Former AC Milan coach Fabio Capello has questioned the new role for Zlatan Ibrahimovic.

The former striker has been named 'Operating Partner' and advisor to Milan by owners RedBird Capital.

“Can he go to Milanello? Can he talk to the players? What can he do? Ibra is a smart man, and he can have a key role in certain situations, but when he returned to Milan as a player, he was in the dressing room, and he could have an impact from there," Capello queried.

“With this statement, we don't understand if he can enter the dressing room, if he can help (Stefano) Pioli or if this move of integrating Ibra in Milan can be negative for Pioli who could lose his leadership. I think this is the most important point.

“The other side of the coin is that Ibra could boost the players' motivation, making them understand that they are all under exam, so they have more strength to pursue important results, starting from the Newcastle game."

Capello continued: “This is the problem; this means they lacked somebody to replace (Paolo) Maldini and Ricky Massara. I mean, is this why the club have brought Ibrahimovic back? This is my question.

“I repeat, Ibra can cover this role because he is a smart guy who wants to prove his abilities off the pitch, so he could be a wonderful solution for Milan, but he also needs experience, and this is the difference right now. He will need to get in slowly and be supported by the club."

He also told Sky Italia: “Will Ibra go with the team to Newcastle straight away? If he does, it means there is no longer big trust in Pioli alone.

“We have to see what Ibrahimovic will do these days. If this is a role only for the future, if it's about January signings, or if his role will be different. We will understand this in four days between the next two games."