Manchester United manager Jose Mourinho, slated the "relaxed" attitude of some of his players in the dressing ahead of their routine 3-0 Europa League victory over Saint-Etienne.
United 'too relaxed'
The stage was set at Old Trafford last night as United looked to keep themselves alive on all domestic fronts, and a first United hat-trick from Zlatan Ibrahimovic secured a seemingly convincing routine victory for the Red Devils.
But in truth it was far from easy as the home side struggled against their French counterparts, especially in defence, and Mourinho stated that though their performance improved the atmosphere before the game was too relaxed for his liking.
"I had the feeling immediately in the dressing room," Mourinho told the press afterwards."Too noisy, too funny, too relaxed."
"My assistants had the feeling in the warm-up," he explained. "Some of the guys were not focused on getting the right adrenaline in their bodies."
The Portuguese coach stressed: "The game started and the first thing we did was a back-pass to the striker. The first-half was hard. Even myself on the touchline, it was difficult to communicate. Second-half different story."
"We were lucky to be winning at half time," the 54-year-old acknowledged. "It was a different story in the second half. Fast, we were recovering the ball higher up in the pitch."
'Fantastic for him'
It was another memorable night in a United shirt for Ibrahimovic as he scored his 21st, 22nd and 23rd goals in what has been an excellent first season at Old Trafford for the Swede.
It was the 35-year-old's first treble for the club, but Mourinho stated that the result was more important even though he was full of praise for the veteran striker.
"He has scored so many hat-tricks in his career," he said. "But this is a first for Manchester United."
"We know that it is more difficult in England," the United boss continued. "We know clearly that it is fantastic for him."
Mourinho said: "But the important thing is the result and the important thing is that we managed a clean sheet at home. Which is important, and to score three goals is a good advantage for us."
Manchester United will take on Blackburn Rovers in the fifth round of the FA Cup at Ewood Park on Sunday, February 19 with kick-off at 4:15pm GMT.