AC Milan striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic has admitted he no longer enjoys football as much as he used to and that he doesn't want to continue playing if he can't cope at the top level any more.
Ibra, as he is popularly known in Italy, says he is getting older and that football doesn't come to him as easily as it once did.
"It's normal with time you have to take more care of yourself," he said.
"When I was younger even if I was in pain or had problems I could still train and straight away I could kick a ball 40-metres.
"Now it doesn't work that way, I have to warm-up and everything before kicking a ball.
"I'm getting old," said the forward, who turned 30 on Monday.
"I'm not joking, it's disappointing talking about this so often but I don't have the same grit that I had before.
"I enjoyed it more a few years ago, now it's more of a routine, even though I still enjoy it.
"But I can't see myself playing with grey hair until I'm physically knackered.
"I want to stop when I'm still at the top, I don't know if I'll manage that but I hope so.
"When I was younger I filled every second with football, I didn't think about anything but the ball and sometimes I didn't even go to school so I could play football.
"Now my daily life is different, I'm also interested in other things.
"I try to force myself to play with my children and naturally every so often I go out in the garden to kick a ball around with them.
"But I find even that difficult and sometimes it's up to the babysitter to play with them."
Source: AFP
