Zlatan Ibrahimovic overwhelmed as Bosnia and Herzegovina makes World Cup history
· Yahoo Sports
Soccer legend Zlatan Ibrahimovic has built an entire career on being a walking soundbite, with swagger, bravado, and complete candor — but Bosnia and Herzegovina's World Cup accomplishment peeled back the layers to offer a rare glimpse of his sentimentality.
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The Swedish superstar became visibly moved while serving as a FOX pundit after Bosnia and Herzegovina defeated Qatar 3-1 to advance to the World Cup knockout rounds for the first time. Typically impartial, he had a deeply personal tie to Bosnia's triumph through his father's ancestry.
Ibrahimovic is renowned for his self-assurance and even speaks about himself in the third person. But when cameras zeroed in on him following Bosnia's victory, that hardened persona melted away.
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"That's what football is all about, bringing people together and especially for Bosnia. How much this country has suffered and to see this happiness makes me very emotional," he said. "Gives me goosebumps because that's my father's roots."
The Bosnian War during the 1990s resulted in more than 100,000 casualties. Prior to independence, Bosnian competitors represented Yugoslavia, but after establishing its own squad, Bosnia qualified for its maiden World Cup in 2014.
The conflict also compelled numerous individuals to flee their homeland, including Ibrahimović's Bosnian father and Croatian mother, who relocated to Sweden before Yugoslavia fractured. Bosnia wasn't granted FIFA recognition until 1996.
Following his family's relocation to Sweden, Ibrahimovic embarked on a career that would see him become Sweden's all-time leading international scorer. Despite netting 62 goals in 122 international appearances, with 19 coming in World Cup qualifying matches, Ibrahimovic concluded his Sweden tenure without a single World Cup goal to his name.
"Just to see 70,000 singing, probably the Bosnian fans won already the World Cup and it makes me happy, very proud over them and see them also advance from the group stage," he continued. "But the special moment is when the fans are singing, this is what makes me emotional, I cannot even express myself well now, but it's a very emotional moment, and I'm just happy, I'm just happy. "
Ibrahimovic's father, Sefik, was born in Bijeljina, Bosnia and Herzegovina, relocating to Sweden in 1977, where Zlatan was raised. He gained recognition as "Kinko," a folk performer who began his musical journey in his hometown in 1985.
While Zlatan opted to represent Sweden, he frequently speaks about the significance of his Bosnian heritage. Bosnia's 3-1 victory over Qatar marked a turnaround following a 1-1 stalemate with Canada and a 4-1 defeat to Switzerland.
Under the guidance of manager Sergej Barbarez and captain Edin Dzeko, the squad secured third place in Group B and advanced to the Round of 32, surpassing their previous best World Cup result of a group stage elimination in 2014. Bosnia will meet the United States at Levi's Stadium on July 1 to commence their knockout campaign.