Manchester United began the season with high expectations after making huge investments to improve their roster in order to become relevant once again after some sub-par seasons that followed Sir Alex Ferguson’s departure from Old Trafford.
However, not even a proven manager as Jose Mourinho and several new faces in the team have been enough to turn their luck around, as they continue to struggle on a weekly basis and the Portuguese boss seems really incapable of finding a way to improve his side’s’ performances.
Mourinho brought Henrikh Mkhitaryan, Eric Bailly, Paul Pogba and Zlatan Ibrahimovic to reinforce every sector of the pitch, but neither of them – except Bailly – has been able to actually make a steady and constant contribution to the Red Devils, as injuries, sub-par performances or the lack of opportunities had made those investments look like a huge waste of money.
One of the most criticised players of the newcomers is the Swedish star Ibrahimovic, who arrived from PSG and was set to be yet another legendary goal scorer for the Red Devils, but hasn’t been able to be the offensive force that everybody was hoping he’d be, and his lack of concentration and mediocre performances keep piling every matchday.
Zlatan started his career at United in the most Zlatanable way possible, by exchanging compliments (most about himself) with former United legend Eric Cantona, claiming that he’ll become the king of Manchester.
During his first preseason appearance, it seemed like that prediction was going to become a reality, as just a couple of minutes after the start of the match, Ibrahimovic netted one outstanding goal that made everybody believe that he was going to take United’s game to another level.
Ibrahimovic kept the momentum going a couple of extra weeks, as he was on a scoring run and was looking better and healthier than ever even despite being 35 years old. However, the honeymoon didn’t last much longer, and his performances started to diminish by the day.
Now, after scoring 8 goals for the Red Devils in all competitions this season, Zlatan seems lost on the pitch, and he’s unable to keep his temper as he goes older, instead of becoming a more mature and reliable guy.
The striker was set to spend a year at Old Trafford at the beginning of his Manchester United tenure, however, his poor performances are making him reconsider that decision, and the reports are now suggesting that he’s willing to spend another season with Manchester United in order to fulfill his promise.
The big question now is, should United actually give him another shot? On first sight, you could say that they definitely should, as Zlatan’s one of the greatest goal scorers in the sport, and every club should be more than thrilled to have him.
However, they could just let him go and save themselves that big weekly wager they spend in a guy that’s not the same player he used to be and use those funds in a younger player that could provide the spark they need.
On top of that, they have their striker for the future on Marcus Rashford, and the youngster has shown that he’s more than ready to take the reins, so if they decide to keep Zlatan, he should take a pay cut and accept a smaller role in the team, something that seems very unlikely considering how much of an egomaniac he is.