A man who played alongside the enigmatic striker in MLS claims there was tension between two superstar forwards at Parc des Princes
Zlatan Ibrahimvovic has only “hated three or four team-mates in his entire career”, says the Swede’s former LA Galaxy colleague Michael Ciani, with Paris Saint-Germain striker Edinson Cavani figuring on that list.
The enigmatic frontman spent four years at Parc des Prince between 2012 and 2016.
He was joined in the French capital by Cavani 12 months after his arrival, with PSG investing heavily in the construction of a star-studded squad.
Ibrahimovic was the star attraction for a while and set a new benchmark as the club’s all-time leading goalscorer.
Uruguay international Cavani has since raised that bar further, with the South American still on PSG’s books some four years after a former striking rival departed for Manchester United.
The pair struck up a formidable partnership during their time together, but there was never any love lost between the two.
“He told me that everything was fine with Laurent Blanc at PSG. The only person he did not get along with was Cavani.
“He told me that he had only hated three or four team-mates in his entire career… and one of them was Cavani.”
Cavani conceded shortly after his switch to PSG that there were issues to be addressed in his relationship with Ibrahimovic.
A man who was often forced out of a natural central role by the Swede and into a wide attacking berth told reporters in September 2013: “On a certain level, there’s a connection between us that comes much more easily than with other players.
I think we just need to work on it a bit harder.
“We haven’t been playing together for very long, and we haven’t had the proper preparation. Still, we’ve proven that there is a connection between us, even though we will need to prepare more thoroughly in order to get better results.”
