Henrikh Mkhitaryan reflected on his career, his childhood idols and a special goal he scored ahead of Inter’s match against his former club Roma today.
The 33-year-old Armenian midfielder joined the Nerazzurri in the summer on a free transfer after his contract expired with the Giallorossi, adding an experienced and creative player to Simone Inzaghi’s squad. Mkhitaryan has struggled to show his best in the early stages of his life with Inter, starting only once in Serie A as he works to shake off a hamstring issue.
Speaking in the matchday programme, Mkhitaryan first reflected on some of the important figures in his career.
“My family, my teammates, the coaches, the fans, each of these people have made a contribution to my career. It has been a journey that at times hasn’t been easy and long.”
He gave his thoughts on the city of Milan.
“I like Milan, but I haven’t had the chance to visit it well yet, I hope to do so soon.”
The 33-year-old remembered some of his childhood idols.
“My first idol was my father, then I was impressed by Zidane and Roberto Baggio. At Inter there was another important player for me, Youri Djorkaeff, also because of his Armenian origins.”
Finally, Mkhitaryan looked back on a special goal he scored earlier in his career.
“In my time at Manchester United I scored a goal that has remained special for me. It was on December 26 and we were playing against Sunderland, I was coming back from an injury and I came on from the bench.
“At the end of the game I received the ball from Ibrahimovic and the only way I could score was to do what I did, the scorpion kick. At the beginning I didn’t realise until the end what I had managed to do, I really realised when I saw it at the end of the match.”
Mkhitaryan spent three years of his career with Roma after leaving Arsenal, scoring 29 goals and providing 28 assists in 117 appearances across all competitions.