Manchester Evening News, UK

 

 

 

Henrikh Mkhitaryan enjoyed an excellent first season at Man Utd under Jose Mourinho and has opened up on it in a Facebook Q&A.

 

 

By Alice McKeegan

 

16:00, 24 JUN 2017

 

 

Manchester United player Henrikh Mkhitaryan has thanked fans for their support during his first season at the club and revealed he loves his chant in a Facebook Q&A.

 

United fans sing 'Whoa, Mkhitaryan, Henrikh Mkhitaryan, he's our midfield Armenian' to the tune of Sting's 1987 single Englishman in New York.

 

The song has been endorsed again by Mkhitaryan, who enjoyed a successful first campaign at Old Trafford which culminated in him scoring the winning goal in the Europa League final versus Ajax in Stockholm.

 

   

The 28-year-old's amazing scorpion kick against Sunderland on Boxing Day was also voted goal of the season by supporters.

 

Mkhitaryan took part in a question and answer session on his Facebook page on Friday – and was asked by the M.E.N. if he had a message for United fans who had supported him over the season.

 

He replied: "People in Manchester and our fans have been great to me since the beginning and I am so thankful for that. It's also great when they sing my song in the stands."

 

 

Mkhitaryan generously gave up his time to connect with his followers across the world and answered a number of questions on everything from working with Jose Mourinho (he's a winner) to his favourite type of food (Italian and Armenian).

 

He reassured fans he was managing to take a break during the off-season and also had a positive message for a supporter, telling him: "Dreams come true when you work hard, are positive and believe in yourself."

 

And he told another young fan: "My tip for success is honestly to believe in yourself whatever you do and work hard. Anything is possible in life if you are confident, positive and hard working."

 

He also expressed a desire to open a football academy in his home country, Armenia, writing: "I’ve thought about it and would love to develop the idea in the future to teach my football philosophy to Armenian children."

 

 

Some of Mkhitaryan's best Q&A responses:

 

On his chant, he told a supporter: "I love it. It’s great that our fans made a song for me and it gives me a lot of motivation when I hear it in the stadium!"

 

On his aims for next season: "I'd love to score more goals and give more assists… and help the team win as many trophies as possible. Will give my best!

 

On the Champions League and facing Real Madrid in the Super Cup: "The Champions League is where Manchester United belongs and we are all happy to be playing this great competition again. For the new season we definitely want to fight for the title. For the supercup it should be a fantastic game against Real Madrid!"

 

 

On working with Mourinho: "Jose is a winner. He works so hard to win every single game and to make sure that we are all ready to give 100%. He gives us emotion, and motivation. I have learned a lot from him and will continue to do so this season."

 

On his favourite United goals: "The scorpion goal was most beautiful, but the winning goal in the Europa League final was the most important one."

 

On his highlight of the season: "Definitely lifting the UEFA Europa League trophy in Stockholm. We worked so hard to win this competition and it was truly special to be able to do it. Now we are really looking forward to be back in the UEFA Champions League."