I Sacrificed A Lot To Return Early – Zlatan Ibrahimovic

Zlatan Ibrahimovic has once again likened himself to a lion after returning from a knee injury in the 4-1 win over Newcastle at Old Trafford.

After coming on as a second-half substitute in United’s win on Saturday, Ibrahimovic was asked if he ever doubted he would return, and he said: “No, because lions, they don’t recover like humans.”

The Swede added: “It’s special. Different day, same quality. I am not worried. I am not worried at all because I know what I do. I train hard. I sacrificed a lot.

“It is not easy, especially in my case. It was not like I went on vacation. I had a different summer because I was without a contract. As soon as I signed I wanted to focus on the team. I wanted to give something to help the team as best as possible.

“It’s about coming back and making a statement. I’m just thankful I can play football again.”

Pogba said it was more important that United won than he scored on his own comeback from two months out.

“We won, we have the three points and that is most important thing,” he said. “Zlatan Ibrahimovic, me and Marcos Rojo came back from injury so we are happy.

“I see the same team and feel the same atmosphere. The season is very long, it is not about now, it is about the end. We just forget the criticism.

“It hurts when you are not playing, you want to help the team, but you just have to do your recovery.”