Janne Andersson, the manager of Sweden national team has given an interview to SportBladet, where he has exclusively spoken about AC Milan's frontman Zlatan Ibrahimovic, and the rumors claiming that the 39-year-old is set to make his international return.
Is it true that Zlatan will be called-up?
"I can not say if it is true because the squad will not be called-up until Tuesday. So I have no comment on that before [Tuesday]".
Were you surprised that this information came last Saturday?
"Speculation about selections is nothing new, it has happened before. I will never be surprised".
You say speculation, but FotbollDirekt stated that it will be so?
"The squad will be called-up on March 16 and we have been there before that, it has been established that it will be in a way before you take out the squad. Everything that is written and said until March 16 may stand for those who do it, so we will see how it turns out".
Have you informed Milan that Zlatan can be selected?
"In general, I never comment on the squad before it is selected. But regarding the gross squad, the clubs must be informed if we are to be able to take out the players, otherwise they can say no. I think it happened sometime before my time. That's why we take action, not least now during corona times, and [we] inform a lot of players' clubs to have coverage".
In an interview with Expressen two weeks ago, you said that if Zlatan "had said he did not want to join, or if I decided that he should not join, you would probably have found out already now".
"Had it been completely out of date, we would not have been pulling in things as it is now. The dialogue continues. That's where we are".
But if he is still available and you take height in this gross squad, you should have informed Milan that he can be selected?
"It's your speculation, which I do not comment on because it's about the squad before it is called-up. Shortly after Ibrahimovic seriously opened [the door] for a comeback to the national team in Sportbladet's Guldbollen interview in November, the national team captain went down and visited him".
Have you met Zlatan several times since then?
"We have had a dialogue since then".
But can you answer if you have met him several times?
"We have had a dialogue (laughter). You can have it in different ways in modern times".
Have you personally, in your mind, made a decision whether or not Zlatan should join?
"My brain is going at full speed now with all the variables before the selection. Unfortunately, we have quite a few players, even if we ignore Zlatan, who has, or has had, an injury problem. It's going on in my head. I have not set foot fully in anything. I do not do that until after the weekend when we have all the cards at work. There is a lot to weigh in this time. On Tuesday, you will hear what it looks like".
Is he available to be selected?
"You will find out on Tuesday, if he is available and if he will be selected. I have nothing more to say there".
If he is available - is it your most difficult decision as the [national manager] whether you should take him out or not?
"(Laughter) Now we're speculating again. In that case, we will take it on Tuesday. Then you can ask whether he is with or not. So we can talk about the difficulty in the decision I made then".
Will you be able to stay away from smiling when you push the powerpoint forward with midfielders and strikers on Tuesday when the whole of football Sweden watches?
"I always smile, right?! I'm so happy when I get to take out players so I will surely have a smile on my face then too".
