Inter, which commenced with the launch of FIFA 21 this October.

    The agreement sees the Italian giants feature exclusively in FIFA 21 – meaning the game boasts all-encompassing access to the Rossoneri and Nerazzurri players, kits, training grounds and stadium. That is almost certain to include Ibrahimovic, who returned for a second spell with the Rossoneri in December 2019.

    However, it seems Ibrahimovic still is not happy and believes the organisation is profiting from his image without his permission.

    Milan’s Serie A rivals Roma do not feature in FIFA 21 as they have signed an exclusive deal with Konami, makers of rival football video game series Pro Evolution Soccer.

    Barcelona, Juventus and Arsenal are also among the clubs to have signed a deal with Konami in recent years.

    RELATED POSTS:

    Ibrahimovic joins elite Serie A club with double at Napol

    AC Milan soured over Ibrahimovic after star striker leaves Napoli match with muscle injury

    Ibrahimovic stronger than he was 10 years ago – Gattuso

  • AC Milan soured over Ibrahimovic after star striker leaves Napoli match with muscle injury

    AC Milan soured over Ibrahimovic after star striker leaves Napoli match with muscle injury

    AC Milan’s 3-1 win over Napoli on Sunday was soured by a potential injury to leading marksman Zlatan Ibrahimovic.

    With 78 minutes of the Serie A encounter gone, the 39-year-old Swede went down clutching his left leg and had to be replaced.

    His club will now have to evaluate the severity of what appears to be a muscular problem.

    Speaking after the game Daniele Bonera – who was filling in for Stefano Pioli, who has Covid-19 – expressed his hope that the injury wouldn’t be a severe one.

    “We don’t have much information right now, it looks like a muscular problem, but we have to wait a few days to see the extent of it,” Bonera told Sky Sport Italia.

    The timing of the injury could scarcely be any worse as the Rossoneri’s fixture schedule prior to Christmas is packed. Indeed, they have nine fixtures to play in around a month and are already without Portugal international forward Rafael Leao because of a physical complaint.

    They are due to travel to Lille in Europa League action on Thursday and will seek to avenge a thumping 3-0 loss to the Ligue 1 side at San Siro.

    Thereafter, they will host struggling Fiorentina in the league, while before Christmas they will also have to face the likes of Lazio and second-placed Sassuolo, though the latter of those fixtures does not take place until December 20.

    As such, Milan must now cross their fingers and hope the issue does not prove to be anything serious for Ibrahimovic, who has scored 10 goals in just six league outings this season and has already missed four games due to Covid-19.

    On Sunday, he was a chief protagonist as Milan earned three points at Napoli that kept them at the summit of the Serie A table.

    He had opened the scoring midway through the first half and added a second shortly after the break to propel Stefano Pioli’s side towards the win.

    Jens Petter Hauge would later add the third in stoppage time against an opponent down to 10 men.

    Milan will have to assess the extent of Ibrahimovic’s injury, but it was a sad way for the Swede to leave what had been a historic match for him.

    By finding the back of the net, he became just the fourth player in the modern era of Serie A to have scored in the first six league matches he had played of a season. He joined the likes of Gabriel Batistuta and Christian Vieri in doing so.

  • Ibrahimovic joins elite Serie A club with double at Napoli

    Ibrahimovic joins elite Serie A club with double at Napoli

    Milan striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic has written himself into Serie A history by becoming just the fourth player to net in their first six league games of the season.

    The veteran Swede continues to confound critics with his performances for the Serie A leaders.

    At 39, there were those who believed he was too old to be a force in one of Europe’s leading leagues, yet he has started the season in utterly prolific form.

    On Sunday, he continued his six-game domestic scoring streak by opening the scoring away from home against Napoli, elevating him into a select club of stars.

    The Swede wasn’t done after his 20th-minute opener however, as he also netted in the 54th minute to seal a brace in a 3-1 win.

    The two goals gave Ibrahimovic another record: He is now the oldest player to score at least 10 goals in the first eight Serie A matchdays.

    Previously, there were only three other players to score in their opening six Serie A matches of the season.

    Gabriel Batistuta of Fiorentina was the first to complete the feat in 1994-95, before Christian Vieri matched it in the 2002-03 season with Inter. Krzysztof Piatek then did it in 2018-19 under Genoa’s colours.

    It wasn’t a perfect night for Ibrahimovic, however, as he had to be taken off early due to a muscle injury, leaving Milan sweating over the fitness of their star forward.

    Ibrahimovic’s current run started on September 21 when he struck both goals in a 2-0 win over Bologna. His season was then interrupted as he missed a couple of fixtures after being infected by Covid-19.

    When he returned to the field, he did so in spectacular fashion. Again, he was on target with a double, this time in the derby against Inter, then versus Roma he bagged another pair in a 3-3 draw.

    The run continued into November when he both scored and assisted in a 2-1 victory over Udinese and prior to the international break he scored versus Hellas Verona.

    While he has been deadly in Serie A, he has not been quite so effective in European football. He has featured in all three of Milan’s Europa League group-stage matches but has just a single assist against Sparta Prague to his credit on the continent thus far.

  • Ibrahimovic stronger than he was 10 years ago – Gattuso

    Ibrahimovic stronger than he was 10 years ago – Gattuso

    Napoli head coach Gennaro Gattuso believes Zlatan Ibrahimovic is better now than he was 10 to 12 years ago following his match-winning display for AC Milan.

    Ibrahimovic scored twice as Milan returned to the top of the Serie A standings with a 3-1 win over 10-man Napoli on Sunday.

    Evergreen AC Milan star Ibrahimovic became the oldest player to score at least 10 goals in the first eight Serie A matchdays, the 39-year-old surpassing Lazio’s Silvio Piola (29 years old in 1942-43) for the record.

    Ibrahimovic – who struck in the 20th and 54th minutes before hobbling off with injury – also matched Gunnar Nordahl for second-most Serie A goals from the first eight games played of a season by a Milan player, only adrift of Marco Van Basten (12 in 1992-93).

    Gattuso played alongside Ibrahimovic at AC Milan between 2010-12 – the pair helping the Rossoneri to their last Scudetto in 2011 – and the former hailed the veteran.

    “Milan believe firmly in Ibra, they believe 100 per cent in what they are doing,” Gattuso told Sky Sport Italia. “He seems I think even stronger now than he was 10, 12 years ago.

    “They put the crosses in because they know he’ll get on the end of them. What we did today was create lots of chances and not believe in them fully.

    “It’s about mentality. Football is about helping each other out, clubbing together, having a kind, reassuring word for your team-mate when they’re struggling.

    “There are too many people who act like professors, who want to teach you everything. This hurts me.”

    AC Milan, two points clear of high-flying Sassuolo, have collected at least 20 points from the first eight matchdays for the second time in the three points for a win era – the Italian powerhouse also achieved the feat in 2003-04 as they went on to secure the Scudetto.

    Napoli are six points off the pace in sixth position, having lost two of their past three Serie A fixtures and next face Rijeka in Europa League action on Thursday. 

    Ibrahimovic, meanwhile, is a now a doubt to feature in AC Milan’s next Europa League clash against Lille. 

    RELATED POSTS:

    AC Milan soured over Ibrahimovic after star striker leaves Napoli match with muscle injury

    Ibrahimovic joins elite Serie A club with double at Napoli

    Late bicycle kick from Zlatan Ibrahimovic seals AC Milan win at Udinese