The current animosity between Allegri and Ibrahimovic mirrors a notorious 2012 clash in the Emirates Stadium locker room following Milan’s Champions League round of 16 second leg against Arsenal. Curiously, that confrontation also stemmed from a goalkeeping issue, illustrating a relationship that has been fraught with tension since Ibrahimovic’s playing days.
Recounting the incident, the Swedish legend has noted: “We’d lost 3-0 to Arsenal, and Allegri was all happy. It’s true that we’d advanced, but it was nothing to laugh about, and I pointed it out to him. Allegri replied: ‘You, Ibra, think about yourself, you screwed up…’ I told him he’d screwed up… he was scared, so he’d brought two goalkeepers to the bench.”