Jurgen Klopp may not appreciate it at Old Trafford on Sunday but he can take some of the credit for the way Henrikh Mkhitaryan has spectacularly turned his career around at Manchester United.
By his own admission, Mkhitaryan was an overly intense individual when he signed for Klopp’s Borussia Dortmund rather than Liverpool in 2013, fired up by the memory of his late father Hamlet, a former professional who died from a brain tumour aged just 33.
The Armenian midfielder — who gave Old Trafford its latest ‘Theatre of Dreams’ moment with his thrilling scorpion-kick goal against Sunderland on Boxing Day — reveals it was a heart-to-heart with Klopp during his early days in Germany that helped him relax.
‘He was always next to you if there were playing problems or life problems. He is a good person,’ says Mkhitaryan ahead of his reunion with the Anfield boss.
‘In particular, he helped me a lot because I was thinking too much about football. I took defeats too seriously, I’d obsess about any chances I missed. He told me that it’s just life and I had to let it go because when the next chance comes, I needed to be in the right frame of mind to take it.
‘I learned to realise that everyone makes mistakes in life and you can’t worry on the pitch. You have to forget about it.’ It is advice that Mkhitaryan has heeded in his short but eventful time at United so far.
Signed to great acclaim, the £27million star lasted just 45 minutes on his full debut against Manchester City and then didn’t appear for nearly two months. Questions were raised about everything from his physical suitability to his relationship with Mourinho.
It took great mental fortitude to stay patient and strong. When Mkhitaryan was called upon against Feyenoord on November 24, he turned in a man-of-the-match performance and hasn’t looked back, scoring in three consecutive games against Zorya, Tottenham and Sunderland, and setting up Juan Mata’s goal against Hull on Tuesday night as United chalked up their ninth win in a row.
‘I played really bad against City,’ he says, looking back. ‘As a footballer you just have to try to learn what you’ve done bad and what I could do good.
‘During that time, I had conversations with Jose Mourinho. You can feel the confidence he gives you. I kept talking to (agent) Mino Raiola. We are like two friends before anything else. He said, “Mikhi, you know what, this is life experience”‘. I said, “Mino, I know and I will never give up. I’ve had a long way to come to Manchester United and one day for sure I will play”.’
In mitigation, he’d received a kick on the quadricep tendon playing for Armenia against Czech Republic a few days before the Manchester derby. He could run but the leg would hurt, a major handicap for a player who relies on speed and twisting past defenders.
Should he have been more honest with Mourinho and admit he wasn’t 100 per cent? ‘I was so emotional and hungry to start for Manchester United, I couldn’t tell him I can’t play because I felt a little bit of pain. If they trust you, you have to play,’ he says.
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