Mikel Arteta suggests Henrikh Mkhitaryan is in his plans at Arsenal
Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta has suggested Henrikh Mkhitaryan still has a future with the club.
Mkhitaryan, 31, was sent on loan to Serie A side Roma last summer, when Unai Emery was still in charge of the Gunners.
The Armenian has played 17 times for the Giallorossi in all competitions so far, but his campaign has been hampered by injury problems.
Will Mkhitaryan return to Arsenal? Five things to know…
- Henrikh Mkhitaryan was loaned to Roma despite having made three appearances for the Gunners this season.
- The Armenian has been linked with permanently joining Roma in the summer.
- He has played 17 times in total for the Serie A club, scoring six and adding four assists.
- Mkhitaryan recently expressed his frustration at broken promises made by Arsenal.
- However, Mikel Arteta has hinted at a potential role for Mkhitaryan next season.
In his last four games in Serie A, Mkhitaryan has been directly involved in five goals, scoring three and adding two assists as Roma look to qualify for the Champions League.
His recent purple patch, combined with the fact he has just over a year remaining on his current Arsenal contract, has seen Mkhitaryan linked with a permanent move away from the club this summer – potentially staying with Roma.
However, Arteta has hinted that Mkhitaryan’s future could still be with Arsenal next season having been an admirer of the former Manchester United man.
“It’s a possibility that we have and will consider,” Arteta said.
“I always liked him, he is the kind of player who can fit in any team when he is at his best.
“He needs to do it consistently and here he had moments and that’s what we need to assess.
“Miki is doing really well in recent games. We know the player he’s been, we know his past, and we need to have all the information to make the right decision.”
Mkhitaryan’s underwhelming Arsenal career so far
When Mkhitaryan joined Arsenal from Manchester United in 2018 as part of the deal that saw Alexis Sanchez move to Old Trafford, there was a level of excitement.
Although he wasn’t in the best form at the time, Mkhitaryan’s first few months in England were excellent and there was hope that he would rediscover that form away from a Jose Mourinho-led side.
However, things just haven’t kicked off for Mkhitaryan at Arsenal, with the Armenian struggling to make an impact in what has been an attack-heavy team. In 59 appearances across all competitions, Mkhitaryan scored nine goals and recorded 12 assists, bringing some frustration from the fans.
And it appears Mkhitaryan was also frustrated at the Emirates, seeing promises change so quickly at the start of the season – appearing in three Premier League games before being loaned to Roma.
Subscribe to Squawka’s Youtube channel here.
“It (the move) just happened,” he told Armenian outlet Vivaro News recently.
“I was also surprised when I got the call from my agent (Mino Raiola) who advised me to move to Rome.
“I didn’t hesitate because I knew I would be more appreciated by Roma than by Arsenal at the time.
“At the beginning of the season they made promises to me, but after two or three weeks everything was different.
“They treated me differently.”
