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Mkhitaryan says pleasure to be the first

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“I will not deny that it is always pleasant to be named the first, and its was a great pleasure to receive the award, looking forward to winning the new ones in the coming years with due respect to my teammates,” Armenian national team captain and Arsenal midfielder Henrikh Mkhitaryan told reporters Thursday during the award giving ceremony of Armenia’s Footballer of the Year held in Yerevan.

Asked about his feeling of being a hero for thousands of children, Mkhitaryan noted:”I have been a kid as well and know well what feelings those are. I also had heroes and sought to look like them. It is great honor showing you have achieved something significant for yourself and those your fans.”

To note, Henrikh Mkhitaryan was named Armenia’s Footballer of the Year for the eighth time and the seventh time in a row in December 2017.

The 27-year-old midfielder had collected 190 points to win the vote for the 2017 Footballer of the Year summed up by the Football Federation of Armenia (FFA).

Henrikh Mkhitaryan nominated for UEFA Europa League award

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Henrikh Mkhitaryan, Paul Pogba and Zlatan Ibrahimovic have been nominated for the UEFA Europa League Player of the Season award, after helping Manchester United to win the trophy, the English club’s official website reveals.

The inaugural prize will be presented in Monaco later this month when the ceremony for the group stage draw of the competition – plus the Champions League – takes place on Friday, August 25.

Pogba started every Europa League game in 2016/17 and scored the opening goal during the 2-0 win over AFC Ajax in the Stockholm final last May. That helped to earn him a nomination from a panel of judges that consisted of every manager who was involved in the group stage of the Europa League, plus journalists.

Armenia international Mkhitaryan became something of a specialist in Europe throughout his debut season with United, and his clincher in the final against Ajax was his sixth goal in the tournament.

Ibrahimovic also scored half a dozen goals during the Reds’ successful run to the trophy in Sweden, before the striker suffered a season-ending injury in the quarter-final win over Anderlecht at Old Trafford.

Marcus Rashford was fifth in the overall poll and Ander Herrera was joint-seventh.

Mkhitaryan wins MU goal of the month fifth time in the last six months

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Henrikh Mkhitaryan has won May’s prize for his clever hooked finish for the Reds’ second goal in the Europa League final against Ajax, helping United to sign off the campaign in style with European glory in Stockholm and making history as the only man ever to score in five different European games on the road for the club in a single campaign.

In a poll conducted on ManUtd.com, his instinctive effort in the showpiece in Sweden earned a whopping 68% of the final vote.

As the club official website reports, remarkably, it’s the fifth time in the last six months that Mkhitaryan has landed the award after topping the vote with his scorpion kick against Sunderland in December and a breakaway effort against Wigan in the Emirates FA Cup in January before brilliant solo goals against Leicester City and Sunderland came out on top in February and April respectively.

Armenian Henrikh Mkhitaryan elected on UEFA’s official website Top player in the Europa League final

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Armenian Henrikh MkhitaryanUEFA has designated by a vote on its website (uefa.com) the Armenian international Henrikh Mkhitaryan as the best player of the match Manchester United-Ajax Amsterdam (2-0) at the Europa League final in Stockholm on Thursday . On the official website of the UEFA the votes of the Internet users credited the Armenian of 42% of the votes. The French international Paul Pogba is second with 34% of the votes.

The midfielder, the Spanish international Ander Herrera is third with 11% of the votes. Unfortunately in France, the media – L’Equipe 21, BFM TV, the newspaper L’Equipe – widely praised the “star” Pogba, to the point of almost passing over the exploit and the game of Henrikh Mkhitaryan. And if the Armenian media broadly disseminate articles about Henrikh Mkhitaryan it is also to compensate for this unequal treatment of the French media.

Krikor Amirzayan

Henrikh Mkhitaryan receives player of the year award for the seventh time

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Armenian national team captain and Manchester United’s midfielder Henrikh Mkhitaryan received the Armenian Player of the Year award for the seventh time and the sixth year in a row.

The official award-giving ceremony was held on Friday at the country’s Football Federation technical center. To note, this year Mkhitaryan has won the prize leaving behind the second-placed Gevorg Ghazaryan of Maritimo and third-placed Marcos Pizelli of Al-Fujeira.

Meanwhile, Vardan Bichakhchyan won the Best Coach 2016 prize

To remind, Mkhitaryan arrived in Armenia for an international break to participate in the match against Kazakhstan in the 2018 FIFA World Cup qualification round. The match against Kazakhstan is scheduled at 20:00, March 26 at Vazgen Sargsyan “Republican” stadium.

Video: Armenian press sing Mkhitaryan chant

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Report by Mark Froggatt
Henrikh Mkhitaryan may return from injury in Manchester United’s Europa League match at FC Rostov and that would be good news for every Reds supporter, as well as a group of Armenian journalists who have driven over 1,300 kilometres to attend Thursday’s tie in Russia.

