Manchester United 3 Saint-Etienne 0: Zlatan Ibrahimovic’s hat-trick saved his team-mates from a furious Jose Mourinho blast
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ZLATAN IBRAHIMOVIC struck three times to keep Manchester United on course for a cup treble.
But his 'Zlat-trick' almost certainly saved his Old Trafford team-mates from a post-match dressing down by boss Jose Mourinho.
The Special One made it clear he was far from happy with his team's first-half performance against St Etienne.
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And he knew before the game his players were not focused on the job at hand from the atmosphere in the dressing room.
He said: "That first half was really bad and it was due to a lack of concentration.
"I had a feeling in dressing room, it was too noisy, too funny, too relaxed. My assistants had a feeling in the warm up with some of the guys not really focused.
"We started the game making dangerous mistakes in the back. Very slow movement in attack. We were quite lucky to be 1-0 at half time."
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United were much better after the game as Ibrahimovic added two more to the team he loves scoring against the most.
He now has 17 in 14 games against the French club and it will surely be enough to see United through.
Mourinho said: "In the second half, the story was completely different. The attitude and intensity changed."
Ibrahimovic, who now has 23 goals for the season, is hungry for trophies as United continue to push on four fronts.
He said: "That's the objective. If you look at the Premier League only one will become a champion.
"The rest will not maybe win a trophy. We are still in all four and the fifth we won - the Community shield.
"That's what it's about. If we don't win the Premier League we can get some other trophies - that's what we want."
Ibra believes United are going into a key part of the season in good shape.
He added: "In a short time everything can change so it's important to keep on, get the wins we need and keep the confidence.
“We are happy at the moment. We are working hard but we can do more.
"This is the decisive moment for the season. The second half of the season is the one that decides what will happen."