- Armenia international Henrikh Mkhitaryan joined Arsenal during the January transfer window in a deal that saw Alexis Sanchez move to Manchester United
- The 29-year-old claims he wasn't part of the deal that the Red Devils use to sign the Chilean forward
- He revealed he joined the Gunners to enjoy more playing time at the Emirates Stadium
Arsenal manager Henrikh Mkhitaryan has revealed that he was not part of the deal used to sign Alexis Sanchez during the winter transfer window.
The Armenian attacker joined the Emirates Stadium outfit in January following the Chilean’s switch to Old Trafford.
However, the 29-year-old claims he decided to join the Gunners after he had endured a frustrating spell with the Red Devils during his two year reign at the club.
According to the Mirror quoting FourFourTwo, Mkhitaryan insisted that he joined the north London club independently, and not as a part of the deal United used in signing Sanchez.
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"‘I didn’t’ come here to replace anyone. Everyone keeps saying that I’ve been part of a deal for Alexis Sanchez but it’s not true because he was running down his contract.
"If he didn’t choose to come to Manchester United, he would have stayed at Arsenal until the summer.
"Everything was up to me. I’m not saying I was important in this aspect but I want everyone to understand I wasn’t made part of the deal for Alexis Sanchez.
"We’re different players, we’re different characters, we have different abilities and skills.
"When I heard I could swap Manchester United for Arsenal, I said ‘yes I want to do that’.
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"I wasn’t evening thinking twice or thinking that maybe I don’t have to go. I said ‘no I want to go. I want to have more playing time. I want to enjoy playing attacking, offensive football’. I made the right decision coming here."
Mkhitaryan joined Manchester United in 2013 from German League side Borussia Dortmund where he scored 23 goals in 90 matches for the team.
Prior to his move to Germany five years ago, he had featured for Shakhtar Donetsk for three seasons and equally netted 28 times in 72 appearances.
Earlier this year, NAIJ.com reported that the Armenian attacker joined the Gunners from Manchester United - with Alexis Sanchez going the other way.
The 29-year-old had a bright start to the season at Old Trafford with six assists in his first 10 games but a string a poor performances reduced his playing times with the Red Devils.
Source: Naija.ng