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Wenger: Ibrahimovic better than Messi and Ronaldo

ESPN staff
October 28, 2013
Clasico Chatter

Zlatan Ibrahimovic has claimed he dreams of winning trophies, not the Ballon d'Or - despite Arsene Wenger saying the Swede currently surpasses both Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo.

The 23-man shortlist for the 2013 Ballon d'Or will be revealed on Tuesday with Ibrahimovic, 32, destined to be among those selected. Following his astonishing four-goal haul against Anderlecht in the Champions League last week, French media are even tipping the Paris Saint-Germain forward to dethrone Messi after three successive triumphs for the Argentina international.

However, after PSG's 2-2 draw at Saint-Etienne on Sunday that kept the reigning Ligue 1 champions top of the table, Ibrahimovic told the media his priority remained embellishing his club's honours' list, not his own CV.

He said: "No, no, I train hard every day to get PSG positive results. I'm very happy to play in Paris. I give a lot of myself to that. The victories of my team are my Ballon d'Or. It's not my dream to win that trophy. My dream is to win trophies with my club. Individual honours are simply a bonus."

Having finished top scorer in France as PSG picked up their first title since 1994, Ibrahimovic ended last season well, and has continued in the same vein this term, contributing five goals to his team's unbeaten start to the season.

His showing in Sweden's 2014 World Cup play-off against Portugal may yet tip the balance in his favour, particularly as it gives him the opportunity to shine against Ronaldo, one of the other favourites for the award to be handed out in Zurich on January 13.

Wenger told TF1 that if the honour were presented today, Ibrahimovic would be taking it home. "Right now, he's better than Messi and Ronaldo," said the Arsenal boss. "At 32, he knows how best to exploit his talent."

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