Zlatan Ibrahimovic is the type of player that you either love or hate. Most of his haters come from opposing fan bases bothered by his barrage of goals and boisterous, rather egotistical demeanor. Regardless of your opinion on the man, any conversation about the best strikers in world football should, at the very least, mention Zlatan Ibrahimovic. The tall, vocal Swede, who has no shame claiming he is one of the best in the world, has been responsible for some of the most memorable goal’s in recent memory. From mesmerizing free kicks, to unforgettable goals from everywhere on the field, Zlatan is a frequent face on weekly highlight reels around the world - whether it be for his home nation Sweden or current club Paris Saint-Germain. It is no easy task picking out just seven goals as his best, but, regardless, here they are with video evidence.
The bicycle Zlatan is no stranger to bicycle kicks - his best of them, however, might have been this one against England in November of 2012. Strangely enough, Zlatan didn’t even think it was his best goal of the night as he also scored the first goal ever in their brand new stadium earlier in the game.
Free kick against Fiorentina Back in Ibrahimovic’s days as a striker for Inter Milan, this blast of a free kick from more than 30 meters (90 feet) out is a clip that has been shared more than a few times. Placement does not get much better than this.
Making his mark Some goals aren’t super flashy or memorable, they just come at times that really matter. Paris Saint-Germain paid a small fortune to bring in Zlatan’s goal scoring ability and he had his fair share of critics around the French capital wondering if his foot would be worth the money. It took him all of two minutes to get his first goal for PSG - quickly quieting his critics and creating an entirely new fan base almost immediately. Not bad for a guy’s “weak” foot.
Power and skill It’s rare to see a player with such an array of talents. Most good strikers have a certain shot or move that they rely on and become known for, Zlatan, on the other hand, rarely scores the same way twice in a row and possesses an incredible skill set much like Lionel Messi or Cristiano Ronaldo. Check out this amazing piece of skill with an absolute blast of a shot from a few years ago during his time in Italy’s Serie A.
How about a backheel goal? Here’s another piece of evidence that Mr. Ibrahimovic can beat you with any part of his body. This ridiculous backheel happened earlier this year against Bastia and is further proof why football is just such a beautiful game to behold.
He stops and he goes… Watching this clip from Zlatan’s days playing with Ajax makes me question whether I am watching a video game or an actual professional football match. I don’t even know if I could pull this off in FIFA 14. He looks like a man among boys here.
He did what!? As if one cool backheel wasn’t enough - this special effort was no piece of Bologna and deserves some special recognition as one of the coolest goals you will probably see in quite some time.
Love or hate him, Zlatan Ibrahimovic has graced the world of football with his entertaining personality and some of the most spectacular goals of the past decade. It’s a crying shame that such a special player will have to sit out the biggest tournament in the world next summer.