London: Zlatan Ibrahimovic likened himself to Benjamin Button after the Manchester United forward turned in another Man of the Match display in his side's vital 3-0 win at Sunderland on Sunday.

The Swede, 35, scored the first goal in United's victory at the Stadium of Light as Jose Mourinho's team closed the gap on Man City in the fourth to just four points, and with a game in hand on their rivals.

That strike was Ibrahimovic's 28th in all competitions in his debut campaign at Old Trafford and he has now scored 250 goals since turning 30.

Asked the secret to his longevity, he referenced 2008 film The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, where Brad Pitt's title character ages in reverse.

"I train hard, keep focussing and believe in what I do and I and I know what I am able to do," Ibrahimovic said.

"And I am not worried, I just play my game, I try to enjoy and it seems that the older I get, the more intelligent I get... Of course you cannot move the same as 10 or five years ago, even 15 years ago, but the older, more experienced, more intelligent, you do not waste so much energy on things you do not really need.

"But the game is improving, I am getting better and better and like I said, I feel like Benjamin Button - I was born old and I will die young!"

As for the win, Ibrahimovic labelled it a massive three points in United's bid to qualify for next season's Champions League.

"A big three points especially knowing we have not got the points we wanted," he said. "Today was a good win, but we have to keep focussing, working and believing we will reach the top four.

"We believe in it and we will do everything to get into the top four. It is part of the game, you feel each other and you either begin strong, or you do not begin strong, but at the end you come into the game and you will play the game and in the end the best team will win.

"So the game was good and we got the 1-0, they get the red card, but I could not see if it was a red card or not.

"But he gave the red card and afterwards you play with one more and sometimes that can be more difficult, although sometimes it gives you an advantage as you play with one more."

Meanwhile, Jose Mourinho has used Renato Sanches's lack of playing time at Bayern Munich as another example of elite clubs who are neglecting to use their younger players on a regular basis.

The Manchester United manager has suggested that Antonio Conte is adopting a similar policy at Chelsea, with Kurt Zouma and Ruben Loftus-Cheek barely featuring under the Italian this season.

Mourinho has already revealed that he wanted to sign Sanches but his late appointment at Manchester United saw the club lose out to Bayern, who swiftly concluded a £27.5 million deal with Benfica for the midfielder.

"We want the young boys to play and to perform," said the United manager.

"At the same time, the best teams want to win and it is difficult to win with the learning curve of the young boys.

"You go to other clubs where young players are being developed.

"It's easy when there is no pressure playing in mid-table where you can win today, lose tomorrow. It's different at big clubs." (Agencies)