Manchester United’s new hope: How Henrikh Mkhitaryan turned it around
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Updated 09/12/2016 at 10:16 GMT
Henrikh Mkhitaryan is a top player. Who knew? He showed his credentials for Manchester United with a super goal in the Europa League win over Zorya Luhansk, writes Tom Bennett, and it's testament to how he overcame his early struggles.
anchester United's Henrikh Mkhitaryan during the press conference
Image credit: Reuters
For the uninitiated, Mkhitaryan did this last night:
It was his first goal for United, completing his return to favour after being frozen out earlier this season.
How he changed Mourinho's mind
The Mkhitaryan situation is a curious case.
Jose Mourinho’s sidelining of the £30m talent was symbolic of the coach’s bizarre behaviour in the last 18 months, but great credit has to go to the much-hyped Armenian for how he has handled the snub.
Most players who had signed for a huge fee with a reputation as one of the best creative players in world football would have thrown their toys out of the pram had they been treated in such a manner (and Henrikh wouldn’t have to look far around the Old Trafford dressing room for examples).
But Mkhitaryan responded in an admirably professional way, knuckling down, not complaining, not leaking anything negative to the press… essentially behaving as out-of-favour players should - but so often don’t.
He’s allowed Mourinho to work through whatever his farcical grump was all about, and now it looks as if the former Dortmund gem is close to being a first-team regular at Old Trafford at last. As Mourinho said after the Zorya win:
He worked really hard physically, tactically and we know the talent is there. He has a strong mentality. He was very determined to fight against his difficult adaptation, and he's doing that in the best way.
"He fought to improve tactically, he fought to improve physically, and now he is playing good in the Premier League, good in the Europa League and the EFL Cup, so I'm very pleased," Mourinho added.
And Mkhitaryan’s lively display against Zorya saw him open his goalscoring account and create even more momentum behind the campaign for his regular inclusion in the Premier League starting XI.
Pundits demand Mkhi inclusion
"He would be my first choice in one of those three attacking midfield positions," pundit Michael Owen said on Thursday.
"Of course you go Ibra up top, but the three in behind - whether its left, right or middle - I think he goes in as my first choice.
"Mata's had a fantastic season... you’ve got the pace of Rashford, you've got the experience and the quality of Rooney. You’ve got so many options, Lingard, Martial, but I think Mkhitaryan would go in first if it was me.
“You get a sense now he’s off and running. He’s played in the first team, he’s started playing really well and now he’s scored his goal, and it was a really good goal as well, what a goal to open your account."
It’s the playmaker’s pace – both over the turf and in terms of how he moves the ball – that makes him such a dangerous addition to a United frontline that looked pedestrian up until the last few weeks.
And the spark that Mkhitaryan provides has been spotted by some of the more analytical television experts. Paul Scholes enthused on Thursday (and it takes quite a lot to make Scholes enthuse):
What he has different from Mata is that little bit of pace. Mata's got the trick, but has he quite got the pace to go past people? I don’t think he has. I think Mkhitaryan's got the trick, he’s got the pace to go past people and produce what he did tonight.
Closing the debate
Since finally being handed a chance Mkhitaryan has done everything to prove why it was a strange move from Mourinho in the first place, picking up three Man of the Match awards and being directly involved in three goals in his six appearances.
The debate about his future in the first-team should be over. Produce another such display against Tottenham on Sunday and it surely will be.
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