´Ibrahimovic is just a name´ – Maximilian follows in Zlatan´s footsteps with Ajax move

Maximilian Ibrahimovic declared he is his own player after following in his father’s footsteps by joining Ajax on a loan-to-buy deal from AC Milan.

Zlatan Ibrahimovic joined the Eredivisie giants from his hometown club Malmo in 2001 and scored 48 goals in 110 games across four seasons in Amsterdam, before his breakout move to Juventus in 2004.

And his son will now get the opportunity to write his own name into Ajax’s storied history after completing his move to the Johan Cruyff Arena.

Maximilian Ibrahimovic scored five goals in Serie D, Italy’s fourth tier, while playing for Milan’s Futuro team, then was an unused substitute for their Supercoppa Italiana semi-final defeat to Milan last month.

“It’s nice that my father also played for Ajax. I am happy that I get the opportunity to continue developing myself here as well,” the 19-year-old forward told Ajax’s website.

”I am here to do my own thing. And I am really looking forward to that. Ibrahimovic is just a name. I am Maximilian. We are both very different.

”I love the Ajax philosophy, the attacking way of playing. I think that suits me very well. I am very fast, and I like to dribble, and I love attacking. This step is a great challenge.

“I will work extremely hard every day, then we will see what happens. I want to be a good player for Ajax. I think I can entertain the fans well. I think they will enjoy seeing me.”

Like father, like son pic.twitter.com/4cU8PKCyOW

— AFC Ajax (@AFCAjax) January 14, 2026

Maximilian Ibrahimovic will take the number 27 and will spend time with both the under-23 and senior teams over the next half-season, director of football Marijn Beuker revealed.

Zlatan Ibrahimovic netted 35 times in 74 Eredivisie appearances for the club, averaging a goal every 135.7 minutes in the competition.

That is a better rate than the likes of Dennis Bergkamp (136.2) or Sjaak Swart (222.5), despite the latter being second only to Johan Cruyff in the club’s all-time Eredivisie scoring charts.