(Football news) Zlatan Ibrahimovic is expected to sign a new one-year contract extension with the Serie A champions AC Milan as he looks to extend his professional playing career into a 23rd season. The Swede, who will turn 41 in October, last season only made 23 league appearances when Milan powered their way to the first Scudetto in 11 years. Zlatan became a free agent last week when his contract with the club expired. However, according to reports from Italy, the striker is set for another season with the Rossoneri.

Ibrahimovic last season suffered a serious injury to his left knee and underwent surgery at the end of last season. AC Milan revealed that recovery will take from seven to eight months, meaning that the forward will be out of action for the majority of the new season. It is understood that Ibrahimovic will put pen to paper on a new deal after he agreed to lower his wages to around £1million per year. The club view the Swede as an important figure in the side considering the strong influence that he has in the changing room. 

Ibrahimovic wrote on Instagram in May "For the past six months I played without an ACL in my left knee. I Never suffered so much on and off the pitch. In my mind I had only one objective, to make my teammates and coach champions of Italy because I made them a promise. Today I have a new ACL and another trophy."

Nevertheless, with Ibrahimovic set to spend most of the season recovering from his injury,now the responsibility of scoring goals will likely fall to new signing Divock Origi who joined the club on a four-year deal from Liverpool. The former Champions League winner will hope to partner up with former Arsenal and Chelsea target man Olivier Giroud as the Milan fans would hope they form a formidable duo.

Zlatan is now 40 years old and yet the way he is playing and looking after his body means that he can continue to compete amongst the elite of the elite. He’ll help the club by accepting a lower salary in his new deal, in the hope that they sign new players to help Milan retain the Scudetto and try to push deeper in the Champions League. Zlatan has had an amazing career that has seen him represent Malmo, Ajax, Juventus, Internazionale, Barcelona, Milan, Paris Saint-Germain, Manchester United, LA Galaxy and Milan again. The one trophy that’s eluded him the most in his prestigious career is the Champions League as he looks to change that with AC Milan this season. 

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