Ryan Giggs has compared Henrikh Mkhitaryan to Juan Sebastian Veron, after the Armenian international left Manchester United for Arsenal.

Giggs admitted he looked forward to seeing the 29-year-old in a United shirt, but it never worked out. He compared the situation to Veron’s, telling Sky Sports:

“I think as well as every United fan I was excited to see Henrikh Mkhitaryan join the club. He looked on the outset like a United player, scoring and creating goals.

“I played with Juan Sebastian Veron, who was one of the most talented players on the planet. But sometimes it happens where it doesn’t work out, maybe because of injuries or maybe being played out of position.

Mkhitaryan 25 180121MAFC 0
Henrikh Mkhitaryan signs for Arsenal.

“Maybe it will work out for him at Arsenal and he’ll set the place on fire. So I’m not sure who has got the best part of the deal, but Sanchez has scored and assisted more goals in the Premier League.”

Veron played for Manchester United for two seasons, from 2001 to 2003. During that time he made 82 appearances and scored 11 goals. Mkhitaryan hit that goal tally in half the number of appearances, so clearly the two situations aren’t identical.

The general point is one I can understand though. There are always players with obvious talent who can’t quite reach their potential in a team.

Often it’s because there’s no room in their favoured position, or because they lose confidence. That doesn’t mean those players can’t go on to succeed somewhere else, however.

Mohamed Salah is a great example. Under Jose Mourinho at Chelsea, he made 19 appearances, scored two goals, and left on loan. Now he’s back in the same league, in a different team under a different manager, and he’s scored 24 in 31 by January.

That’s not to say I expect Mkhitaryan to score 20 goals between now and the end of the season. It’s just to say Arsenal fans need to give their new signing a chance to show what he can do.