Questions continue to surround Zlatan Ibrahimovic’s role behind the scenes at Milan following a series of major changes within the club. The former striker remains a key figure after RedBird founder Gerry Cardinale dismissed head coach Max Allegri, chief executive Giorgio Furlani, sporting director Igli Tare and technical director Geoffrey Moncada in a single announcement.
Speaking during a Sportmediaset event, journalist Carlo Pellegatti recalled an episode from Paulo Fonseca’s arrival at Milan. According to Pellegatti, Ibrahimovic introduced the new coach to the squad on the first day of training before asking him to leave the dressing room so he could address the players himself.
Pellegatti argued that such a situation immediately weakened Fonseca’s authority in front of the team, claiming that the coach’s position was compromised from the very beginning.
Fonseca’s short spell ends after six months
Fonseca’s time at Milan proved brief. He took charge in July 2024 but was dismissed before the end of December of the same year.
The Portuguese coach was replaced by Sergio Conceicao after only six months in charge. Pellegatti suggested that the circumstances described during Fonseca’s introduction to the squad reflected wider issues regarding authority within the club.
He also maintained that Allegri’s presence was important because, in his view, the coach was one of the few figures capable of limiting Ibrahimovic’s influence.
Reports of tensions behind the scenes
The latest comments add to previous reports describing a difficult relationship between Allegri and Ibrahimovic. According to those claims, disagreements between the pair escalated significantly, with one confrontation at a restaurant allegedly requiring intervention from Tare.
Further reports suggested that Ibrahimovic had contacted individual players to provide tactical guidance that contradicted instructions given by the coaching staff during training sessions.
Although Ibrahimovic does not officially hold a position within Milan’s management structure, he serves as Special Advisor to RedBird, the investment group that owns a majority stake in the club. Meanwhile, he and Cardinale are now involved in selecting the next leadership figures for Milan, a situation that has reportedly caused frustration among sections of the fanbase.