Henrikh Mkhitaryan Explains Why He Could Not Travel to Azerbaijan

Roma midfielder Henrikh Mkhitaryan detailed how it came about that he could not travel to Azerbaijan. In the 2018-19 season, his former team, Arsenal, reached the Europa League final, where they were to face another London team, Chelsea.

The final was held in Baku, and the captain of the Armenian national football team was unable to go and assist his teammates because the neighboring country did not ensure his safety. Mkhitaryan discussed this matter with the renowned magazine Four Four Two. A portion of the interview circulated online a few days ago, and now additional details have emerged.

The player also answered questions regarding his time spent in England, his former coaches, and clarified why he left London.

– How do you feel in Rome?

– Very good. The club and the city have a great history. The weather is similar to Armenia, where we have 300 days of sunshine throughout the year. The people also resemble my countrymen—they are amusing, ironic, and have a similar mentality. Therefore, I feel good here; however, I did not come as a tourist. I am here to help Roma achieve results.

– You speak 7 languages. How’s the 8th one coming along?

– I paused after getting injured to focus and recover more quickly, but in my free time, I try to improve my Italian. It’s difficult, but you shouldn’t feel uncomfortable making mistakes; without mistakes, you won’t achieve success.

– How did negotiations with Roma start?

– My agent told me about the transfer on September 1. Since I had nothing to lose by leaving Arsenal, I said yes! I'm happy to be here.

– How would you evaluate your time in England?

– Playing in the Premier League was a dream of mine, and I fulfilled it. I had some good games and some not so good, which is normal. It’s difficult to perform consistently when you play sometimes and not at other times, as it makes it hard to understand what is happening. With Manchester United, we won the Europa League. It was tough because there were 25 players, and everyone wanted to play. It was a great period, but I wanted to play more, so I moved to Arsenal.

– How difficult was it to miss the Europa League final due to the relations between Armenia and Azerbaijan?

– That was my second Europa League final. Imagine a player who has never played in a final cannot go due to political reasons. It’s very painful. I can’t say I could have changed the score, which was 4-1, but I felt really bad. I was watching the match at home and couldn’t help. I wouldn’t want other players to experience such a thing.

– Azerbaijani authorities assured that it was safe there, and you could play.

– Well, that wasn’t the case. The first time my team played against an Azerbaijani team, I was not granted permission to go. Once, Borussia Dortmund played against Gabala, and another game took place between Arsenal and Qarabağ. For those two matches, I did not get permission to go to Azerbaijan, and later they claimed that they would allow it for the Europa League final. But I don’t want to talk about this, as there are many things that people wouldn’t understand. It truly hurt me to be deprived of the opportunity to play football.

– Were you also not allowed to go to Azerbaijan for other matches?

– Let’s not talk about that.