Ibrahimovic scored from a soft free kick that dribbled through the wall, the simplest of tap-ins and a penalty after a questionable decision to help Man United move closer to reaching the round of 16.

"We created good chances. It was important to get a good win at home and we bring it with us for the second leg ," Ibrahimovic told BT Sport. "It was a good game, we played good collectively. I think we can do much more but we won the game and that's the most important."

And though United's Premier League title chances may be slim, Ibrahimovic took heart in the fact that the club are still competing on all fronts.

The Red Devils face Blackburn in the FA Cup on Sunday before the return leg in France next Wednesday, which precedes the EFL Cup final against Southampton on Feb. 26.

"We're happy at the moment. This is the decisive moment for the season and the second half of the season is the one which decides what will happen.

"That's the objective; we're still in four [competitions]. If we don't win the Premier League we could get some other trophies and that's good also."

Ibrahimovic was also his usual modest self, saying he had grown accustomed to scoring against St Etienne during his time with Paris Saint-Germain.

"Every time I've played against Saint-Etienne, with hard work there has been a couple of goals," he said. "I've scored a couple of goals tonight and hopefully I can do the same next week."