Henrikh Mkhitaryan has emerged as one of the most in-demand talents in Europe with his performances for Borussia Dortmund and Armenia. Those showings have garnered ample interest in the midfielder from several suitors, including Juventus and Liverpool.
New-look side
Well, not entirely a new look. Coach Thomas Tuchel seems to have retained many of the elements that made Dortmund so good under predecessor Jurgen Klopp while also adding his own tweaks. Mkhitaryan was fielded on the left in the 4-0 defeat of Borussia Monchengladbach on the opening day, but he had the licence to roam across the pitch. Similar freedom going forward could bring out the best in the 26-year-old midfielder.
Fantastic start
Dortmund and Mkhitaryan got off to a fantastic start to the new Bundesliga campaign: he scored twice in the thrashing of Gladbach – the team who finished the 2014/15 campaign in third – last weekend. He was back in the headlines on Thursday as he struck the winning goal in Thursday’s 4-3 victory over Odds BK in the Europa League play-offs, which would have boosted Mkhitaryan’s confidence.
Inconsistent
Mkhitaryan has had a frustrating couple of years at Dortmund since arriving in the summer of 2013 from Shakhtar Donetsk for a fee of €27.5 million (Dh114.1m), as he failed to demonstrate his talent on a consistent basis. If he can begin to exert more of an influence on games, he has the ability to become one of the best players in the league.
Moving on
Reports in the Italian media this week suggested that Juventus would make a move to sign Mkhitaryan if they failed to secure their first-choice target, Julian Draxler of Schalke, while Premier League side Liverpool have also been linked with the midfielder. Whether Dortmund agree to sign off on his sale is another thing but, either way, Mkhitaryan will be out to impress both his current club and any potential suitors in the league against Ingolstadt tomorrow.
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