ZLATAN IBRAHIMOVIC SCORED his 28th goal of the season as Manchester United closed on the Premier League top four with a routine 3-0 win at relegation-threatened Sunderland on Sunday.
Jose Mourinho’s side extended their unbeaten run to 21 league games at a sun-drenched Stadium of Light, with Henrikh Mkhitaryan and substitute Marcus Rashford also on target.
United closed to within four points of fourth-place Manchester City, on whom they retain a game in hand, but will drop back to sixth if Arsenal win at Crystal Palace on Monday.
Sunderland, who had Seb Larsson contentiously sent off in the first half, now lie 10 points from safety at the foot of the table and look destined for the Championship.
Victory set United up nicely for Thursday’s trip to Anderlecht in the quarter-finals of the Europa League, a competition which guarantees a Champions League place to the eventual winners.
Mourinho’s men won with plenty to spare, enjoying 70 percent of possession and playing against 10 men for more than half the game.
Any hope Sunderland had of replying to Ibrahimovic’s 18th league goal of the season on the half hour were all but ended when his former Sweden team-mate Larsson was sent off as the interval approached.
Larsson was shown a straight red card by referee Craig Pawson for leading with a raised foot in a challenge on Ander Herrera, sparking furious Sunderland protests.
With left-back Luke Shaw enjoying a rare United start as England manager Gareth Southgate looked on from the directors’ box, Ibrahimovic broke the deadlock with a bolt from the blue.
The 35-year-old took a pass from Herrera on the edge of the Sunderland area, easily held off Billy Jones and fired a low shot into Jordan Pickford’s bottom-left corner.
– Pogba wayward –
Pickford had already saved well from Jesse Lingard and only a brave block from Bryan Oviedo prevented Marouane Fellaini from stretching the visitors’ lead following Herrera’s inviting cut-back.