Zlatan Ibrahimovic could like so many things but one thing he hates so much is to have the lips of another man on his lips. He once had to slap his former teammate at Ajax, Van der Meyde severally for kissing him on his lips.
Van der Meyde who has retired from active football since 2012 revealed this when recounting some of the memories he and Zlatan Ibrahimovic had when they were playing together at Ajax.
Ibrahimovic met Van der Meyde at Ajax ahead of the 2001-2002 season. Van der Meyde who is a product of Ajax Academy said he was the best player at the Dutch club before Ibrahimovic arrived.
The 39-year-old Swedish football legend felt he was better than Van der Meyde which made them not get along as well as they should.
Meyde who was a winger at the club scored 18 goals in 91 games between 1997 and 2003. While Zlatan Ibrahimovic who is a striker scored 35 goals in 74 games between 2001 and 2004.
One of the incidences Meyde might never forget happened when he and Ibrahimovic were on Ajax’s team bus. While on the bus, the Swedish footballer fell asleep, hence, Meyde decided to kiss him on his lips.
The Swedish footballer who currently plays for AC Millan landed several slaps on the Dutch footballer as a punishment for kissing him on the lips.
“When we were at Ajax, I always sat next to Zlatan on the bus”, Van Der Meyde told Dutch TV show VTBL.
“Once when he was sleeping I got gay tendencies and just kissed him on the mouth. Seconds later, I got a couple of slaps.”
This was not the first time Ibrahimovic has had brutal encounters with Meyde. Long before the Dutch footballer retired, there were reports that Ibrahimovic always threatened that he would break Meyde’s legs.
In an interview with FourFourTwo in 2019, Meyde admitted that Ibrahimovic used to tell him he would break his legs. He also revealed that the Swedish football legend says that to almost everyone.
“Yes, he did say that, but Zlatan said it to everyone”, Meyde admitted.
“It’s also true that around that time things just weren’t working between the two of us.
“But I would rather be in a team with honest people, like him, even if it means there are a few arguments.
“But there wasn’t a specific moment we fell out. We generally didn’t get along well…
“At that time we were both young and I was the best player in Ajax. He came to the club and believed that he was the best player at Ajax.
“Back then he did not act as he does now and I think he was a bit jealous.
“I did not have really big problems with him. It was just two egos converging in one place. I think I was a bigger problem for him than he was for me.”
Van der Meyde used to be married to his long-time lover, Melisa Schaufeli. They wedded in 2014 and the marriage broke down in 2015 due to infidelity issues. Before the marriage broke down, the couple have had two daughters.
While Zlatan Ibrahimovic who is still an active football star is happily married to Helena Seger. They have two sons – Maxmilian and Vincent.
Rise of the GOD pic.twitter.com/oJ2U2KaR2x
— Zlatan Ibrahimović (@Ibra_official) July 6, 2021