Mourinho confirms Ibrahimovic will return before the new year.

The Manchester United manager is excited about the prospect of his favorite player returning, adding to the attacking options.

"Ibrahimovic is a lion, a warrior," Mourinho remarked. "That's the most accurate description of him. Ibra always seems to have a rage, and that motivates him to come back."

"As we expected, Ibrahimovic has shortened his recovery time compared to what we said a few weeks ago. He will be back in 2017. That's an extraordinary effort," the Man Utd manager added.

Mourinho will have another effective option at the striker position with Ibrahimovic recovering sooner than expected. Photo: AFP

Zlatan Ibrahimovic suffered a knee injury at the end of last season. But according to...Sky SportandThe SunThe striker could return for the Manchester derby this December. The 35-year-old striker trained with his Man Utd teammates last month.

Ibrahimovic's doctor, Freddie Fu, warned him against rushing back to play before he was fully recovered. But Ibrahimovic insisted he wasn't in a hurry and felt no pressure to return early, as Romelu Lukaku was still scoring regularly for Man Utd.

Last season, Ibrahimovic was Manchester United's top scorer, with 28 goals in all competitions. He became a free agent in July when his contract expired but was re-signed by Man Utd for the second half of the season.

According to VNE