Zlatan fell from hero to human at United
WHEN the end finally came, it was understated by any terms – let alone Zlatan Ibrahimovic’s.
The Swede didn’t even bother to commission a new graphic for his social media channels.
Rather it was a rehash of the ‘battle between good and evil’ mock up that announced his new contract in August.
It was an intriguing choice as that was the moment when his United legacy began to be tarnished.
If that sounds harsh, it is only fitting, given the standards by which Ibrahimovic measures himself.
When you describe yourself as ‘God’ – only perfection will do.
And for eight glorious months Ibrahimovic came close to convincing the world that he was superhuman.
At the age of 35 he turned the Premier League into his personal play thing – revelling in confounding his critics and terrorising defences.
The ultimate big game player – he came as close as anyone to making United feel like ‘United’ again post-Sir Alex Ferguson.
A free transfer in the twilight of his career was the best piece of business three different managers have pulled off since Ferguson retired.
That is both a damning indictment of the club’s recruitment policy over the last five years – and a resounding endorsement of Ibrahimovic’s brilliance. But the great showman failed to adhere to the golden rule – always leave them wanting more.
As painful as it was to see his debut season cut short by knee ligament damage in April – scoring 28 goals in 46 games – it would only have added to his legend.
Instead what followed was the longest of goodbyes, the indulgence of an ego that has been unable to contribute to a critical campaign for Jose Mourinho.
In the absence of Ibrahimovic, United have been forced to run Romelu Lukaku into the ground.
The Belgian has undoubtedly been one of Mourinho’s star performers – but those barren months of October and November felt like an ideal opportunity to rest his legs.
How would United’s season have looked if Ibrahimovic had managed to chip in as autumn turned to winter?
It is, of course, not his fault that he suffered a career-threatening injury – and his recovery ahead of schedule was remarkable. But the wisdom of offering him a new deal months before he even returned to the pitch was flawed.
From United’s point of view, they feared they’d lose a player who’d made such an impact in his first season.
Ibrahimovic was already talking to other clubs and it was deemed a gamble worth taking.
The commercial element cannot be ignored either – particularly as far as Ed Woodward was concerned. But the punt didn’t pay off.
Mourinho’s refusal to consider Marcus Rashford or Anthony Martial as central strikers meant he was left without any cover for Lukaku and United suffered as a result.
It would be too simple to suggest their title challenge collapsed as a result - but there is a clear correlation between Lukaku’s drought and City’s supremacy.
By the time Lukaku stopped scoring, the Manchester rivals were level-pegging at the top of the Premier League with 19 points from a possible 21.
By the time he started his latest run in January, Pep Guardiola’s side were 12 points clear.
And by the time Ibrahimovic’s departure was confirmed on Thursday afternoon, at best United fans had given up hope of him ever returning – at worst they’d forgotten he was still there at all.
That will be the most painful aspect for a man who epitomises the ‘Hated, adored, never ignored’ mantra.
Ultimately, he proved he was human after all.