My dad’s one of tennis’ GOATs… here’s what footballers with famous fathers have to do to succeed
LEO BORG has offered some words of wisdom to Zlatan Ibrahimovic’s son as he looks to make his way up the football ranks.
The 21-year-old’s dad is five-time Wimbledon and six-time Roland Garros champ Bjorn Borg – one of the greatest tennis greats of all time.
But Borg’s lookalike son Leo is forging his own career in tennis.
The youngster lives in his hometown Stockholm and progressed through the youth tennis ranks to compete at the junior Grand Slams in 2021.
Borg Jr is currently ranked 590 in the world after losing in the first round against Alexandre Muller in Sweden on Tuesday night.
But the elder Borg, 68, is one of the sport’s biggest ever stars – winning 11 Grand Slam titles before dramatically retiring aged just 26.
Leo was asked to offer some advice to Ibrahimovic‘s son, Maximilian, who is attempting to follow in his own father’s footsteps.
He said: “Maximilian and I are in the same position with a famous father.
“You have to try to focus on yourself and your own development.
“I personally tend to play a little better when I’m under pressure and hopefully he feels the same.
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“But you have to focus on your own development and your own thing.”
Maximilian earned his first international call-up for Sweden’s U18s at the start of the current international break.
The 18-year-old made his national team debut against Japan before playing the United States on October 11.
He signed his first professional contract with Serie A giants AC Milan earlier this year and has scored four goals in seven appearances in Primavera 1.
Ibrahimovic Snr retired from professional football last year following a final three-season spell with the Rossoneri.
He established himself as one of Sweden’s all-time greats on the international stage, netting 62 goals in 122 outings.
Zlatan scored an incredible 573 career goals, including 29 goals in 53 appearances for Manchester United.
Who are these famous footballers?
- I was West Ham captain but I almost went to jail over bankruptcy
- I’m a former Man Utd star and I once stole a girl from Ronaldo
- I’m an ex-Man Utd star – now I own a dog-themed B&B
- I was Thierry Henry’s toughest opponent but quit to become a pastor
- I’m a former Wolves striker but I left football behind to become a vicar
Borg Jr was also asked about his hero Rafael Nadal’s retirement from tennis this week.
On that, he said: “He has always been my biggest idol. He is probably the reason why I started playing tennis in the first place.
“He has a very big place in my heart. Getting to meet him before he decided to quit was huge for me. It was one of my biggest dreams and I will remember that for the rest of my life.”
Borg faced Nadal in July where he narrowly missed in a 6-3, 6-4 scoreline in the first round of the ATP 250 before the Olympics.