Manchester United manager Jose Mourinho has given a boost to Zlatan Ibrahimovic’s ambitions of becoming a ‘God of Manchester’ by describing him as not only a quality player but also as someone who leaves an impression of a good guy.
Mourinho believes Ibrahimovic’s impression will impact the fledgling Man United players immensely, particularly pointing out the example of Marcus Rashford who has vowed to continue his break-through season following his England debut.
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Jose Mourinho has reunited with Zlatan Ibrahimovic in the Premier League, years after working with him at Inter Milan. The Red Devils manager believes there couldn’t have been a better addition to the team’s striker requirements as the club completed a major overhaul of their squad. Having known him since his early days, Mourinho disclosed that his present crop of players are developing a liking to Zlatan’s personal attributes, which adds value to the team and effectively helps them in their growth as well.
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"I think probably the other players are surprised," said Mourinho, who was speaking exclusively to BT Sport. "Not me because I know him, but probably the other players are surprised.
"Not with his quality, because the quality everybody knows. Probably a bit with his commitment and motivation because we are speaking about a 34-year-old man that won so much in his career, but probably even more surprised with the person.
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He further continued by supporting his claims about Ibrahimovic’s benevolent nature with an anecdote and, refuting contrary belief of the striker being overly possessed with his ego.
"He is a good guy. What he looks like, it is not what he is. The words he says, he says for fun. He is the guy capable to go to the kitman and say 'please give a towel to God' and then laugh, laugh, laugh, laugh and laugh.
"The image he sells is not him, he is a good guy."
Mourinho added on the importance of Ibrahimovic’s influence which makes his job seemingly easier in developing youth, a philosophical aspect that the club has always focused on.
"He [Ibrahimovic] is brilliant with the young boys. I think, for Rashford, this is a gift," Mourinho explained.
"People can say he is not going to play every game from the start, like in the second part of last season, but this is a gift for the kid, too.
"We are so happy to have him. We couldn't find a better striker than him to give us the stability we need."
