Zlatan Ibrahimovic retires: Swedish great ends football career at 41

AC Milan striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic has announced his retirement from football at the age of 41.

Ibrahimovic had already announced he would leave the Italian club, with his contract expiring this month.

He scored 511 goals for clubs including Paris St-Germain, Manchester United and both AC and Inter Milan, winning league titles in four countries.

Ibrahimovic began his second spell with AC Milan in early 2020, having won the Scudetto with them in 2011, and helped them win the title again last season.

But he played only four times and started one match for the Serie A side this term – and scored one goal – following a series of injuries.

The striker also retires as Sweden’s all-time top scorer with 62 goals in 121 matches.

He quit the national side after Euro 2016 but returned in 2021 for their unsuccessful World Cup qualifying campaign.

Ibrahimovic started his professional career with hometown side Malmo FF in 1999 before moving to Ajax in 2001 for a three-year spell in which he won three league titles.

A move to Italy followed in 2004 with Juventus, where he won two league titles, both of which were later stripped from the club as a result of the Calciopoli scandal.

However, the Swede won three more Serie A titles with his next club, Inter Milan, before a move to Barcelona in 2009.

Ibrahimovic spent only one season at the Catalan club, winning a La Liga title before being loaned to AC Milan, a move which was made permanent in 2011.

A year later, however, and Ibrahimovic was on the move again, signing for Paris St-Germain, where he scored 113 goals in 122 league appearances and won four Ligue 1 trophies.

In July 2016, he signed for Manchester United for a two-year spell with the Premier League club that saw him win the League Cup and his first European title – the 2016/2017 Europa League.

Ibrahimovic signed for MLS side LA Galaxy in 2018, spending two seasons there before making his return to AC Milan.