Man Utd need Zlatan Ibrahimovic again.. he's the hip veteran who can reconnect Jose Mourinho to the club's stars

Once again on Saturday, the Manchester United manager cut a lonely figure as he watched the Old Trafford clock tick towards more dropped points at home, this time against a struggling Crystal Palace.

In that vast expanse, Mourinho looked caught in a chasm.

He is neither with his players nor connected to the coaching staff rooted to their seats behind him –  increasingly missing his trusted lieutenant Rui Faria.

Forget the fragile defence, the lack of width and the poor quality in the final third, Mourinho needs someone to unite his team.

He needs a guy who demands respect, who can temper the egos and ignite their desire, who can instil belief and extinguish the bad blood.

Mourinho, once again, needs Zlatan Ibrahimovic.


Not for the veteran’s prolific ability – desperately in demand at United as Romelu Lukaku’s goal drought moves towards 12 games – but for his presence in the dressing room and around Carrington.

It wouldn’t be the first time Mourinho made such a move.

In 2014, the season he won a third Premier League title with Chelsea, the Portuguese coach re-signed Didier Drogba, bringing him back to Stamford Bridge on a one-year contract at the age of 36.

Of Drogba, Mourinho referenced his “personality” and “mentality” as one of the key reasons for his return.


To the masses, Ibrahimovic appears to have too much swagger in his stride for a side languishing 14 points behind the Premier League leaders with 13 games already gone.

But that is all a show, for the cameras and fans.

Inside the walls of the training ground, Ibrahimovic sets a mentality that sees his Wikipedia page include 43 entries for individual awards across a 20-year career.

Former United winger Jesper Blomqvist spoke of the example his fellow countryman set during their time together in the Sweden national team.



Blomqvist told SunSport: “He can be arrogant towards the press but when you realise how hard he works and how much he is ready to sacrifice, these two parts are so important in the dressing room.

“The younger players see Zlatan as the showman but also how hard he works and how much he wants to win and how much he sacrifices.

“You can be a good player but not a good leader – and he is that.”

Ibrahimovic’s first season in Los Angeles and the MLS is at an end and, despite his contract for LA Galaxy running until 2019, the temptation to mentor the likes of Paul Pogba again could be irresistible.


Recalling his time at United, the 37-year-old spoke recently of “all these young players who were not so mature” and Pogba’s “need to be guided, small things but in the right way”.

Ibrahimovic is the man who can do that. He is the man who can connect Mourinho with his team again. Hip enough to be in with the kids and wise enough to pass along Mourinho’s message.

Zlatan is the middle man Mourinho and United need just one more time.

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