It’s easy to get caught up in the hype around The Zlatan.
He’s the self-proclaimed superstar who fears no one and walks with his chest permanently puffed out and nothing to declare but his genius.
But the Swedish striker is clearly not all mouth and no trousers after he scored on his first Premier League match for Manchester United.
He also scored last week in the Community Shield as United beat Leicester 2-1 at Wembley.
Incredibly, his strike against Bournemouth means he has now scored on his Premier League, Serie A, La Liga, Ligue 1 AND Champions League debuts.
Zlatan Ibrahimovic has now scored on his PL, Serie A, La Liga, Ligue 1 and Champions League debut.
Credit: @OptaJoe pic.twitter.com/GdXx62alyL
— Footy Accumulators (@FootyAccums) August 14, 2016
Not bad, and plenty were impressed:
With most foreign players, it takes time to adjust to the @premierleague . Ibrahimovic though is no ordinary player.
— Gary Lineker (@GaryLineker) August 14, 2016
Fantastic strike from Ibrahimovic. Couldn't have placed it better if he'd thrown it in. Mourinho celebrated like he had scored it.
— Rob Dawson (@RobDawsonESPN) August 14, 2016
And this from stats experts Opta proves it’s not how much you have of the ball, it’s what you do with it:
19 – Zlatan Ibrahimovic made just 19 touches in the 1st half, none of which were in the opp box. Subdued. pic.twitter.com/YeKdNo0pYW
— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) August 14, 2016
Elsewhere in the match Juan Mata opened the scoring for United after Jose Mourinho surprised everyone by starting the Spaniard who he sold when he was Chelsea boss.
Wayne Rooney headed in a second, before Ibrahimovic’s strike put them in control.
Adam Smith grabbed a consolation goal for the Cherries, but United ran out 3-1 winners in Jose Mourinho’s first League match in charge.
He and Zlatan are up and running. The rest of the league, be warned…
Zlatan Ibrahimovic makes an instant impression as Jose Mourinho's @ManUtd get off to a winning start #BOUMUN pic.twitter.com/5EjJ4UKHgP
— Premier League (@premierleague) August 14, 2016
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