Zlatan Ibrahimovic relief over Man Utd win over Spurs
Monday 12 December 2016 11:07, UK
Striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic has expressed his delight at Manchester United being able to finally hold on to a lead and beat Tottenham.
It was a Super Sunday for Jose Mourinho's stuttering side who ended a run of three successive Premier League draws with Henrikh Mkhitaryan's first-half strike securing their first league win at Old Trafford since September.
The victory came a week after United dropped two points by conceding a late penalty in a 1-1 draw at Everton.
Beating fifth-placed Spurs has put United within six points of fourth-placed Manchester City and Ibrahimovic told the club's website: "It was very important because in the latest games we haven't got the outcome we wanted, especially after good performances.
"I think the team has been playing good and doing good. But, when you do good and don't get the win, it seems like you did good for nothing.
"We have closed the gap a little bit so, if we can play like we did today, where we have control over the game, we play stable, a good performance and get the win - it's the perfect combination!
"We were confident, with good spirit, we believe in what we are doing and the guys have done a fantastic job, working very hard and keeping their heads up."
After Mkhitaryan's stunning goal to break the deadlock, United were unable to score a second to settle the nerves. They came closest when Paul Pogba's 25-yard free-kick smashed against the woodwork.
Ibrahimovic joked: "I said to Paul: 'You'd better shoot in the goal because it's the last free-kick I will give you!'
"If it would go in, it gives you more space, not to calm down, but you feel more confident when you are 2-0 up because you never know after the last games where we were conceding goals in the end.
"It would be sad if we conceded one because like the other games because we have been doing good. We did good though and we deserved the win."
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