Ibra and Barca, sitting in a tree..

Initially, my thought was to compare the bad choices Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Cristiano Ronaldo have made during this offseason. I changed my mind.

Ronaldo will probably adapt to life in Real Madrid and be successful. Not on the same level as at Man United but perhaps similar to Ruud van Nistelrooy. Ibrahimovic on the other hand will peak. 

My main concerns, regarding Zlatan, when hearing about the possible move to Barca were: - Zlatan doesn’t have the pace and speed to fit in the Barca style of play. He will look like Shaquille O’Neill in the Cavaliers. - Zlatan will not adapt to being one of the guys at Barca rather to being the lone star in Inter Milan. 

My initial negativity changed over time. I am now confident Zlatan Ibrahimovic does have pace and speed. A friend of mine made the statement: -Watching Zlatan in Inter, he always stands on the ball, lowering the intensity, the pace, the speed of Inter Milan.

He’s got a point doesn’t he? But if you’ve watched Inter play for the last couple of seasons, you will have noticed the differences in the good Inter and the less good Inter. When their players are on their toes, running without the ball, pretty much doing what they should, Ibrahimovic only gets better.

Not only can he make those terrific counter attack-goals but he delivers passes, not only in stylish ways, but effective and precise. Surrounded by lightning fast Barca players, Zlatan will not look slow. He will not lower the pace. He will be soccer’s answer to Shaq - he will be magnificent. 

With Ibrahimovic, has the player he wants. His starting eleven is perfect. He doesn’t want the fast, clinical goal scorer in a center as Samuel Eto’o was (even though he has a habit of scoring beautiful goals). He wants a strong, powerful - yet with zip - type of player that makes the players around him better. Granted, Ibra is not the goalscorer that Eto’o is, but he will give Thierry Henry, Lionel Messi and the others so much more space and chances that the team will probably increase their goal production. 

“He [Ibrahimovic] is a player who can do many things, and is very powerful. He will bring something different, and we must help him to integrate into the group as quickly as possible, and see how he interacts with his new colleagues”, Guardiola said.

It pretty much says it all, right? Ibrahimovic is not in a Barca jersey to be a player among the others, he is THE player. Josep Guardiola will build the team around Ibrahimovic and Messi. 

Regarding the claim that he will not fit in, there is a real possibility that the team will manage without him being friends and playing poker with Carles Puyol. On this level, the players are not regular dudes. They are divas, prima donnas and, essentially, bitches (yes, there are of course exceptions). 

Crazy bitches in some cases, as proven by the Christmas parties in the UK, but in almost all cases professional bitches. Very rare are the situations where players are so fed up with their team role or dislike each other to a degree where it affects their performance on the field. And Ibrahimovic is used to it. There are numerous reports that the Swedish national team is divided off the field. Zlatan is not a child anymore. He will fit in when he has to. 

Taking into account Ibrahimovic only being 27 years old, Barcelona can start a new dynasty. They have paid a high price (too high?) for a world class striker, and he will perform. 

Ibrahimovic has been successful everywhere he’s been. Malmö FF, Ajax, Juventus and Inter Milan. Barcelona will not be the exception