MUTV’s Stewart Gardner interviewed Robert Gasparyan from Vivaro News before the press pack amusingly sang the ever-popular Mkhitaryan chant. Watch the video above, or read the transcript below…

Firstly, after travelling so far, how much do you hope to see Henrikh in action?
“We heard about the injury and hoped to see him here. We didn’t know if Mourinho would pick him up for this Europa League game against FC Rostov, but we came here and finally on Tuesday we knew Mkhitaryan would be on board. We heard Mourinho say in his press conference that he doesn’t know whether it is possible for Mkhitaryan to play because the conditions are awful. Maybe he will keep Mkhitaryan for the second half and let him play for 20 to 25 minutes, because there is a very important game against Chelsea that is more important than the first leg against Rostov.”

Can you give us an idea of how much interest there is in Mkhitaryan back in Armenia? 
“The transfer of Mkhitaryan from Dortmund to Manchester United was like a boom for Armenia! Everybody expected he would move to Juventus or Arsenal, but he decided on Manchester United so Mkhitaryan has made a step up in his career. It was amazing for us to know and hear about an Armenian player who plays in England, the best league in the world, at Manchester United. There was a hard situation for Mkhitaryan after the Manchester derby when he was not playing for two months, but we hoped that one day he would start playing and show he is world-class.”

How difficult was it getting to Rostov?
“By plane it is much easier for us, but we came by car here and drove 1,300 kilometres across Armenia, into Georgia and then Russia. We went through many passport controls, it was awful, but we got here finally and now we hope that Mkhitaryan will play. We hope to see his best play and, here, there are many Armenian people. Forty per cent of citizens here are Armenians so it is very interesting for the people of Rostov. There are Armenian flags, people screaming Mkhitaryan, singing the famous Sting song [Englishman in New York]. There is a very big interest in Mkhitaryan.”

Finally, as somebody who knows Russian football, what do you expect from the game?
“The draw will be a really good result for Manchester United, because we know about the field. I hope that MU will win, but on 9 March when the fields of Russia are not in a good condition then maybe the draw will not be a bad result. The next game will be in Manchester and, there, I think United will win.”

Source: http://www.manutd.com/en/News-And-Features/Features/2017/Mar/Armenian-journalists-sing-Henrikh-Mkhitaryan-chant-before-Rostov-tie.aspx

Mkhitaryan scores stunning goal as Man United beats Sunderland

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Henrikh Mkhitaryan scored an acrobatic back flick to wrap up Manchester United’s 3-1 win over Sunderland in the English Premier League on Saturday, ensuring a miserable return to Old Trafford for former United manager David Moyes,  according to the Associated Press.

On as a second-half substitute, Mkhitaryan met Zlatan Ibrahimovic’s right-wing cross with a flicked finish with the heel of his right foot that flew into the corner in the 86th minute.

Mkhitaryan was in an offside position but it didn’t stop home fans at Old Trafford saluting a player who is growing in importance in his first season at United.

Ibrahimovic also set up the opening goal for Daley Blind in the 39th before scoring his 16th goal of the season in the 82nd after being played through by Paul Pogba.

Sunderland’s consolation was scored by Fabio Borini in stoppage time.

It was Moyes’ first game at Old Trafford since he was fired by United in April 2014, 10 months into his ill-fated tenure as Alex Ferguson’s hand-picked replacement.

United has won its last four league games to power back into contention for the Champions League qualification places.

SOCCER Henrikh Mkhitaryan: I would always happy to see Gündogan. The friendship between an Armenian and a Turk

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mikhitaryanSport brings. One is Armenian. The other Turk. The Armenian international Henrikh Mkhitaryan returns to his German international team-mate of Turkish origin when Ilkay Gündogan evolved together until last season at Borussia Dortmund. Since Henrikh Mkhitaryan signed Manchester United and Manchester City Ilkay Gündogan. Beyond the derby between two clubs clash without thank you, rest of friendship between the Armenian and German of Turkish origin.

“It is not important that my opponent Gündogan is Manchester City. I am happy to be with him and could be anytime anywhere “Henrikh Mkhitaryan told the Daily Mail. It must be recognized that Gundogan has high praise to offer “his friend and former teammate” Henrikh Mkhitaryan “a nice player, intelligeant and talent-packed” using the same about Ilkay Gündogan held recently at the transfer of the Armenian to Manchester United. Only the great football players know go beyond football and bring a broader perspective on life. Mkhitaryan and Gündogan are part …

Krikor Amirzayan

FOOTBALL: The Turkish commentator Bayaz TV: “I love Armenians! To me, Mkhitaryan is one of the best footballers in the world “

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arton104585-360x280The fantastic game Henrikh Mkhitaryan in the win (4-0) of Borussia Dortmund against Galatasaray for the Champions League has also attracted the Turks. Sportscaster of the Turkish TV channel “TV Bayaz” Ahmet Zakar was impressed with the play of the international Armenian. “Like the Armenians. To me, Mkhitaryan is one of the best footballers in the world, “he said on the air. Henrikh Mkhitaryan was the initiator of the two German goals while creating dangerous opportunities in the camp of Galatasaray.

Krikor Amirzayan