The statue – a half-meter, gold-colored plaster cast of what was supposed to resemble Zlatan's sawn-off nose – was placed in the area where the original Zlatan statue stood when it was inaugurated in 2019.
Shortly after the inauguration, it became public knowledge that former Malmö player Ibrahimovic had become a co-owner of the Allsvenskan rival Hammarby. After that, the statue was vandalized on several occasions, including having its nose sawed off.
The nose has been missing since then, but on Sunday a copy of the nose was found outside the stadium in Malmö. However, street workers from the municipality were on site early to remove the statue.
"Everything that could be a little offensive and provocative will be removed. We know what reactions the Zlatan statue aroused," one of the street workers told Sydsvenskan .
In an email to the newspaper, the alleged creators of the statue write:
"We think this is sad. I had hoped that more people could see the work."
Malmö FF will host Gais in the final round of the Allsvenskan on Sunday afternoon.
