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Jamie Carragher panned Zlatan Ibrahimovic’s first-half performance during Wednesday night’s Manchester derby as one of the worst of his career.
The Manchester United striker, who has scored just once in his last nine games, went on to set up Juan Mata’s decisive strike in a 1-0 EFL Cup fourth round win over Manchester City .
Despite hitting four goals in his first three games for the club earlier this season, Ibrahimovic’s form has drastically tailed off, leading to some questioning his place in Jose Mourinho’s side.
Ibrahimovic cut a frustrated figure during the first half at Old Trafford on Wednesday and Carragher, who was analysing the match for Sky Sports, ranked it as one of his worst displays.
“I don’t think Zlatan Ibrahimovic has probably had a worse 45 minutes than that in his career,” the former Liverpool defender said at half-time.
“He was getting wound up by [City]. Jose Mourinho has been getting a lot of stick in the last few weeks, the manager always does, but we’re talking about a fella last season who got 50 goals.”
Manchester United vs Manchester City player ratingsShow all 22 1 /22Manchester United vs Manchester City player ratings Manchester United vs Manchester City player ratings David De Gea - 7 out of 10 Facing just one shot on target, the Spaniard will have been expecting a more taxing afternoon but nonetheless marshalled his backline well at set-pieces.
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Manchester United vs Manchester City player ratings Antonio Valencia - 5 out of 10 Was exposed all too often by City’s faster and more industrious talents before becoming a liability when the anarchic Kevin De Bruyne switched sides.
2015 Manchester United FC
Manchester United vs Manchester City player ratings Phil Jones - 7 out of 10 Reduced Wilfried Bony to a mere irritant rather than a credible threat, forcing the Ivorian striker out wide to search for scraps which seldom came his way.
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Manchester United vs Manchester City player ratings Chris Smalling - 7 out of 10 Described by his captain as ‘one of the best three centre-halves in the world,’ the England man continued his impressive start to the season with another assured outing.
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Manchester United vs Manchester City player ratings Marcos Rojo - 8 out of 10 Delivered a minor masterclass in the art of man marking to nullify Kevin De Bruyne’s threat as the Belgian endured a frustrating afternoon.
2015 Manchester United FC
Manchester United vs Manchester City player ratings Bastian Schweinsteiger - 7 out of 10 A calming presence amid a hectic midfield battle, the experienced German made amends for his lack of pace with pin-point accuracy on his distribution.
2015 Manchester United FC
Manchester United vs Manchester City player ratings Morgan Schneiderlin - 7 out of 10 Shadowing the imperious Bastian Schweinsteiger in the centre, the former Southampton man ghosted into pockets of space carelessly afforded to him by his City counterparts.
2015 Manchester United FC
Manchester United vs Manchester City player ratings Juan Mata - 7 out of 10 Surrendered possession cheaply in the opening period but become more of a menace after the restart, in a more advanced role just behind Wayne Rooney.
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Manchester United vs Manchester City player ratings Ander Herrera - 7 out of 10 Perhaps unfortunate not to be awarded a penalty after a tangle of legs with Raheem Sterling, the little Spaniard has a knack of finding himself behind enemy lines.
2015 Manchester United FC
Manchester United vs Manchester City player ratings Anthony Martial - 6 out of 10 Had little room to manoeuvre on the left wing, a position Louis van Gaal has insisted upon lately, and inevitably cut an isolated and frustrated figure.
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Manchester United vs Manchester City player ratings Wayne Rooney - 7 out of 10 After turning 30 on Saturday, the United skipper led from the front. Delivering a display epitomising his responsibilities, his most memorable contributions came in front of his own goal.
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Manchester United vs Manchester City player ratings Joe Hart - 7 out of 10 Forced into making a decent save late on to deny Chris Smalling from point blank range, the England goalkeeper remained alert despite a largely uneventful shift.
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Manchester United vs Manchester City player ratings Bacary Sagna - 7 out of 10 Refused to gallop down the line as often as City supporters would have liked, preferring to quell the dangers of Anthony Martial - to great effect.
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Manchester United vs Manchester City player ratings Vincent Kompany - 7 out of 10 Booked in the first half for a succession of clumsy challenges, the Belgian was forced to walk on eggshells in the second period.
Manchester United vs Manchester City player ratings Nicolas Otamendi - 7 out of 10 Rarely giving Wayne Rooney a moment of peace, the indomitable Argentinian defender is settling into his new role at City with the authority it demands.
Manchester United vs Manchester City player ratings Aleksandar Kolarov - 7 out of 10 Dealt with the unpredictable nature of Juan Mata with swagger before enjoying a relatively uneventful final 23 minutes up against Jesse Lingard.
2015 Manchester United FC
Manchester United vs Manchester City player ratings Fernando - 7 out of 10 An assured, if unremarkable, outing from the Brazilian meant it would have taken a Herculean effort by the United attackers to break the deadlock.
Manchester United vs Manchester City player ratings Fernandinho - 6 out of 10 Impotent in front of goal and often absent at the back, this was an exasperating afternoon for the usually so comfortable midfield general.
2015 Manchester United FC
Manchester United vs Manchester City player ratings Kevin De Bruyne - 6 out of 10 A marked man throughout, the Belgian was forced into rushing any opportunity which came his way. Enjoyed more success up against Antonio Valencia on the left.
Manchester United vs Manchester City player ratings Yaya Toure - 6 out of 10 Sarcastic jeers greeted the Ivorian midfielder’s 77th minute substitution after he spent the afternoon trying and failing to singlehandedly bamboozle his way through United’s defence.
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Manchester United vs Manchester City player ratings Raheem Sterling - 6 out of 10 Had the opportunity to wreak havoc down the right, up against a cumbersome Antonio Valencia, but his turn of pace proved more effective when tracking back.
Manchester United vs Manchester City player ratings Wilfried Bony - 5 out of 10 Increasingly isolated in attack, this was an outing which will do little to silence the unhelpful – and unflattering - comparisons to injured Sergio Aguero.
2015 Manchester United FC
Carragher went on to also criticise Paul Pogba’s first-half performance, labelling both him and Ibrahimovic as “non-existent”.
“Pogba the most expensive player in the world," he said. "If you’ve cost that much money you’ve got to decide big game and do things in the big games.
“It’s non-existent and they’re not playing Man City at home… they’re playing Man City reserves. Let’s be honest about it.
“The game’s there for Manchester United to win and those two players have been non-existent in these last few weeks and they’ve got to produce a far lot more.”
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