Zlatan Knew The Goals Would Come

Manchester United striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic believes “the future is bright” for the Reds after his brace helped United return to winning ways with a 3-1 away win over Swansea City.

The 35-year-old netted twice to take his United tally to eight goals, scoring his 400th career goal and the Premier League’s 25,000th goal in the process.

Paul Pogba had previously opened the scoring with a sweetly-struck volley before Swede Ibrahimovic scored his first goal since September with a long-range strike.

"You know what?" he told MUTV. "After 15 years on a professional level, I've scored a lot of goals and I'll keep scoring. I know how it works. As long as you still create your chances, you are still in the zone, the goals will come so I’m not worried about that.

"The most important thing is that the team wins, the team gives the right confidence, and the collective works, then the individual comes because that is what comes at the end.

"I want to score that is no secret, I want to score because that is how I help. I want to create chances for my team-mates, I want to help them score. So as long as I do that, I’m not worried. Yes, it has gone a couple of games where I haven’t scored but the chances will come. I’ve been a bit unlucky in recent games but it’s just working hard and it comes."

The record of 400 club goals must be a source of great pride to the Swede, but he is not dwelling on achieving the landmark figure.

"It’s a nice record but it’s not something I think about now," he said. "I just stay focused and try to score as much as possible. As long as I’m playing, I keep working hard. I have as many goals that some players don’t have games, so I’m happy."

The Reds now prepare to face Arsenal at Old Trafford after the international break but the talismanic striker will miss out through suspension after receiving his fifth booking of the season.

The win lifts United to sixth, six points off the Gunners in fourth place, and Ibrahimovic believes, if injuries can be avoided during the international break, the club can start to put a winning run together.

"Hopefully, everybody comes back fresh and without injuries from their national teams," he added. "I know how it is from when I was there [with Sweden].

"Now I get my rest and hopefully everyone comes back with a 100 per cent focus. If we can win two, three, four games in a row, the confidence naturally comes with it. We had an unlucky couple of games where we should have won and a couple of games we lost bad but we are training hard and the objectives are the same."