Zlatan Ibrahimovic may have retired from elite football last year but the Swedish legend is still going through the wars.
The 43-year-old was proud to show off his latest battle scars on Sunday afternoon as he shared a photograph of a ghastly cut on his head.
Ibrahimovic needed stitches for the bloody gash and treated fans to before and after snaps, with the latter fortunately looking far more bearable.
It is still unclear exactly how Ibrahimovic, who works as a senior adviser to AC Milan, acquired the injury. The corridors of power at the San Siro can be brutal but not, one would expect, to the skull-splitting extent he showed off.
He did offer some explanation, writing ‘part of the game’ on Instagram, perhaps suggesting he acquired the wound on the grass.
WARNING: GRAPHIC CONTENT
Zlatan Ibrahimovic showed off a nasty gash on his head and wrote: ‘Part of the game’
The Sweden legend showed off the results of his stitches, which appear to have done the job
Ibra also helpfully wrote ‘trigger warning’ in the caption, which for most viewers would only have appeared after the grisly snap on their screens.
True to his mythology as an all-conquering, indestructible force, fans were quick to brush off the severity of the blow.
‘Zlatan doesn’t get hurt, hurt gets Zlatan,’ wrote one in the comments.
‘The injury went to the doctor to check Zlatan Levels,’ another said.
‘Zlatan didn’t get stitches, the stitches got Zlatan,’ said another.
There were plenty who took his wound more seriously and wished him well with his recovery.
At least the former Manchester United and PSG striker has had something to smile about this week: his son’s next step on his footballing journey
On Thursday, Maximilian made his debut for Sweden’s Under-19s, though they lost to the USA.
This summer the youngster signed his first professional contract with AC Milan.
