Hull City vs Manchester United: Jose Mourinho plans to reward Zlatan Ibrahimovic with ‘a la carte’ holiday

Hull City 0 Manchester United 1: Ibrahimovic, who will celebrate his 35th birthday in October, has made an instant impact in English football

Mark Ogden
KCOM Stadium
Sunday 28 August 2016 16:39 BST
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Zlatan Ibrahimovic has been ever present for United this term
Zlatan Ibrahimovic has been ever present for United this term

Jose Mourinho has promised to hand Zlatan Ibrahimovic special treatment ahead of Manchester United’s derby date with Manchester City by giving the Swedish forward an ‘a la carte’ holiday during the international break.

Ibrahimovic, who will celebrate his 35th birthday in October, has made an instant impact in English football by scoring three goals in three Premier League appearances after marking his competitive debut with the winning goal in the 2-1 Community Shield victory against Leicester City earlier this month.

But with the free transfer from Paris Saint-Germain having announced his international retirement following Sweden’s Euro 2016 campaign, Mourinho admits he will give Ibrahimovic an extended break this week to ensure he is fully rested by the time Pep Guardiola’s team arrive at Old Trafford on September 10.

“If you’re 34 years of age, you need to rest,” Mourinho said. “You can’t play 70 matches.

“The other guys who aren’t selected for their national teams, I give them two days off, but for Zlatan, I give holidays a la carte.

“It depends on the situation. He’s playing every match, every minute.

“Four matches, he played 360 minutes. So it’s four days off for the big guy.”

Mourinho, meanwhile, fears an extended lay-off for Belgian midfielder Marouane Fellaini after revealing that he suffered a back injury during Saturday’s 1-0 win against Hull City.

"He has an injury in his back,” Mourinho said. “It's not good.”

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