Henrikh Mkhitaryan appears likely to make his move to AS Roma permanent, according to the reliable Fabrizio Romano.

Speaking to Calciomercato.com, Fabrizio Romano suggested Henrikh Mkhitaryan has a good chance of making his transfer to AS Roma permanent this summer.

One reader asked about the chances that Chris Smalling and Henrikh Mkhitaryan would remain in Rome next season. Romano responded: “There is some (chance) for both, but more for Mkhitaryan at the moment.”

We’ve heard a few different rumours around Mkhitaryan recently. There were some reports from Italy suggesting Roma had already offered €15m for the winger. Others claimed the Serie A club were actually trying to get the 31-year-old on loan again.

That second report seems particularly unlikely, as Mkhitaryan would have to extend his contract first. Otherwise, the loan is roughly equivalent to a sale anyway.

Before the football shutdown, Mkhitaryan scored six goals and assisted four in 17 appearances. When he’s on the pitch, he’s performing well. However, he had two fairly major injuries, missing 16 games in total.

If Roma think he’s past those fitness problems now, they have every reason to buy him. From the point of view of Arsenal and Mkhitaryan himself, I think we all just want to move on.