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Henrikh Mkhitaryan Would Restore Firepower to Borussia Dortmund Atta

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  • Henrikh Mkhitaryan Would Restore Firepower to Borussia Dortmund Atta

    Bleacher Report
    June 30 2013


    Henrikh Mkhitaryan Would Restore Firepower to Borussia Dortmund Attack

    By Brian Leigh
    (Featured Columnist) on June 30, 2013

    Borussia Dortmund enjoyed a surprisingly successful season in 2013, an
    annus mirabilis of the highest sort, advancing all the way to the
    Champions League Final before losing to in-country rival Bayern
    Munich.

    The narrative written about their encore season, however, has not been
    very auspicious. Watching some of their best players flirt with
    "bigger" clubs, Dortmund has been slated for a decline next season, a
    regression to their previous mean.

    But on Sunday that news started to change. Locked in a bidding war
    with a couple traditional English powers, Dortmund reportedly bested
    Liverpool and Tottenham Hotspur in the pursuit of highly sought
    midfielder Henrikh Mkhitaryan.

    Per The Independent:


    The much sought-after Armenian midfielder Henrikh Mkhitaryan of
    Shakhtar Donetsk looks likely to join Borussia Dortmund, leaving
    Tottenham Hotspur and Liverpool disappointed.

    [They] were unable to come to an agreement for the player, who is also
    keen on the Champions League football that Dortmund can offer.

    The impact Mkhitaryan's signing could have on Dortmund's future is
    astronomical. Even with the rumored price tag (£20 million, per the
    report), the young Armenian attacker could prove to be a relative
    discount given his offensive ceiling.

    That ceiling isn't just speculative, either. Last season at Shakhtar
    Donetsk - a plenty good side in its own right - he scored 26 goals in 39
    appearances, including 25 in just 28 league games. Those are prolific
    totals for any player, but for a midfielder they're even more
    astounding.

    Especially when you factor in Mkhitaryan's age and room for growth. At
    only 24 years old, Mkhitaryan is only now rounding into his physical
    prime. With a now proven track record at a top-flight Ukrainian side
    (38 goals in two years), he should be rounding into his mental prime
    as well. All the ingredients are there to breed a blue-chip attacking
    midfielder, the kind of guy worth more than even a £20 million
    contract.

    Borussia Dortmund is in desperate need of help on the attack, too. Not
    the kind of help that prevents something like relegation, but the kind
    of help that prevents a massive psychological letdown. One year
    removed from a Champions League final, they can't afford to lose too
    much firepower.

    Which is exactly how the offseason appeared to be going. At least
    prior to this report. World-class striker Robert Lewandowski is
    reportedly on his way out, and even though skipper Sebastian Kehl
    insists he might be back, that's a pretty hard fact to bank on. And 76
    goals in two seasons would be mighty hard to replace.

    As would the likes of Mario Gotze at attacking midfield, the position
    Mkhitaryan would ostensibly inherit upon arriving at Dortmund. Gotze
    moved to rival Bayern Munich, the Goliath to his former team's David,
    leaving on the heels of a 16-goal season.

    But the stats hardly explicate Gotze's impact on the squad. He was the
    catalyst of their offense, the engine that made them go, the agent
    that started their attack.


    Without him, and without a top-flight replacement previously slated to
    take his minutes, Dortmund ran more than a risk of regression. They
    ran a downright probability of it. They looked poised to validate
    those who called them a fluky participant in the CL final.

    Instead, if this signing goes through, they just looked poised to
    validate their city's own belief in them. They proved they could play
    with the big boys on the pitch in 2013, and now they proved they can
    do the same in a boardroom. Inferior sides can score a fluky goal and
    secure a fluky result here and there - it happens all the time.

    But signing a pricey target away from Liverpool and Tottenham Hotspur?
    That signals more than just serendipity. That signals a change in
    sporting culture, an ascent toward the top of Germany's football
    caste.

    And if Mkhitaryan performs they way Dortmund - and most everyone
    else - expects him to on the pitch next season, that ascent could just
    be beginning.

    http://bleacherreport.com/articles/1689455-henrikh-mkhitaryan-would-restore-firepower-to-borussia-dortmund-attack




    From: A. Papazian
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