Henrikh Mkhitaryan has said that he will not stop fighting to establish himself at Manchester United, after struggling to find game time under Jose Mourinho
Mkhitaryan joined United from Borussia Dortmund in a deal reported to be around £30 million in the summer.
The Armenian attacking midfielder was one of four “specialists” that Mourinho wanted to sign, but things have not gone to plan for Mkhitaryan.
Mourinho has treated the midfielder rather bizarrely, with Mkhitaryan failing to make several match-day squads after the Manchester Derby, until playing against Fenerbahce, a performance for which Mourinho criticised the midfielder in public for the second time.
Before that, Mourinho claimed the reason he wasn’t playing the Armenian international was to give him time to adapt to the English game, even though he refused to name him as part of matchday squads.
After being publicly criticised by Mourinho for the second time after the loss to Fenerbahce, Mkhitaryan has spoken out about how he refuses to give up at Manchester United :
‘It is true that I get little time on the field, but I am not going to give in,’ he told reporters after being appointed as Goodwill Ambassador for UNICEF in Armenia, according to The Daily Mail
‘I went a long way to play in Manchester United, so nothing will prevent me from achieving my dream.’
‘I will not retreat, I will find the strength to reach my goal.’
Mkhitaryan’s treatment by Mourinho has been publicly criticised by many figures in football, including the President of the Armenian FA.
It appears that Mkhitaryan will not let this get in the way, however, and he will be hoping to make the squad for next weekend’s crunch tie against Arsenal.
The way things stand, though, that seems highly unlikely.