Where Manchester United would be without Zlatan Ibrahimovic’s goals is downright scary

Every good team needs a good striker.

For out balls, for linking attacks, for goals, a good striker is crucial at a good level. If you look around the Premier League, look around club football all over Europe, it's easy to see that you won't get far without a good player capable of leading the line for you. Teams can burst, they can go on gallant runs of form but, ultimately, without a clinical number 9 who can offer all of his body as a target, you're going to come up short. Especially in the big games. Eyebrows were raised at the arrival of Zlatan Ibrahimovic to Old Trafford. At 35, the Swede's best years were said to be behind him and a struggling United couldn't afford any more risks. But, Christ, five months later and it's hard to imagine what Jose Mourinho would've done without his ever present front man. If you take out Zlatan's Premier League goals alone, you see how the Red Devils could've fallen further.

• Ibrahimovic has scored 14 league goals already.
• United have only scored 32.
• His goals have garnished 13 extra points for the cause already - in 21 games.

It's not to say that another striker making runs, heading crosses, and creating space wouldn't have helped the cause too and contributed to the overall team goal tally - but Ibra's effect is there for all to see and sportdec have broken down just how important he is to Manchester United. Ibrahimovic has hit 29% of United's shots on target. His impact in front of goals is there for all to see. The fall from grace would be astounding without him. Read more of the stats on sportdec. United aren't even doing that well as it is. They'd have won five less games though if Ibrahimovic's goals were deducted. And their record would've made for grim reading. Okay, someone else might've been there to bag some of them anyway but that someone else would not have been as clinical and that someone else definitely would not have been Wayne Rooney. Catch up with this week's episode of 888sport Football Friday Live: