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Bleacher Report
Sept 19 2012
Henrikh Mkhitaryan: Is Shakhtar Donetsk Midfielder Europe's Next Big Superstar?
by Yoosof Farah (Featured Columnist) on September 19, 2012
Henrikh Mkhitaryan has finally arrived at the elite end of the world
football scene, scoring his first UEFA Champions League goals, as
Shakhtar Donetsk beat FC Nordsjaelland 2-0 at the Donbass Arena.
The 23-year-old Armenia international - who plays in the hole - scored
twice to give his side three points in their Group E opener.
Both goals showed good movement, awareness and finishing prowess, a
trait which has long been typical of the burgeoning Mkhitaryan
(highlights here).
It was a performance which capped off a perfect start to the season
for Mkhitaryan, who's scored a staggering 12 goals and made five
assists in just nine league games, and now he has 14 goals from 10
matches in all competitions.
Not very well known outside of Ukraine and Armenia, Mkhitaryan has
long been touted as a future superstar by those who have seen him
play, and this term it seems as if he's about to spectacularly live up
to the hype.
A quick look at his Wikipedia page will show his impressive pedigree,
with the attacking midfielder having been a key player for his clubs
since he broke onto the scene as a 17-year-old back in 2006.
He started out with Armenian giants Pyunik Yerevan, making an
impressive 12 appearances in the 2006 season before following that up
with 12 goals in 24 league matches the next campaign.
In three seasons at Pyunik, before earning a move to Ukraine with
Donetsk's second team Metalurh Donetsk, a 20-year-old Mkhitaryan had
racked up 89 appearances, scoring 35 goals and becoming an influential
part of the side that won four consecutive Premier League titles in a
row.
By the time of his transfer to Metalurh, Mkhitaryan had ended his last
season at Pyunik with 13 goals in 13 games.
The Armenian spent just over one season at Metalurh, instantly
becoming a key part of manager Nikolay Kostov's plans, as he hit 14
goals from 38 games in his debut campaign, taking up exactly the same
role which saw him have so much success in Armenia.
And it was that level of performance - which inspired a poor Metalurh
side to a respectable eighth-place finish as well as the final of the
2010 Ukrainian Cup - that saw Mkhitaryan named as captain for the club's
Europa League qualifier against FC Partizan Minsk.
Which, at 21 years of age, meant he became the youngest captain in the
club's history.
And by this time, he was already a well-established international,
earning over 10 caps for his country, as well as a very highly
regarded talent in Armenia, having won the 2009 Armenian Player of the
Year award.
Such a rapid rise drew the attention of Ukrainian champions and
European power Shakhtar Donetsk, with manager Mircea Lucescu on the
lookout for a burgeoning, young attacking talent to freshen up his
aging squad.
It was a move which proved a great success, though not initially for Mkhitaryan.
Shakhtar successfully defended their title and won the Ukrainian Cup
and Supercup, while they also reached the Champions League
quarterfinals before being knocked out by eventual winners, FC
Barcelona.
Mkhitaryan played a bit-part role that campaign, clocking up just 17
league appearances and 27 overall, finishing the term with four goals.
It wasn't a great season for the Armenian, as he struggled to come to
terms with playing for such a big club, but his role gave good
competition for regular starter Jadson and ultimately turned out to be
a huge learning curve.
As the following season began, Mkhitaryan exploded out of the blocks,
scoring 10 goals and making seven assists in 27 league games, but most
importantly, he dictated play in the final third for his team, linking
midfield with attack, running the channels, stretching defences,
getting on the end of chances, etc.
In essence, he was the complete package going forward, which drove
Shakhtar to another defence of their league title and Ukrainian Cup
crown.
And it was perhaps this 2011-12 campaign which has been his biggest
learning curve to date.
Mkhitaryan could've had double the number of assists last season had
Luiz Adriano and Eduardo been better finishers, while he could have
also doubled his own goal tally had he too been more composed in and
around the penalty area.
It's a statement that seems to have been realised more so by
Mkhitaryan himself than anybody else, with the Armenian yet again
continuing his upward climb.
His goals against FC Nordsjaelland in the Champions League epitomised
the new Henrikh Mkhitaryan, a talented star with the composure to
finish off almost any chance given to him.
Compare his goals already this season to his chances last term, and
it's clear to see the Shakhtar talisman has all the makings of an
elite-level player.
The top clubs in the sport are always on the lookout for prolific
players from deeper positions, and in the multilingual Mkhitaryan (who
speaks five languages including English) there could lie a ready-made
solution.
Having finally had the composure to score on the biggest club stage,
it appears the Armenian is finally about to come of age.
He's racked up over 200 top-flight appearances, lived with hype for
six years and at long last could become the next big, prodigious
talent to emerge from the depths of Eastern Europe.
