Topics: Zlatan Ibrahimovic, PSG, Ligue 1, Bordeaux
The Swedish superstar has been known to make his share of controversial statements in the past. But has Zlatan Ibrahimovic gone too far this time?

"An injured Zlatan is a pretty serious thing for any team" he wrote in his best-selling 2011 autobiography, Jag är Zlatan (I am Zlatan).

"No way, Zlatan doesn't do auditions" he was quoted as saying when asked to undergo a trial during the early stages of his career. And this was not a request by a coach of a small provincial outfit but rather none other than renowed tactician Arsene Wenger, who just so happens to manage one of the biggest clubs in the world.

And following his disappointment at failing to qualify for the World Cup in a match that was billed as Ibrahimovic vs. Cristiano Ronaldo rather than Sweden vs. Portugal, he was more than happy to offer his opinion on the tournament in Brazil:

"One thing is for sure: a World Cup without me is nothing to watch!"

Ibrahimovic scored twice vs. Portugal but it was not enough to earn a ticket to last summer's tournament

 

As his fans are well aware, Zlatan Ibrahimovic is certainly not afraid to say what is on his mind. Whilst many people do tend to mellow out as they get older, the 33-year-old striker certainly has not shied away from expressing his views despite his advancing years. However, with his latest outburst, in which he slams not just Ligue 1 officials but his entire adopted nation, Zlatan may have just taken one step too far.

A frustrating domestic campaign

Simply put, this season has been a difficult one for Paris Saint-Germain. Les Parisiens, who have recently enjoyed a newfound dominance over the past few seasons, have not found things so easy this time around and are currently fighting it out tooth and nail with Lyon and Marseille to defend their league crown.

And as his team have struggled at times to get going, Ibrahimovic himself has spent spells on the sidelines with various injuries, meaning that he will not be able to successfully retain France's top scorer prize for this season.

This past week has been nothing short of frustrating for the Swedish ace on a personal level. On Wednesday, he unfortunately saw his Champions League outing at Stamford Bridge cut short after receiving a dubious red card after a clash with Chelsea's Oscar. And, four days later, over the weekend, Ibra had twice puled his side level with Bordeaux only to see all three points snatched at the death courtesy of a late Diego Rolan goal.

Tensions boil over

Not surprisingly, given the fact that he single-handedly had tried to carry his side to a much-needed win coupled with some some perceived bias from Lionel Jeffredo, Ibrahimovic was not impressed following the game and launched into a foul-mouthed tirade against the match official, French referees, and the country as a whole.

Ibra lets it rip following his team's disappointing loss to Bordeaux last Sunday:

According to this beIN sports correspondent, it is not entirely clear if Zlatan was referring to France as a "s**t country" as was previously assumed:

 

But the damage had already been done...at least as far as certain French notable figures were concerned.

Apologies and tirades

Mea culpa: Zlatan apologises via an official PSG video and through his Instagram account:

Meanwhile, fans were certainly not up in arms the way that certain politicians were:

 

Well, perhaps except this one, who referenced Zlatan's "11 babies" comment regarding Chelsea:

 

Unfortunately, several of France's political, sporting, marketing, and other high-ranking officials were not so keen on letting his comments go.

The country's Prime Minister, Manuel Valls stated that he was "shocked by his statements on France. Ibrahimovic is a great player but he must realize that he needs to act appropriately. When one reacts like that towards referees, it makes their job difficult and he needs to recognize in these confusing times he needs to be careful when choosing his words."

Patrick Kanner, France's sports minister offered: "There was a grave error in judgement, a serious mistake [on the part of Ibrahimovic] which has not been fully addressed by his apology. Referees really need to be supported because if a player as important as him [can say insulting things like this] it can cause big problems in the stadiums and that will be truly unfortunate".

And whilst Najat Vallaud-Belkacem, the Minister of Education was a lot more sympathetic, taking the "let's move on approach", France's right-wing leader Marine Le Pen, whose political party has been criticized for their anti-immigrant stance, was more than happy to lay into the Swedish star:

 

"He can return to his own country [if he considers France a sh*t country]" she ranted, whilst his coach, Laurent Blanc attempted to calm some of the furor down, blaming the stress of the match and his star not realizing he was being recorded:

"You know that when you are upset, and in the heat of the moment, you do not always think about the presence of microphones. Don't take his words out of context..."

Judgment Day

As per the FFF (French Football Federation), the Disciplinary Committee is set to decide as to which punishment - if any - will be meted out to the talismanic attacker. However, Zlatan, PSG, and his fans will have to wait another two days as they will not meet until Thursday. Until then, given his importance to his squad, all will be quite uneasy over the next 48 hours.

What next?

With Zlatan apparently "unhappy" in France, and with the summer transfer market just a few months away, cue the absurd rumor mill starting up again. Already there are bizarre stories linking him with a move to Liverpool, by some reports in England. But, given his nomadic nature, which has not seen him stay at a club for more than a couple of seasons, it will be interesting to see if Ibra's stint in the fashion capital will have run its course come next season.