AC Milan are reportedly preparing to offer a contract renewal to 39-year-old striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic. The Swede’s existing deal expires at the end of the current season.
The news is being carried by Italian reporter Fabrizio Romano, who also claims the Serie A leaders are negotiating new deals for midfielder Hakan Calhanoglu and goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma.
AC Milan to Begin Contract Negotiations With Zlatan Ibrahimovic
The Striker Has Been Timeless Since Returning to the San Siro
Ibrahimovic brought up 500 goals in club football with a brace during AC Milan’s 4-0 win over Crotone on Sunday. The striker’s goals have come throughout a career that has seen him represent no fewer than nine different clubs, but it is Stefano Pioli‘s side that is currently enjoying the benefit of the 39-year-old’s ageless performances.
Ibrahimovic himself will feel that an extension to his current spell in Milan – his second stint at the club having also played for them from 2010 to 2012 – is richly merited. This season alone, he has plundered 14 goals in only 11 league appearances, having suffered from coronavirus and calf injuries at different stages of the campaign.
Some had questioned whether the veteran goalscorer’s time at the pinnacle of club football had come to an end following a potentially career-ending knee injury suffered whilst at Manchester United in April 2017. However, following a two-year stay in MLS with LA Galaxy, Ibrahimovic returned to the European game in 2019 and has since led AC Milan to their current position at the top of Serie A.
AC Milan Also Want Calhanoglu and Donnarumma Extensions
Whilst extending Ibrahimovic’s playing career into his 40s is a priority for AC Milan, the club are also keen to tie Hakan Calhanoglu and Gianluigi Donnarumma down to new deals.
Like Ibrahimovic, both offensive midfielder Calhanoglu and goalkeeper Donnarumma are under contract at the San Siro until the end of the current season.
Ibrahimovic and Donnarumma are both represented by Mino Raiola, with Milan already in negotiations with the agent over the future of their 21-year-old goalkeeper.
Main Photo
