Five reasons Chelsea will defeat Manchester United in the FA Cup quarterfinals
By Jocelyn Taub
Zlatan Ibrahimovic is banned for the Chelsea match
Zlatan Ibrahimovic has easily been Manchester United’s best player this season. Therefore it’s unfortunate for his teammates that he will play no part in this weekend’s match.
The striker has been charged with violent conduct for elbowing Bournemouth’s Tyrone Mings in last weekend’s 1-1 draw. He is now serving a three match ban.
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On Tuesday the Football Association released the following statement:
"Zlatan Ibrahimovic will serve a three-match suspension with immediate effect after he admitted an FA charge of violent conduct and accepted the standard penalty. It follows an incident in or around the 44th minute of the game between Manchester United and AFC Bournemouth on Saturday (4 March 2017). The misconduct was not seen by the match officials at the time but caught on video."
Ibrahimovic has scored 15 goals for United this season. The next closest player is Juan Mata with six. Without the Swede the Red Devils will be at a big disadvantage.