Mourinho on Ibrahimovic: It’s not something urgent
Speaking to the Mirror, Mourinho confirmed conversations with Ibrahimovic on a possible contract but insisted it’s not urgent business for the club.
Mourinho’s Manchester United have an abundance of strikers in Martial, Rashford and new signing Lukaku but appears that the Portuguese manager is still considering adding to his ranks with Ibrahimovic likely to return to Old Trafford despite injury concerns.
“You know he’s injured, he needs time to recover, he’s not ready to play. It’s not something urgent, that we are desperate to have it done or not done, I just think that he was very clear by showing what he did last year was not enough for him.” said Jose.
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The tactician continued, “He thinks he can do more and wants more at the highest level, so we’re having conversations and we’re discussing the possibility of him to stay with us for the second part of the season.”.
With Champions League football back at Old Trafford this season it appears that Mourinho is determined to use any possible artillery to achieve his and the club’s goals. After Ibrahimovic’s season ending injury, the Manchester United boss had to rely on youngster Rashford to produce the goods.
It would be unfair to the exciting Englishman to say he didn’t lead the line well enough, with many fans claiming he is more than ready to become the club’s main goalscorer and that the iconic Swede’s services were no longer required.
In fact, some even claimed that if a contract was offered to Ibrahimovic, it would prove detrimental to Marcus, who would surely see his game time decrease once more. However, facts would prove otherwise as Rashford made countless appearances for the Red Devils despite Ibrahimovic playing consistently.
Either way, Mourinho felt the need to invest in the striker position, which is fair enough considering the departures of Zlatan and Rooney, and Lukaku was brought in. The competition between Romelu and Rashford was seen as a good thing, although Jose did say the pair can play together.
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Whether that means as a striker pairing or not is yet to be seen but should Ibrahimovic return to Manchester United, it would make for some interesting competition. Is the former PSG man ready to play second fiddle? Can he still contribute to the team after his serious injury? And finally, will he do more harm than good?