Despite his advanced age, veteran striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic expressed hope on Tuesday that he could participate in the Euros in 2019 as his Swedish team prepared for its opening qualifier against Belgium.
Ibrahimovic, 41, is already on track to surpass Italian goalie Dino Zoff's record of 40 years and 90 days established in a 1983 Euro qualifier.
"Considering everything I have gone through with injuries and other things, I don't think that far ahead. When asked if he expects to participate in Euro 2024 in Germany should Sweden qualify, the veteran AC Milan striker responded, "If I feel good physically, I am going to keep playing."
Ibrahimovic made history over the weekend when he scored the oldest goal in Serie A history.
Did you read this?
Although happy with his accomplishment, the football player stated that he wanted to "be compared to everyone else" and not only be exceptional for his age.
"I'm not here to help out. I'm here to compete and to deliver and produce outcomes through my performance. So I'm hoping I can carry on doing that," Ibrahimovic stated.
If Sweden makes it to the next tournament, Ibrahimovic might surpass Gabor Kiraly of Hungary, who competed in the 2016 edition of the European Championship at 40.
Ibrahimovic declared last year that he would "continue as long as I can" after Sweden could not qualify for the 2022 World Cup. He has since claimed that he is "panicking" about retiring.
Sweden will play Belgium on Friday, and on March 27, Azerbaijan.
Along with Estonia and Austria, the three nations make up qualifying group F, from which the top two advances to the knockout round.
Zlatan Ibrahimovic is just back from an injury that kept him off the field for quite some time, and he scored a goal that made him the oldest goal-scorer in Seria A at 41 years of age.
