Henrikh Mkhitaryan has revealed the truth about his relationship with Manchester United manager Jose Mourinho.
The Armenian admitted that he found the demands of Mourinho higher than most other coaches while at Old Trafford in an 18-month spell.
Mkhitaryan was involved in the deal to bring Alexis Sanchez to Man United with the attacking midfielder going the other way to join Arsenal. The biggest move of the January transfer window, it has appeared to benefit all involved.
There were suggestions that Mkhitaryan fell out with Mourinho at United after the Portuguese heavily criticised a performance in November. Mkhitaryan revealed nothing in that front but did concede he found Mourinho’s demands excessive.
“Mourinho required a lot from the players, he was very hard,” the 29-year-old said.
Many have described Mkhitaryan’s short stint at United as failed. He thinks otherwise.
“I think I left an impression in Manchester, although I had difficulties,” he continued.
“We won three trophies in 18 months. We won the Europa League, I scored a goal. I had a lot of success at the club.”
Both things can be true. United fans’ expectations of Bundesliga Player of the Year Mkhitaryan were not met consistently. There were, however, moments of brilliance, small glimpses of Mkhitaryan’s fantastic ability that fans wish they’d seen more of.