The footballing gods are fickle. One month ago, a 1-0 victory over Crystal Palace sent Newcastle United to the lofty heights of sixth in the Premier League table, in front of both Arsenal and Liverpool. Now, after being held scoreless for 180 minutes in defeats to Burnley and Bournemouth and falling to 11th, the Toon travel to Old Trafford to play a Manchester United side welcoming back both Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Paul Pogba to the side.
Red Devils manager Jose Mourinho has quickly diffused the running subplot concerning the rivalry between himself and Magpies boss Rafa Benitez by claiming that he has “immense respect for him” and is “more than happy to see him and salute him” come tomorrow’s fixture, turning the focus solely on the return of two giants of the game.
Ibrahimovic, of course, hasn’t played since a serious knee injury prematurely ended his 2016-17 season, during which he scored 28 goals in 46 appearances for the club. The big Swede agreed to a one-year contract extension back in August, and he’s been training with the first team since mid-October.
“Last season we played with Zlatan every minute,” said Mourinho. “We have learned how to play without him. Of course we welcome him back. He is an incredible personality.”
Mourinho even hinted at the possibility of Ibrahimovic pairing with the club’s second-most expensive signing of all-time, Romelu Lukaku.
“Good players can play together,” he said. “With good players, it is easy to play together. We can’t expect [Ibrahimovic] to play full 90 minutes or consecutive matches. He needs time to be back to his level — fitness and sharpness is everything.”
While the striker’s return will be the feel-good story of the weekend, Pogba’s recovery after a lengthy spell on the sidelines with a hamstring complaint is of even greater importance for the Red Devils.
Unbelievable pass from @paulpogba Makes it look effortless
@ManUtd pic.twitter.com/A5o5WkWryS— The F2 (@TheF2) August 4, 2017
Since Pogba’s injury, Man United has slipped in defeats to Huddersfield and Chelsea while being held against Liverpool. In those three matches, United scored only one goal while getting lambasted for their reactive approach.
For Mourinho, there was a “Manchester United before and after” the French midfielder’s injury. “He has qualities that influence our approach in matches,” Mourinho added.
58% - Manchester United's Premier League win percentage with Paul Pogba starting since he joined the club, compared to 38% without him. Hub.
— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) November 17, 2017
This is not great news for Newcastle United. However, the team's problem hasn't been an inability to deal with the top division’s attacking talents so much as their own inability to do anything whatsoever getting forward.
After 11 matches, center back Jamaal Lascelles remains tied as the club's leading scorer with two goals. The preferred attacking pairing of Joselu and Ayoze Perez has been poor, Christian Atsu and Matt Ritchie have struggled to make meaningful contributions on the wings and Benitez isn’t happy with the attacking depth provided by the likes of Dwight Gayle and Aleksandar Mitrovic.
Should a worst case scenario transpire this weekend, Newcastle could find themselves as low as 15th in the table, a damning reminder of how fickle the footballing gods truly are.
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