Focused

Zlatan Ibrahimovic says that there’s a want for ‘steadiness’ in Italian youth groups, and believes that coaches of Primavera and U23 sides are too ‘centered on outcomes’ as issues stand.

The RedBird advisor addressed the subject of youth workforce cultures in a latest characteristic interview with .

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Ibrahimovic on Italy’s youth, relationship with Allegri, Maignan and Rabiot

Throughout his chat with CBS, Ibrahimovic was requested for his ideas on the present state of youth groups in Italy and the obvious battle to discipline promising younger Italian gamers in aggressive matches.

“The tradition of Italy is that everyone is concentrated on outcomes,” mentioned Ibrahimovic.

“The youth coaches (say): ‘I need to win, so If I need to win, I put a prepared participant. However then I’ve a possible participant, he won’t play. I’ll play the prepared participant as a result of he’ll make me win’. We take that out from Milan.

“We’re altering the philosophy as a result of initially we need to give them recreation time. As a result of once you’re younger, I consider in recreation time. When you’re not taking part in in Milan Futuro, you’ll play with the Primavera, 100%. So all people will get recreation time. Then after some time, you progress up once more. It’s like a steadiness, like a scale that goes up and down.”

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Ibrahimovic tried to clarify why selling younger gamers to the primary workforce appears to be such an enormous situation, notably at a ‘huge’ membership like Milan.

MILAN, ITALY – DECEMBER 14: Davide Bartesaghi of AC Milan celebrates scoring his workforce’s second objective throughout the match between AC Milan and US Sassuolo Calcio in Italy’s Serie A at Giuseppe Meazza Stadium on December 14, 2025 in Milan, Italy. (Picture by Marco Luzzani/Getty Photographs)

“However then once you come within the first workforce, it’s solely primarily based on outcomes. So now we want outcomes. We’re making an attempt to convey out the youth, which we wish, however on the similar time, we’re haunted by the historical past of the membership.

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“I imply seven Champions Leagues, 19 Scudettos, all of the Golden Ball gamers that gained, all of the worldwide cups we gained, followers are used to that. If we don’t give them that, we’re not giving them Milan. And we have to give them Milan.”

Ibrahimovic additionally mentioned his working relationship with head coach Massimiliano Allegri, with whom he has labored as a participant and as an advisor to the membership’s possession.

“He’s a personality. I had him as a coach additionally. Even at the moment he dealt with the gamers very effectively,” Ibrahimovic mentioned. “He’s superb on the relationships with the gamers, he’s managing the group fantastically. And clearly he’s a personality.

“It wasn’t straightforward as a result of we had Seedorf, we had me, Cassano, all of those huge characters that weren’t afraid to say issues. However Allegri has to assume collectively, he can’t solely take into consideration one. He has to do what’s finest for the time.

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“From then, he needed to work on the large characters. However he dealt with it effectively. We gained within the first yr and he’s bringing that to the workforce at this time, he transmits it to the workforce. Clearly the gamers he had earlier than are totally different to those ones. Perhaps now he’s lacking the ‘characters’ that he wish to have extra of.

MILAN, ITALY – MARCH 08: AC Milan coach Massimiliano Allegri seems to be on throughout the match between AC Milan and Inter in Italy’s Serie A at Giuseppe Meazza Stadium on March 08, 2026 in Milan, Italy. (Picture by Marco Luzzani/Getty Photographs)

“Working with Allegri may be very straightforward. He’s the knowledgeable. He has huge expertise, he’s been at huge golf equipment. He’s a winner and to be at Milan isn’t for everybody. It’s tough to be the coach of Milan. It’s very demanding and he understands what it means to be at Milan, so he brings the entire bundle. He simply has to convey that to the gamers now.”

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Ibrahimovic can also be accustomed to quite a few Milan’s present first-team stars from his personal taking part in days.

“We have now Rabiot additionally, who can also be for me, on a unique stage. On this workforce, we now have Mike the goalie, Nkunku, who got here this season and Rabiot. I performed with them after they had been 17 years outdated at PSG. Now they’re right here at Milan. And I performed with Mike clearly right here, and Rabiot selected a unique path.”