For many years, the debate on who is the world’s best modern footballer includes only two names, Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo. These two players, who represent rivals Barcelona and Real Madrid, respectively, are the centers of discussions on who is representative of the current generation of the sport. While these two make good cases for themselves, former Denmark national team player Andy van der Meyde thinks that there’s another great that people are missing, Paris Saint Germain’s Zlatan Ibrahimovic.
"Ibrahimovic is one of the best players in the world with Messi and Ronaldo," Van der Meyde told Goal.com.
Van der Meyde played with Ibrahimovic for Ajax from 2001 to 2003.
"He is such a big and strong guy. He can be an intimidating figure. Plus he has amazing technique as well for someone with a big body like his.
"He's the type of player who wants to win at all costs. He is arrogant, but that's him. It's a positive sort of arrogance if you ask me. He is a true great."
Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo are all on the same level for Van der Meyde and the former Inter player saw this the moment he started training with the charismatic striker from Sweden.
"We didn't need long to realise that he was going to be a great player. He did things on the training pitch where we could only look on with our mouths open out of admiration.
"The kind of actions he makes now as well, with his acrobatic backheels. Although he didn't really managed to perform during games early on."
At 32 years old, Zlatan Ibrahimovic already have achieved a lot in his career, whether individually or in club level. He won the Golden Foot in 2012, named to the FIFA FIPro World XI last year, thrice in the UEFA Team of the Year, eight times recipient of the Guldbollen, three-time Serie A footballer of the Yer, Ligue 1 top scoer, and whole lot more.