Remember the name - Henrikh Mkhitaryan - you'll be seeing a lot more of
him this season.
http://bleacherreport.com/articles/1340700-henrikh-mkhitaryan-shakhtar-donetsk-midfielder-europes-next-big-superstar
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress
Sept 19 2012
Henrikh Mkhitaryan: Is Shakhtar Donetsk Midfielder Europe's Next Big Superstar?
by Yoosof Farah (Featured Columnist) on September 19, 2012
Henrikh Mkhitaryan has finally arrived at the elite end of the world
football scene, scoring his first UEFA Champions League goals, as
Shakhtar Donetsk beat FC Nordsjaelland 2-0 at the Donbass Arena.
The 23-year-old Armenia international - who plays in the hole - scored
twice to give his side three points in their Group E opener.
Both goals showed good movement, awareness and finishing prowess, a
trait which has long been typical of the burgeoning Mkhitaryan
(highlights here).
It was a performance which capped off a perfect start to the season
for Mkhitaryan, who's scored a staggering 12 goals and made five
assists in just nine league games, and now he has 14 goals from 10
matches in all competitions.
Not very well known outside of Ukraine and Armenia, Mkhitaryan has
long been touted as a future superstar by those who have seen him
play, and this term it seems as if he's about to spectacularly live up
to the hype.
A quick look at his Wikipedia page will show his impressive pedigree,
with the attacking midfielder having been a key player for his clubs
since he broke onto the scene as a 17-year-old back in 2006.
He started out with Armenian giants Pyunik Yerevan, making an
impressive 12 appearances in the 2006 season before following that up
with 12 goals in 24 league matches the next campaign.
In three seasons at Pyunik, before earning a move to Ukraine with
Donetsk's second team Metalurh Donetsk, a 20-year-old Mkhitaryan had
racked up 89 appearances, scoring 35 goals and becoming an influential
part of the side that won four consecutive Premier League titles in a
row.
By the time of his transfer to Metalurh, Mkhitaryan had ended his last
season at Pyunik with 13 goals in 13 games.
The Armenian spent just over one season at Metalurh, instantly
becoming a key part of manager Nikolay Kostov's plans, as he hit 14
goals from 38 games in his debut campaign, taking up exactly the same
role which saw him have so much success in Armenia.
And it was that level of performance - which inspired a poor Metalurh
side to a respectable eighth-place finish as well as the final of the
2010 Ukrainian Cup - that saw Mkhitaryan named as captain for the club's
Europa League qualifier against FC Partizan Minsk.
Which, at 21 years of age, meant he became the youngest captain in the
club's history.
And by this time, he was already a well-established international,
earning over 10 caps for his country, as well as a very highly
regarded talent in Armenia, having won the 2009 Armenian Player of the
Year award.
Such a rapid rise drew the attention of Ukrainian champions and
European power Shakhtar Donetsk, with manager Mircea Lucescu on the
lookout for a burgeoning, young attacking talent to freshen up his
aging squad.
It was a move which proved a great success, though not initially for Mkhitaryan.
Shakhtar successfully defended their title and won the Ukrainian Cup
and Supercup, while they also reached the Champions League
quarterfinals before being knocked out by eventual winners, FC
Barcelona.
Mkhitaryan played a bit-part role that campaign, clocking up just 17
league appearances and 27 overall, finishing the term with four goals.
It wasn't a great season for the Armenian, as he struggled to come to
terms with playing for such a big club, but his role gave good
competition for regular starter Jadson and ultimately turned out to be
a huge learning curve.
As the following season began, Mkhitaryan exploded out of the blocks,
scoring 10 goals and making seven assists in 27 league games, but most
importantly, he dictated play in the final third for his team, linking
midfield with attack, running the channels, stretching defences,
getting on the end of chances, etc.
In essence, he was the complete package going forward, which drove
Shakhtar to another defence of their league title and Ukrainian Cup
crown.
And it was perhaps this 2011-12 campaign which has been his biggest
learning curve to date.
Mkhitaryan could've had double the number of assists last season had
Luiz Adriano and Eduardo been better finishers, while he could have
also doubled his own goal tally had he too been more composed in and
around the penalty area.
It's a statement that seems to have been realised more so by
Mkhitaryan himself than anybody else, with the Armenian yet again
continuing his upward climb.
His goals against FC Nordsjaelland in the Champions League epitomised
the new Henrikh Mkhitaryan, a talented star with the composure to
finish off almost any chance given to him.
Compare his goals already this season to his chances last term, and
it's clear to see the Shakhtar talisman has all the makings of an
elite-level player.
The top clubs in the sport are always on the lookout for prolific
players from deeper positions, and in the multilingual Mkhitaryan (who
speaks five languages including English) there could lie a ready-made
solution.
Having finally had the composure to score on the biggest club stage,
it appears the Armenian is finally about to come of age.
He's racked up over 200 top-flight appearances, lived with hype for
six years and at long last could become the next big, prodigious
talent to emerge from the depths of Eastern Europe.
Remember the name - Henrikh Mkhitaryan - you'll be seeing a lot more of
him this season.
http://bleacherreport.com/articles/1340700-henrikh-mkhitaryan-shakhtar-donetsk-midfielder-europes-next-big-superstar
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress