Manchester United’s Pogba not trying to live up to fee anymore – Ibrahimovic

Zlatan Ibrahimovic believes his Manchester United teammate Paul Pogba has settled into life at Old Trafford and is no longer playing like he has something to prove.
Pogba, 23, arrived at United from Juventus for a world-record £89.3 million fee over the summer, while Ibrahimovic moved to Manchester from Paris Saint-Germain on a free ahead of the 2016-17 campaign.
The two superstars are clicking for Jose Mourinho right now — with United having gone unbeaten in their last 11 matches in all competitions — but the two endured a turbulent start to life in the Premier League after their high-profile summer moves.
And Pogba came in for extra scrutiny during those early days for not living up to the huge fee paid to bring him to Old Trafford.
Ibrahimovic told ESPN: “I think when Paul came, in his first period in United, let’s say the first month, I think he wanted to demonstrate too much that he was worth the transfer that happened instead of playing his game like he knows how to play.
“When that started to cool down, he started to play like he knows how to play, and he makes it more easier for himself, doesn’t need to demonstrate because everyone knows who Paul is, what he has been doing at Juventus for the past three to four years, what he’s able to do, and now he’s playing more like Pogba.
“He has nothing to demonstrate, he has nothing to show, he just needs to enjoy the game and help the team like he’s doing now. So now he’s playing like a mature player and you see the results.”
Ibrahimovic’s arrival at Manchester United coincided with Mourinho’s appointment as the club’s manager, marking the second time the Sweden international has played for the Portuguese boss following their time together at Inter Milan.
Pep Guardiola, who managed Ibrahimovic at Barcelona, is also in the Premier League now with Manchester City. Asked of the similarities and differences between the two title winning bosses, he said: “I think they are two fantastic coaches who have been winning everything and I think the personalities of the two which is known is different. One is direct, one is [not] direct and I had them both so I know what I’m talking about.
“But I’m not here to waste time on the one I’m not working with, instead I can talk with the one I’m working with. I’m happy I had both, so that’s the way it is.”
The 35-year-old is not confining his role with the Red Devils just to scoring goals, either, saying he is imparting the experience, skills and knowledge from his illustrious career to his teammates on the training ground, too.
Speaking of Henrikh Mkhitaryan’s heel-flicked, wonder-goal against Sunderland on Boxing Day, Ibra said: “You know when you have a good student, you always learn, that’s exactly what I have in Mickey. He has been a good example for learning from Ibra-cadabra, so I’m happy for him.”