“Who needs a nickname? To be afraid of me, just watch me play.” We hope you got a clue who said these words. If not, then you just got yourself on a 6’5” giant’s blacklist. We’re talking about Zlatan Ibrahimovic, the retired bad boy of the beautiful game, who not only excelled on the pitch but also instilled fear in those who faced him. While his aura perfectly matches such a persona, we wonder why the Swedish icon would want to see a similar nature in AC Milan forward Christian Pulisic.

Yes, the very US Men’s National Team skipper, who may be as lethal as a gun on the pitch but is soft and humble in nature like no other. But how did we actually come here? Well, it all starts with the Mr. protagonist himself, who is getting his very own documentary ahead of the 2026 FIFA World Cup that the United States is hosting. Courtesy of CBS Sports and Paramount+, a small teaser was released for the fans to see what they will expect in the docuseries.

In the teaser, a few glimpses of revered names of the soccer world can be seen talking about Pulisic. As an icon of his current club, of course, Ibrahimovic also just had to be a part of Pulisic’s documentary. Interestingly, a frame sees Zlatan talking about the 26-year-old winger’s playing ability and suddenly adds, “I would like him to be a little bit bad guy.”

Clearly, the former Barcelona, Inter, and PSG striker wants Pulisic to bring more boldness to his personality. That way, he’ll not only be able to make defenders sweat just by his cheeky skills but also leave them intimidated by his special Ibra-type nature. Not to remind, this was something that even USMNT icon Alexi Lalas had mentioned during the penalty drama involving Pulisic at Milan.

Despite being the designated penalty taker, the former Borussia Dortmund star was twice denied the opportunity to score from the spot by his own teammates, Theo Hernandez and Tammy Abraham, only to see them miss the goal, leading their side to a 2-1 loss to AS Roma. This also forced Lalas to say, “Christian Pulisic is not Zlatan. He’s not gonna have a fistfight with one of his teammates over the opportunity to take the penalty. That’s just not who he is.”

Perhaps Ibrahimovic, who now works for AC Milan as a senior advisor (plot twist: Zlatan doesn’t work for others; they work for Zlatan), may help Pulisic unleash his bold side that is yet to be touched by the American forward. After all, Ibra holds the former Chelsea star in such high regard!

Zlatan Ibrahimovic heaps praise on AC Milan’s Mr. Captain America, Christian Pulisic

The former Sweden international is impressed by Pulisic’s impact at AC Milan so far. That saw Zlatan give a classy nickname to the USA forward. “I think Christian is our ‘Captain America’. He is doing extraordinary things, you can see that he is happy; being at Milan makes every player happy. This is not just my opinion; every player would tell you the same thing,” said Ibrahimovic.

Pulisic’s numbers for his domestic side in fact do justify this nickname. In over 17 appearances across the UEFA Champions League and Serie A, the Hershey, Pennsylvania, native has clinched 8 goals and 5 assists. Additionally, the former Chelsea star recently set a record as the fastest player in USMNT history to achieve 50 goal contributions.

Mix his goalscoring prowess with a pinch of the special Zlatan Ibrahimovic character, and you literally got yourself a combination that we believe the soccer world isn’t ready to see!