Manchester United news: Jose Mourinho fires humiliating goal jibe at Michael Owen in defense of Zlatan Ibrahimovic

Mourinho claimed Ibrahimovic will score the same number of goals in a season that Owen managed in three years at United

Jose Mourinho claimed Michael Owen's criticism of Zlatan Ibrahimovic did not apply due to their goal records (Getty)

Jose Mourinho did his best to humiliate former Manchester United striker Michael Owen in response to his criticism of striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic, and jibed that the Swede will score the same number of goals that Owen did during his three-year spell at Old Trafford in just one season.

In an interview with BT Sport, Mourinho defended the 35-year-old striker after Owen had labelled him a “short-term solution to a long-term problem”, having been brought in on a free transfer during the summer.

The United manager was clearly in higher spirits this week after United recorded their first Premier League victory in four matches against Tottenham last weekend, and ahead of their trip to Crystal Palace on Wednesday, the Portuguese fired a light-hearted barb at former England international Owen.

“Zlatan will score more goals in one season than Michael Owen in three seasons at Man United,” Mourinho told BT Sport about their own pundit. “He scored 17 goals in three seasons, Zlatan is almost there in six months, so he's not a bad choice for us.”

The fact that Mourinho knew Owen’s precise goalscoring record suggested that he had every intention of raising the point before the interview started, but Owen was armed with his own response to try and shoot down Mourinho’s defence of Ibrahimovic.

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He suggested that his goals were of more value to United given the club are paying Ibrahimovic significantly more in wages than they did Owen, and added: “Managers are getting awfully touchy, aren't they?

“I think my goals were of more value to Man United because I cost about 10 per cent of what Zlatan's on a week.”

He added: “Zlatan [isn't] the long-term type of player, a little bit like Robin van Persie. Bought for a purpose, one or two seasons, but at some point Man United have got to find the next Wayne Rooney, buying him at 18, 19, or producing one themselves.”

Mourinho isn’t far off the mark with his defence of Ibrahimovic, given the former Paris Saint-Germain striker has already scored 13 goals in 23 appearances. However, Owen also has a valid argument, given that the Swede – who looks almost certain to extend his stay at Old Trafford to a second year next season – is keeping a rising talent like Marcus Rashford out of the side, with United potentially hindering a star of the future as a result.