‘There is only one king’ – Olivier Giroud reveals Zlatan Ibrahimovic’s welcome at AC Milan | OneFootball

Olivier Giroud (40) has revealed the welcome that he received from Zlatan Ibrahimovic when he joined AC Milan back in the summer of 2021.

Giroud joined the Serie A giants following a three-year stint at Chelsea. Prior to that, he had already become a mainstay in the Premier League at Arsenal. His status as a legend of French football had already been guaranteed, too, thanks to his involvement in Les Bleus’ FIFA World Cup triumph in 2018. The former Montpellier HSC striker would go on to briefly become France’s all-time top scorer, although he was surpassed by Kylian Mbappé last summer.

However, upon his arrival at the San Siro, he was very much put in his place by Ibrahimovic. The Swedish legend was in his second stint with AC Milan when Giroud arrived at the club. “He killed me when I arrived in Milan,” Giroud joked in an interview with L’Équipe. “He welcomed me, but then he told me: ‘It’s cool that you’re coming, but know that here, there is only one king and it’s me.’ He is a character, and it was an amazing encounter.”

Giroud would go on to play 132 times for the Italian giants, scoring 49 goals before departing for LAFC in 2024.

GFFN | Luke Entwistle