Borussia Dortmund picked up another vital three points in their quest for European football next season with a 2-0 win over Hertha Berlin on Saturday.
However, with Marco Reus out injured, the responsibility to guide Jurgen Klopp’s side through another tricky tie fell upon the shoulders of Armenian international Henrikh Mkhitaryan. And he didn’t disappoint, the writes.
With Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang misfiring of sorts at the moment, with just two goals in his last six Bundesliga games, as well as an out of form Shinji Kagawa and Kevin Kampl, it was Mkhitaryan who stood up and stood out in this rather temped front line.
Playing on the right side of the front three, the attacking midfielder was the go-to player for all things attacking for Klopp’s team on the day. Sure, Kagawa can make a pass and Kampl has heart, but it was Mkhitaryan who was constantly skipping past players and always in the right place at the right time.
This was best illustrated in the manner of Mkhitaryan’s passing which was seen across the pitch as he drifted from right to left and through the middle of the pitch. A number of his passes were directed straight at goal, with a number of short, completed passes on the edge of the Hertha box.
According to the author, “with Mkhitaryan in the team we see a little bit of creativity that certainly goes a long way.”
Another aspect of that vital creativity is in the way Mkhitaryan dribbles past players with such ease when he is at the top of his game. Unlike Kampl, Kevin Grosskreutz and Jakub Blaszczykowski, Mkhitaryan has lately shown exactly what he’s capable of in shaking things up in attack and offering something that Dortmund simply wouldn’t have without him.
A welcome sign for a player who Dortmund spent so much money on and entrusted so much hope in bringing them success. This season may well be something of a write-off for the whole squad, but with form like this Mkhitaryan may well be looking towards a very big campaign later this year.