In the wake of AC Milan’s setback against Feyenoord in the Champions League playoffs, Danish football legends Michael Laudrup and Preben Elkjaer were outspoken in their criticism of club Senior Adviser Zlatan Ibrahimovic. They took issue with Ibrahimovic’s defence of Theo Hernandez, who was sent off for a second yellow card following a blatant dive.
Ibrahimovic weighed in on Hernandez’s dismissal, stating, “We are disappointed and angry. I believe there was a lack of maturity. Regarding Theo’s second yellow card, it was an unjust decision. For such a dive in a match of this magnitude, a verbal warning should suffice before issuing a card. The game shifted entirely after that.”
He added, “In circumstances like these, it’s hard to determine what’s right or wrong. While I don’t consider Theo to be theatrical and know he strives to perform his best, these incidents do occur on the pitch, and he isn’t intentionally seeking them out.”
However, both Laudrup and Elkjaer felt that Ibrahimovic should not have excused Hernandez’s actions. Reflecting on Zlatan’s comments, Laudrup remarked: “Zlatan may not see Theo as an actor and believes he doesn’t seek out such situations, but he (Theo) did exactly that today. I find it perplexing that there are no repercussions for leaving your teammates short-handed for forty minutes in such a crucial fixture. Excuses simply can’t be made for that.”
Elkjaer echoed his compatriot’s sentiments, asserting: “Zlatan is acting more like a former player than someone in a management role. This behaviour is unacceptable. We’re talking about the loss of 11 million EURO in the bid to advance in the tournament. It’s serious when you compromise your club like this, and as management, it’s your duty to assert that such unprofessional conduct cannot be tolerated. Defending a player who clearly isn’t considering the implications of his actions in that moment is simply not right.”
Compiled by SportArena.com.au.
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