Manchester United should pass on Zlatan Ibrahimovic

Manchester United have been linked to Zlatan Ibrahimovic but the Red Devils should pass on the aging striker and focus on their young talent.

Two major events took place in the world of Manchester United this week that could impact the club for a few seasons to come. The first was young striker Marcus Rashford’s sublime goal in a pressure-packed FA Cup tie against West Ham, and the second was Zlatan Ibrahimovic getting knocked out of the Champions League once again.

Ibrahimovic and PSG lost to United’s crosstown rivals Manchester City and were unable to fulfill the club’s goal of becoming one of Europe’s elite clubs. It also meant that one of the world’s great strikers has yet to add a European trophy to his impressive domestic haul from leagues across the continent. His time with PSG appears to be over so he will be looking for his next challenge next season.

Perhaps more important for United is the emergence of Marcus Rashford. Simply put, the kid can play. Many thought that he was a flash in the pan and that his scoring would come to an end once Premier League defenses figured him out. 

Well that was a few months ago and the kid is still scoring goals. This week’s goal against West Ham was special in terms of the context as well as the execution. It was a goal that only the most confident of strikers score and he is on his way to becoming one.

With the rumors of United looking to sign Zlatan, the likes of Marcus Rashford will be pushed down the pecking order at the club in favor of an aging 34-year-old striker. That older striker may still have the ability to score goals consistently, but will be at the club for two years at the most.

The Red Devils could potentially have something very special brewing in their attack. With the likes of Rashford, Anthony Martial, Jesse Lingard, and even Memphis Depay, getting their feet wet in the Premier League and performing well, there is no reason to delay that progress just for sake of Zlatan.

This would be an altogether different conversation it was taking place four or five years ago, but the reality is that there are doubts that Zlatan can still get it done at a high level. He has scored 30 goals in Ligue 1 but he is on a historically dominant team that wrapped up the league title with months left in the season.

Ibrahimovic is a natural goalscorer but he has been aided by the poor level of play in Ligue 1 and being surrounded by players that are light years ahead of their counterparts in France. That success is no fluke but it is hard to imagine it being replicated in England at his age.

At this point, Zlatan can offer United a change of pace at striker compared to Wayne Rooney or Marcus Rashford, but he is not the type of player to act as second fiddle to anyone. It seems inevitable that he will be playing in the Premier League next season but United should focus on the talent they have, or at least younger talent in the market, rather than making a play for the big Swedish striker.

• Published on 04/14/2016 at 1:33 PM EST
• Last updated on 04/14/2016 at 1:33 PM EST