Arsenal: Henrikh Mkhitaryan only needs to prove one thing

Arsenal have cut the wantaway at last, and in return they get Henrikh Mkhitaryan. It should be an easy transition, as Mkhitaryan only needs to prove one thing.

Arsenal’s inner turmoil may be more to blame than we initially thought. Having a font of discontent in the locker room, in training and on the pitch has endless repercussions, all of which looked apparent in the end result.

The one example of what can happen when the team is unified in their focus happened against Crystal Palace. Small sample? Yes. But don’t dismiss it as a fluke until we see more of what can happen.

And a big piece of that “more” comes from Henrikh Mkhitaryan, who comes to Arsenal in a position of wanting to reassert himself on the world footballing spectrum, but also having plenty of tools in his toolbox to be a serious contributor right from the go.

On the whole, though, there is only one thing Mkhitaryan has to prove. He doesn’t need to prove that he is talented or a difference maker or a creator, he just has to prove that this is where he wants to be.

The first interview with Mkhitaryan was superb, as he revisited his “dream” to play for this club, which is always fun to talk about.

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This may sound all peppy and dandy, but I’m completely serious about this one thing. After having to suffer through a superstar who was miserable at the club and seeing the effect it had on not only the team, but also himself, making an improvement is not that hard. You want the best out of your team and out of a player with the capabilities of Alexis.

But it’s not always that easy. In order to get the best out of Alexis, apparently you have to convince him that you are worthy of his best. And I’m not questioning his raw effort. That was always there. Always will be. I mean his sharpness, which stems from mental acuity, which in turn comes from a passion for what you are doing and a desire to do it. Which means a want to be there.

Mkhitaryan has to have those things. It’s not that we doubt that he will have them, it’s that we have read the rumors. All the talk of that he was dragging his feet over coming to the Gunners. Even if deep down you know that isn’t true, we’ve seen too much with Alexis’s discontent.

Next: 5 Things Learned Against Crystal Palace

A few matches with Mkhitaryan’s best and it’ll be all the proof we need.

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