When Manchester United signed Henrikh Mkhitaryan from German giants Dortmund for a fee of around £26million in the summer it seemed they had a made a fantastic signing.
The Armenian had become one of the most effective players in his position in Europe in recent seasons. Regarded by United fans as an exciting addition, considering his record for providing goals and assists, Mkhitaryan should have been a star at United this season.
Instead the 27-year-old has struggled for first team action under Portuguese boss Jose Mourinho. In fact, at times he has found himself frozen out of the United squad completely. Mourinho has claimed that Mkhitaryan is not ready for the rigours of English football yet.
Sitting on the sidelines is unlikely to help the Armenian become accustomed to the English game. The player has vowed to prove himself, but at the moment it seems unlikely that he has much of a future at United under Mourinho.
It seems a strange turn of events that the summer signings is not even making the United squads. He cannot be that out of condition, he was playing for Dortmund in the Bundesliga and the Champions League last season.
It was not like he came from a poor standard of club. Looking from the outside in it seems that Mourinho does not like Mkhitaryan as a player, despite signing him in the summer. If that is the case, then Mkhitaryan is unlikely to ever win the Portuguese boss around.
Henrikh Mkhitaryan is definitely a special player. He has proven that throughout his time at Dortmund and Shakhtar Donetsk prior to his move. At the moment it seems that Mkhitaryan will have to move on if he is going to play regular first team football in the near future.
It is such a shame to see Mkhitaryan struggle so badly at United after his wonderful displays for BVB last season, but sometimes big moves just do not work out.