IbrahimoviÄ‡ back to face former club when Milan hosts Man U

Posted March 17, 2021 7:00 am

The Associated Press

AC Milan's Zlatan Ibrahimovic, right, sits on the stands ahead of a Serie A soccer match between AC Milan and Napoli, at the San Siro stadium in Milan, Italy, Sunday, March 14, 2021. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno) The Associated Press

MILAN (AP) - Zlatan IbrahimoviÄ‡ will be fit enough to face his former club when AC Milan hosts Manchester United in the Europa League on Thursday.

The Sweden forward, who played for United from 2016-18, has missed Milan's past four matches with a left thigh injury. That ruled him out of a return to Old Trafford, where Milan snatched a 1-1 draw in the first leg of the round of 16.

Milan coach Stefano Pioli said Wednesday that IbrahimoviÄ‡ has recovered sufficiently to play some part in Thursday's match but would not confirm whether the 39-year-old IbrahimoviÄ‡ would be part of the starting lineup.

'œWe'll see what choices I'll make tomorrow,'ť Pioli said. 'œHis return to the squad is important for us but clearly he won't be able to play for 90 minutes.'ť

Milan has won only one of the four matches during IbrahimoviÄ‡'s absence and has slipped nine points behind Serie A leader Inter Milan.

It was a fourth spell on the sidelines for IbrahimoviÄ‡ this season after testing positive for the coronavirus and two other injuries to his left leg.

IbrahimoviÄ‡ has nevertheless scored 14 goals in as many league matches.

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AC Milan's Zlatan Ibrahimovic uses his mobile phone during a Serie A soccer match between AC Milan and Napoli, at the San Siro stadium in Milan, Italy, Sunday, March 14, 2021. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno) The Associated Press

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