Building a Manchester United XI to Get the Best out of Zlatan Ibrahimovic

On Thursday Zlatan Ibrahimovic revealed to an expectant world that his next destination would indeed be Manchester United. This came as no great surprise, with journalists like Tancredi Palmeri having tweeted before Euro 2016 began that Old Trafford was set to be the Sweden international's destination.

So now the deed appears to be done, and manager Jose Mourinho will need to execute a plan to get the best out of Ibrahimovic's many talents.

In order to do so, he needs to build an XI who can do Zlatan's running for him, opening up the space the striker needs to be at his brilliant best. He needs to build an XI who will create chances and occupy the attention of defenders, so that the former Barcelona man is not marked out of games.

He needs to build an XI with room for a luxury presence, a player with sublime gifts but with limitations that have come about with age. An XI who can help the 34-year-old Ibrahimovic adapt to the most competitive league he has played in arguably since he left Barcelona in 2010, certainly since he left Italy in 2012.

So who should that XI comprise? Let's take a look, building a side from players currently at the club and adding a realistic transfer target or two. Set up in Mourinho's often-preferred 4-2-3-1, this XI should work.

Goalkeeper

Assuming Real Madrid do not come back to correct the mistake they made last summer, then David De Gea, that most remarkable of goalkeepers, will obviously have this spot locked up.

Left-back

Great news for Ibrahimovic here. Luke Shaw fits the perfect profile for a left-back in a Mourinho team who can get the best out of the new United man. Assuming he comes back in similar shape to that which he was in before he had his leg broken, Shaw will provide tireless energy, genuine speed and excellent delivery from the left flank.

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Shaw's speed and stamina will allow him to fully support Anthony Martial on United's left and will help provide a potentially devastating attacking fulcrum on that side of the pitch.

Right-back

Here, United run into a slight issue. Antonio Valencia and Matteo Darmian are the presumptive first-choice options, though Mourinho might be more prepared to gamble on Guillermo Varela's attacking talents than Louis van Gaal was.

While Mourinho obviously has plenty of defensive instincts as a coach, full-backs are an area where he often leans towards the attacking. Varela might not offer the defensive nous of Darmian or the sheer power of Valencia, but he does offer a degree of guile in the final third the other two lack. That could help unlock Ibrahimovic's abilities.

The other key option is to give more chances to Timothy Fosu-Mensah in this role, though it is easy to imagine his future on the pitch lying in more central areas given how influential it appears he could become.

Expect Mourinho to give his current options a chance for now, but, unless Varela excels, at some point this looks likely to be a position that needs addressing in the transfer market.

Centre-back

Unlike under Van Gaal, the centre-backs are unlikely to play a particularly key role as playmakers in Mourinho's system. Ibrahimovic needs them to be assured in their defensive role so that the full-backs can commit to their attacking duties, safe in the knowledge that the centre-backs can handle one-on-one defending.

This was the Sir Alex Ferguson template—Rio Ferdinand and Nemanja Vidic offered full-backs free rein—and there will likely need to be some investment in this spot. Chris Smalling and a new signing, with Eric Bailly for back-up, seems the likely make-up of the heart of defence.

Central midfield

There are two things the midfield need to take care of in order to provide Ibrahimovic with a platform. The first is obvious—he needs attacking support, both in terms of direct supply, and people willing to break ahead of him when he is on the ball in deeper areas.

After all, given his lack of speed, he is more prone to provide a killer through ball to a breaking runner than he is to burst through defenders to latch onto one.

The next is that he needs United's centre-backs to be adequately screened, in order that they can in turn allow full-backs licence to attack. Remarkably, in spite of the significant investment the Red Devils have made in this area since Sir Alex retired, central midfield remains a key problem position. There are options, but none of them are certain.

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In theory Morgan Schneiderlin and Ander Herrera could be well equipped to serve that dual function, but they have not proved it on a regular enough basis yet. Much of that could perhaps be down to Van Gaal's treatment of those players, but that is speculative for now.

Schneiderlin should be able to add some defensive bite to the partnership, and Herrera is a willing runner ahead of the ball, with plenty of quality in the final third. Whether they can sustain a high enough level of quality, though, remains unclear.

Mourinho was also in situ by the time Michael Carrick was given a contract extension, so clearly he forms an at least occasional part of the plan. Bastian Schweinsteiger could yet become an important part of the team, depending on fitness.

Then, of course, there is the Wayne Rooney issue, though in truth there is little to suggest he should be included in any current "Best XI" at United. He may well be crowbarred into midfield, but his performances there will not warrant continued selection.

More than any other spot, United's midfield is the great unknown here.

Centre Attacking Midfield

Juan Mata is probably the only out-and-out No. 10 currently on United's books, but the problem with selecting him to play in behind Ibrahimovic is the obvious lack of speed that would give United through the middle. This is particularly problematic if, say, Schweinsteiger, Rooney or Carrick are involved in deeper-lying midfield.

If the deeper midfield berth is occupied by quicker players, then Mata becomes a more feasible option, though his partnership with the front man would still lack speed.

Alternatives are reportedly being pursued in the transfer market, with the transfer of Henrikh Mkhitaryan drawing closer. Sky Deutschland spotted that United's club shop were advertising shirts with the Armenian's name on the back (h/t the Independent). 

Mkhitaryan "possesses an incredible combination of speed and technique," according to Jurgen Klopp, his former manager at Borussia Dortmund and the current Liverpool manager, per the Manchester Evening News. That would complement Zlatan's presence well.

Left Attacking Midfield

Martial has this spot locked down, with the possibility that Memphis Depay could improve on his first season at United to provide back-up. Martial's remarkable ability on the ball, his excellent decision-making and his electric pace combine to form a left-sided attacker who will make life much easier for Ibrahimovic.

He will be able to get onto the end of passes and will both provide defenders with something other than Zlatan to think about and benefit from those defenders occupied by dealing with Ibrahimovic.

This is an easy pick.

Right Attacking Midfield

While it might not be ideal to play Marcus Rashford out of position, it is better than excluding him from the team, and his development could in fact benefit from some time on the flanks.

The 18-year-old's remarkable rise should be allowed to continue next season. Much of what is said above about Martial applies to Rashford too.

Kirsty Wigglesworth/Associated Press/Associated Press

A front three of Rashford, Martial and Ibrahimovic looks like it would have the tools to do tremendous damage to defences. Assuming Mkhitaryan arrives, that will make a front four that should in theory work together nicely, interchanging positions and keeping opposition defences extremely busy.

There are issues in deeper areas in the squad, but at least United should be very exciting in the final third, something that was so rarely the case during Van Gaal's time in charge. Ibrahimovic's arrival has the potential to make a pretty phenomenal difference, assuming the rest of the team is able to give him the platform he needs.