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Ibrahimovic treble downs Saint-Etienne in Europa League | Jehu's Blog
Zlatan Ibrahimovic resumed his torment of Saint-Etienne with a hat-trick as Manchester United claimed a 3-0 victory in their Europa League last 32 first-leg encounter on Thursday. Saint-Etienne were the Swede’s favoured prey during his time with Paris Saint-Germain and his treble took his tally against the French side to 17 goals in 14 games, and 23 for the season. Victory gives Jose Mourinho’s side one foot in the last 16 ahead of Wednesday’s return leg, although things would have been very different had Nolan Roux not spurned a chance just before United’s second goal. As it is, United are unlikely to miss Ander Herrera at the Stade Geoffroy-Guichard after he received a booking for handball that will incur a one-game suspension. The win meant United star Paul Pogba came out on top in his first competitive appearance against his elder brother, Florentin, and he came close to scoring with a header that hit the bar. Prior to kick-off, Saint-Etienne’s fans lit up Old Trafford’s East Stand with a mass of red and green flares. Smoke hung above the pitch at kick-off and there was a distinct fogginess to Eric Bailly’s first contribution, with his careless back-pass almost letting in …