Mino Raiola: Sir Alex Ferguson never asked to sign Zlatan Ibrahimovic for Man United
The 35-year-old, who signed on a free transfer after leaving Paris Saint-Germain in the summer, has proved to be a hit at Manchester United under new manager Jose Mourinho.
He took his tally of goals to 26 in 38 games with a match-winning brace in the 3-2 EFL Cup final win over Southampton at Wembley on Sunday.
But Zlatan Ibrahimovic's agent Raiola claims Sir Alex and other managers at top Premier League clubs were never interested in signing the Swede due to doubts over whether he could cut it in England.
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Raiola insists Sir Alex and other top Premier League managers were never interested in Ibrahimovic
Asked if he had the chance to join the Premier League earlier in his career, Raiola told talkSPORT: “Not at the level he wanted.
“For example, my big friend Sir Alex Ferguson never asked for him.
“There were a lot of reservations from English clubs about whether he could succeed in England, and I was always a little bit stunned by that question and by those doubts.”
But Raiola insists he was always confident that his client would succeed in England.
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Man United star Zlatan Ibrahimovic celebrates scoring the winning goal in the EFL Cup final
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He added: “It was a challenge – it was one of those challenges we wanted him to take because he could have easily have made more money at another club, but one of those challenges was going to the Premier League and proving he could do it in the Premier League.
“I never had a minute of doubt that he could, but I think a lot of people around England had these doubts.
“In England pace is so important, maybe one of the most important attributes in the Premier League is the pace. I don’t know if they doubted him in the pace or the quality, but it’s a question you should ask others, not me.
“I was never in doubt. If you can do it wherever he did it and knowing how he is and what kind of person and man on and off the field he is, he can do it everywhere.”