Ibrahimovic Aims Dig At Cristiano Ronaldo

By Nigel Philips

Zlatan Ibrahimovic has aimed a dig at Cristiano Ronaldo and said the Portuguese star was wrong in describing his move from Real Madrid to Juventus as a ‘new challenge’.

The former Swedish international said Ronaldo’s description would have been accurate if he had joined a lower tier side rather than Juventus who do not sweat to win the Serie A title.

Ronaldo completed a big-money move to Juventus after a nine-year stint with Los Blanco and said he needed a new challenge after winning two La Liga titles, four Champions League titles and a host of other individual awards including four Ballon D’Ors.

Ibrahimovic has rejected the claim on the grounds that Juventus are no challenge whatsoever as he took a swipe at the player who has urged Lionel Messi to make a similar move and "experience new things".

Ronaldo's claim, according to Ibrahimovic, have to be dismissed since Juventus offered him a similar comfort zone as the one he had when playing for Real Madrid.

"Cristiano is talking about new challenges, he calls it a challenge to move to a club where it is already normal to win the Serie A. Why didn't he choose a club from a second division a few years ago?," Zlatan said.

"Try becoming a champion with such a second-division team and lead them to the highest level, which is a challenge. It is bulls**t, moving to Juventus is not a challenge at all," the Swedish ace added.

Ibrahimovic was linked to a high-profile return to the Serie A but chose to honor his deal with the LA Galaxy, with a hefty raise to his wages.

Ibrahimovic played 92 times and scored 26 goals for Juventus between 2004 and 2006 before he chose to leave the club due to the Calciopoli scandal.