Zlatan is taking credit for “putting France on the map”

Fresh off winning his 10th Swedish Golden Ball, Zlatan Ibrahimovic is apparently feeling even more enamored with himself than usual. Ahead of Sweden’s Euro 2016 qualification playoff against Denmark, the PSG striker declared that the tournament’s host nation would be nothing without him.

From the BBC:

“I would love to play at the European Championship in France,” said Ibrahimovic.

“I have played there for four years. I have put Sweden on the world map and now I have put France on the world map too.”

Just to be clear, France is a nation that won the World Cup (a trophy Zlatan has never won), won two European Championships (a trophy Zlatan has never won), and a French club won the Champions League (a trophy Zlatan has never won), all before Zlatan arrived in France in 2012.

Granted, Zlatan did bring renewed international interest in French football after Ligue 1 had fallen behind a bit and the French national team became a laughing stock at the 2010 World Cup, but to say he put France on the world map is just, well, about what you would expect from Zlatan Ibrahimovic.

It’s only a matter of time before he takes credit for croissants and the works of Marcel Proust.

November 12, 2015

Adidas got a bit weird with Spain and Russia’s away shirts

After going for a more understated vibe with their Euro 2016 home kits, Adidas went for a more experimental approach with Spain and Russia’s away shirts.

November 12, 2015

In which Roman Abramovich turns John Terry into a centaurback

John Terry, like many Chelsea players, has lost his legs this season. So in this animated short from the always excellent FitbaThatba, Roman Abramovich attempts to solve Jose Mourinho’s problems with a bit of creative engineering. I think this might be the key to turning Chelsea’s season around.

November 12, 2015

Puma’s new pop art boots are ridiculous and spectacular

If you’ve ever dreamed of wearing a pair of boots that look like an old Batman cartoon, Puma have you covered with their new evoPower Pop Art boot.

November 12, 2015

Czech Republic players record Euro 2016 song with Petr Cech on drums

The Czech Republic already qualified for Euro 2016, so while other nations prepare for their qualification playoffs or do just about anything else, the Czechs are kicking out the jams.

November 11, 2015

Jamie Vardy is trying to guilt Roy Hodgson into taking him to Euro 2016

Jamie Vardy is having a historic season with goals in nine consecutive matches and counting for Leicester (one shy of Ruud van Nistelrooy’s Premier League record), so he probably doesn’t need much help cementing a place in England’s Euro 2016 squad. But that hasn’t stopped him from going the extra mile and employing devious tactics just to be sure.

November 11, 2015

The very best Euro 2016 kits (so far)

It might seem like Euro 2016 is still a ways off, but we’ve got an international break deadzone now, so kitmakers are starting to unveil some of their creations for next summer’s tournament. Adidas has probably launched the most so far, and many of them are exceptional. Let’s take a look at some of the best…

November 11, 2015

Hector Bellerin and Nacho Monreal are the greatest match commentators of all time

Arsenal’s YouTube channel does this thing where they have two members of the squad commentate match highlights and by pairing Hector Bellerin and Nacho Monreal together, they have struck gold.

Some choice cuts…

November 10, 2015

Patrick Vieira makes sense for NYCFC, regardless of stereotypes and generalizations

The announcement that Patrick Vieira will replace Jason Kreis as manager of New York City FC has been meet with near unanimous disapproval. He’s foreign! He has no MLS experience! He’s foreign! He’s only using this as a stepping stone to the Man City job! HE’S FOREIGN!!!!

Though the limited track record for great European footballers turned MLS managers isn’t great, Vieira and NYCFC are both unique cases that complicate comparisons to previous failures.

November 10, 2015

Cristiano Ronaldo says he’s not smart enough to be FIFA president

At the premiere of a documentary about himself, where he attempted to break the world record for selfies taken in a three-minute span, Cristiano Ronaldo actually said something self-effacing.