Zlatan Must Go!

All summer long rumors of  Zlatan Ibrahimovic's imminent departure have earned top billing on Spanish sports journals. The Swedish giant had trouble catching the gist of Josep Guardiola's passing and movement-heavy offense and was benched towards the end of the season. Should his struggles spell the end of the former Inter star's run in Barcelona?

I can only hope that he is transferred. I believe that the blame for Barcelona's reduced goal totals in comparison to their record-setting 2008-2009 season, lays squarely on the shoulders of Ibra. In 08-09, quick, agile players like Thierry Henry, Samuel Eto'o and Lionel Messi switched position with a mesmerizing speed, creating mismatches, beautifully triangulated passes and lots and lots of goals.

Zlatan's arrival signaled the end of Barcelona's offensive firepower. Passes to the giant Swede resulted in lost balls because of his lack of passing skill or the many fouls he committed against opposing defenses. He was rarely in sync with midfielders either and apart from a brilliant first leg against Arsenal in the Champion's League, was rarely able to create scoring runs.

Things got so bad that when Barcelona needed a clutch striker they turned to the 19-year-old Bojan Krkic - and he made the decision look good. Bojan's pace, understanding of his teammate's passing choices and movement off the ball opened up scoring opportunities for his team and took Barca to the league title.

Now the Blaugrana have Spanish international, David Villa in addition to Bojan and Ibra. A born goalscorer, Villa was a proven 25-goals-per-liga performer with Valencia. At the high pace Barcelona, he's sure to score more. And he just spent all summer developing chemistry with teammates Xavi and Iniesta, Pique and Puyol as Spain won the World Cup.

So, is there any room left for Zlatan? I say no. His lack of chemistry is evident. As he fails on the field, he's sure to become a bigger distraction off the field. His big-mouth agent, Mino Raiola, won't stop spouting off about how his client is the best "9" in football. Rather than have a front-man controversy the Blaugrana should just get rid of this guy now.

It sounds like the problem is that Ibra is just too expensive. Barca paid somewhere upwards of 60 million Euro for the striker and now pay him a reported 12 million Euro a year. No team is willing to pay such an astronomical transfer or salary. And Ibra won't leave because he won't be paid upwards of 10 million Euro a year by any of the other Champion's League entrants.

The loan exceptions may be AC Milan and Manchester City (who are not in the Champions League). I hope one of them can come up with the goods.

When Zlatan is acrobatically toeing in long, searching crosses in the Italian or English leagues, we'll all be better off. He's the perfect striker for a team the plays a fast-paced, athletic counterattack. Let's all say "Ibracadabra" and let this rabbit free to work his magic.