Zlatan Ibrahimovic continues to carry the torch for a Manchester United side who are running into form at just the right time. With another two goals, the Swede took his tally for the season to 16 – and 10 in his last nine games – to complete a highly satisfactory week for José Mourinho and his players.
United have won three times in the space of seven days – their first such run in the Premier League since August – and there are clear signs that the juggernaut is starting to pick up a little speed. Ibrahimovic is certainly in the groove, playing like a man at the peak of his powers rather than a 35-year-old in the twilight of his career.
His early header set United on their way before anyone had a chance to break sweat and the match was in effect over as a contest when Ibrahimovic added a second early in the second half. West Bromwich Albion’s self-belief was broken and United were able to cruise towards a routine victory that lifts them to within three points of fourth-placed Manchester City, albeit having played a game more.
With home fixtures to come against Sunderland and Middlesbrough, the league table could make for even better reading for United by the time the year comes to a close. They are not playing vintage attacking football by any stretch, yet United are finding a way to win matches and producing flashes of brilliance, with the lovely opening goal against Albion a case in point.
By the end it felt like Christmas had come early for the travelling supporters as Rooney, Paul Pogba and Ander Herrera led a group of United players over towards them to throw their shirts into the crowd. “I told them to do that,” Mourinho said. “It’s Christmas time. A shirt for a fan, coming direct from the game with sweat, means a lot. For the players, it’s just one more shirt. But I think for the fans it means a lot.”
