Zlatan Ibrahimović didn’t hold back following Inter Miami’s heavy 4–0 defeat to Paris Saint-Germain in the Club World Cup Round of 16. Speaking moments after the final whistle, the former PSG striker rushed to defend Lionel Messi, one of the few Miami players who showed flashes of quality against his former club.
“Messi’s defeat? No, no — don’t talk like it was his fault! Messi didn’t lose, Inter Miami did! Did you even watch that team? Messi plays among statues, not teammates!”
According to Ibrahimović, the gulf in quality between Messi and the rest of his side is simply too wide. He slammed the team’s lack of intensity and basic understanding of movement.
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“Messi is a great ghost playing in a circus!”
“Messi plays because he loves the game, because he can still do what 99% of players can’t! But he’s surrounded by guys running like they’ve got bags of cement on their backs! No coaches, no stars, not even players who know how to move without the ball!”
And with typical Zlatan flair, he delivered his final blow:
“You want to blame Messi? Put him with Ronaldo, with Mbappé, with Haaland — or with Zlatan! Then you can talk. But today? No, no. That’s not the Messi I know — that’s a great ghost playing in a circus! But give him a real team again, and he’ll burn the stadium down. Because Messi is still Messi. This wasn’t his defeat — it was Inter Miami’s… and football’s.”
A scathing verdict that’s sure to spark reactions — not least from Javier Mascherano, Inter Miami’s coach and longtime teammate of both Messi and Ibrahimović.
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