Among senior national players
After an injury break of several months, AC Milan pro Zlatan Ibrahimović is in the squad for the Swedish national team for the forthcoming start of the European Championship qualifiers. National coach Janne Andersson nominated the 41-year-old in his squad for the home games against group favorites Belgium (March 24) and Azerbaijan (March 27) on Wednesday.
Ibrahimović has made three appearances as a substitute in Milan recently and feels he is in decent form, Andersson said. “Looking at it from that perspective, I think he has something to contribute. Especially on the field, but also off the field.” The coach does not see the Swedish record goalscorer as an option for the starting XI.
If played, Ibrahimović could become one of the oldest national players in history. A query from the TM database, which was limited to European national teams due to the data situation, showed that historically only 15 professionals aged at least 41 years have played in an international match. At the age of 41 and then just under six months, the Swede would be in tenth place. However, he would have to play a few more years for the top spot: Georgios Koudas made another appearance for the Greek national team in 1995 at the age of 48.
The Swedes are meeting next Monday to prepare for the first qualifying games for the EM 2024 in Germany. The 26-man squad also includes Emil Forsberg from RB Leipzig and Mattias Svanberg from VfL Wolfsburg. In qualifying group F, Sweden will also face Estonia and Austria.
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