Playing for six different Champions League winners and not winning it could be less disheartening than what Zlatan Ibrahimovic is set to experience if Milan wins the competition this season.
AC Milan are into the last four of the Champions League following a 1-1 draw with fellow Italian, Napoli on Tuesday night in the Maradona Stadium, completing a 2-1 aggregate win for the Rossonerri.
Milan, who last reached the semi finals of the competition in 2007 won the first leg in San Siro thanks to an Ismael Bennacer’s only goal and needed to avoid a defeat to book a ticket to the semis this time.
After a start which saw Olivier Giroud’s penalty saved by Alex Meret, the Frenchman eventually make up for the miss, scoring to put Stefano Pioli’s side in front few minutes before the interval.
At that point, Napoli needed two goals to force extra time and inside the final ten minutes, they were awarded a penalty as the ball strike the hand of Fikayo Tomori.
Unfortunately for Napoli, who were playing in the Champions League quarter finals for the season, Georgian winger, Khvicha Kvaratskhelia was denied from 12 yards, as Mike Maignan guessed right and make a crucial save.
Nigerian international, Victor Osimhen did draw Luciano Spalletti’s side level on the night, heading home a Giacomo Raspadori’s cross in the second minute of added time but it was little too late, and Milan continues their quest for an eighth Champions League title.
One particular man and his curse in this competition came to mind after Milan’s success and that man is Zlatan Ibrahimovic, who has been around for four decades but yet to win a Champions League title.
The Swede was with Inter in 2009 the year Barcelona won the competition and was in Barcelona, when Inter won it in 2010. Then he left Barcelona in the summer, only for the Spanish club to again win the competition in 2011.
Surely no player can get so much ill luck in the same competition they are so much desperate to win.
Zlatan, now 41 has played for six different Champions League winning clubs but has never won the competition, and the latest revelation highlights his curse could be about to get worse.
Milan are in the semi finals this year and if the Rossonerri do go all the way to winning the competition, Ibrahimovic will not receive a winner’s medal because he is not included in the Champions League squad.
What an agony it will be for him if Milan do win it.
Author : Kehinde Hassan Afolabi
