12:58  ,  October 28, 2016

The Daily Mail: Man U fans want answers for Mkhitaryan omission from club games

The Daily Mail newspaper of Great Britain has reflected on Armenia national football squad captain and Manchester United midfielder Henrikh Mkhitaryan’s omission from this English club’s games, even though he has recovered from his injury a long time ago and is training without restrictions.

“Every morning, Henrikh Mkhitaryan leaves his five-star accommodation early and is the first player to arrive at United’s Carrington headquarters, preferring to eat breakfast at the training ground rather than his hotel.

“A speaker of six languages, Mkhitaryan is friendly and articulate. Club staff describe him as ‘an absolute gentleman’ around the place.

“The trouble is, [Manchester United manager José] Mourinho doesn’t seem quite so taken with the player United signed from Borussia Dortmund for £26.3million in the summer.

“Mkhitaryan has made just one start under Mourinho – in the Manchester derby defeat seven weeks ago when he suffered the humiliation of being substituted at half-time after a wretched performance – and has not been seen since.

“Part of the problem that day was a niggling thigh injury picked up on international duty with Armenia.

“However, Mourinho declared Mkhitaryan fit before last week’s game against Fenerbahce [of Turkey] only to leave the player out of his 18-man squad for the Europa League tie and the subsequent games against Chelsea and Manchester City.

“The United manager tried to explain his decision by saying ‘one thing is fit and not injured, another is match fitness.’

“But United fans have been left bemused by Mkhitaryan’s treatment, with some comparing it to Mourinho’s handling of Bastian Schweinsteiger.

“There is a key difference here. The United manager signed Mkhitaryan, he did not inherit him from [former head coach] Louis van Gaal.

“As the hashtag #freeMkhitaryan does the rounds on social media, the plot thickens with every passing game.

“It’s understood they [i.e. Man U] want to make sure Mkhitaryan is completely ready rather than risk another bad performance that could seriously damage his confidence.

“But despite being back in training for four weeks now, however, Mkhitaryan is still unable to make the first-team squad.

“It seemed like the ideal game for Mkhitaryan to ease his way back into the fold. So too does Saturday's visit of Burnley to Old Trafford following a run of more high-profile fixtures.

“If he is left out again, the clamour for answers will only grow louder,” the respective article reads, in particular. 

Henrikh Mkhitaryan, 27, has been out of action since September 10, when his thigh injury recurred during Manchester United’s English Premier League derby against Manchester City.

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