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Zlatan Ibrahimovic says return to Galaxy isn’t a sure thing

Galaxy forward Zlatan Ibrahimovic tries to get the ball inside against LAFC defender Walker Zimmerman.
(Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Times)
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Galaxy striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic, frustrated by a seven-game winless streak that has the team’s playoff hopes on life support, won’t commit to returning next season.

“I don’t know. This I have to discuss,” he said after training on Friday. “This is not the moment to talk about that. It’s something I’ll discuss with the club. What they want, what I want. So let’s see.”

The Galaxy, through a spokesperson, declined comment.

It’s possible Ibrahimovic, who is signed through next season, raised the doubts about his future as part of an effort to angle for a raise. He tops the Western Conference with 17 goals and leads the team with eight assists, but his contract will pay him just $1.5 million this year, according to figures released by the MLS players union.

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Three teammates will make more this season.

But it’s also clear Ibrahimovic, who will turn 37 next month and hasn’t played for a losing side since he left Sweden as a teenager, is unhappy with his team’s performance. The Galaxy haven’t won since July and are in danger of missing the playoffs for just the fifth time in franchise history.

The Galaxy (10-11-8), six points out of the conference’s final playoff spot with five games left, face Seattle, the team sitting in that final playoff spot, Sunday at StubHub Center.

“It’s a different challenge,” said Ibrahimovic, who last week became the third active player to score his 500th goal for club and country. “The team I played for [before], I had that feeling like we were unbeatable. Nobody can destroy us. We will destroy everybody.

“And now it’s like you come to a game, it feels like 50-50. Anything can happen.”

Ibrahimovic joined the Galaxy from England’s Manchester United in March, less than a year after undergoing reconstructive surgery on his right knee. In his MLS debut, he came off the bench to score the tying and winning goals against the cross-town rival Los Angeles Football Club

“I have five games,” he said when asked about his future. “I’m happy. Physically I feel strong, I feel good. I’m producing.

“So I just need to win games and then everything is perfect.”

kevin.baxter@latimes.com | Twitter: @kbaxter11

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