Zlatan says statue part of world domination plan

Manchester United star Zlatan Ibrahimovic was touched when he first heard the news he would be honoured with a statue in his image outside the Friends Arena in Stockholm, and rightly so; he has dreamed of a moment like it all his life.

(Courtesy: Manutd.com)

The Sweden icon was presented with a miniature version of what will eventually be a 2.7-meter tall statue of himself and says it's all part of his plan for world domination.

"I come from a small area in Malmo - the ghetto, they call it - and I get a statue in the capital city of Sweden," Ibrahimovic told MUTV. "I wouldn't have believed it because I felt different; I didn't feel like the other ones - where I came from, because of my background.

"But I believed that I would take over the world, that's for sure.

"It's incredible. Normally you get a statue when you pass away, but I am alive. I'm super happy. I'm honoured. Sweden is my country and whatever I do, I represent Sweden; I will always go back there."

While Ibrahimovic has always had a penchant for acrobatic shots and has a plethora of memorable goal celebrations, the statue depicts the 35-year-old with two fingers pointing in different directions, a pose he says he often strikes on the field.

"It's like a gesture or a movement from a game - a typical Zlatan movement," Ibrahimovic explained.

"I've gone through it; I've been a little bit critical because I wanted the statue to be like me: massive, powerful, magic, wow! All these combinations I wanted to get into it, but he's done a great job - he's a great artist. He has his way of seeing things and he made it like a symbol that would live forever."