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Zlatan Ibrahimovic walked back through the gates of AC Milan’s Milanello training complex on September 14, 2026, ending a six-month disappearance act that coincided with one of the club’s most turbulent stretches in recent memory. His return, timed two days before Milan’s UEFA Europa League match against Benfica, is less about nostalgia and more about signaling that a messy internal power struggle is finally over.
The 44-year-old former striker, who serves as a senior advisor to the club’s ownership group, had been physically absent from the training ground since March 2026. The reason was an open secret in Italian football: a deepening rift with then-head coach Massimiliano Allegri that made coexistence at the facility untenable.
Milan’s 2025-26 season spiraled into one of the most disappointing campaigns the Rossoneri faithful have endured in years. The club limped to a fifth-place finish in Serie A. The final blow came on June 4, 2026, when Milan lost 2-1 to Cagliari in the season’s last match. That defeat cemented fifth place and triggered a sweeping organizational purge: Allegri was sacked, CEO Giorgio Furlani was dismissed, and sporting director Igli Tare and technical director Geoffrey Moncada were also shown the door.
Milan moved quickly to rebuild. Ruben Amorim was appointed as the new head coach. The squad itself got a refresh too. Gonçalo Ramos and Diego Moreira were among the notable additions. Allegri, for his part, landed the Napoli job shortly after his dismissal.
During his six months away, Ibrahimovic reportedly remained active in advising RedBird Capital’s Gerry Cardinale, the private equity executive who leads Milan’s ownership group. His physical return carries symbolic weight: two days before the Benfica fixture on September 16, it signals to the squad, the staff, and the fans that the internal dysfunction has been resolved.
Amorim’s familiarity with Portuguese football could be a genuine tactical advantage in the Benfica matchup, given his understanding of their system, tendencies, and personnel.
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