They did a lot of international matches together.
Now Erik Edman tells exactly what he thinks about Zlatan Ibrahimovic.
– Iamong others, people stood there and just gaped, says the national team icon.
After Zlatan Ibrahimovic ended his historic national team career after European Championship 2016, discussions were ongoing this year. Ibrahimovic still maintained an incomparably high level, at the same time that the national team under Janne Andersson’s leadership got a real boost. Discussions about a return gained serious momentum before the 2018 World Cup.
Great career
But in surveys, the Swedish people said that they did not want Zlatan Ibrahimovic back, and they were then supported by national team icon Erik Edman.
– Now you build something new and then I think it’s better to let those who are there drive, Edman said.
But it was never a matter of quality. Erik Edman had his breakthrough in Helsingborg, but then had a fine career in Europe, with games at the big club Tottenham on his CV. In total, there were 57 international matches for him, and in the national team he is perhaps best known for the absolutely perfect cross he hit when Henrik Larsson flicked the ball into the goal during European Championship 2004. In the same year, Edman was named Full-back of the Year in Swedish football, and after his career he has become an expert, both in television and in podcasts.
The words about Zlatan
But even though Edman may have preferred that Zlatan not return to the national team, there is no doubt what he thinks of him as a footballer. In an interview with Expressen, Edman now talks completely honestly about how he feels about the Swede – and these are words that everyone should take in.
– Zlatan is the best I have played with over the years, he says.
Edman takes the unforgettable goal against Italy, when Ibrahimovic with his back to the goal kicked in a ball after a corner, as an example.
– That goal was not lucky. Zlatan could do stuff like that. That was his great strength. He could capture moments like no other. You could see that in training as well. All the things he could do in the moment. Sometimes you stood there and just gaped, he says.
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