5 Things You Learn Reading Zlatan Ibrahimovic's Autobiography
2. Zlatan Almost Joined Real Madrid Instead Of Barcelona
Given the eventual outcome of this move and how much Zlatan regrets joining Barca, (we will go into more detail on this in the next page) Real Madrid may have been the better option after all. After three years at Inter Milan, tensions between Zlatan and the club's ultra fans were running high. This would prove to be one of the reasons Zlatan began to actively seek a transfer away from the club in the summer of 2009.
While in the midst of negotiations to leave Inter Milan, Zlatan was approached by both Barcelona and Real Madrid. Although Barcelona was Zlatan's preferred destination from the start, Zlatan and his agent Mino Raiola used the possibility of joining Real Madrid to their advantage.
According to Zlatan, the thought of Barca losing their top transfer target to their main rivals was terrifying, which meant they negotiated the move from Inter faster and he got a better salary deal.