HENRIKH MKHITARYAN has lifted the lid on the explosive row with Jose Mourinho that led to the end of his Manchester United career.
The Armenian, now 36, played for the Red Devils between 2016 and 2018.
Despite being one of Mourinho’s first signings at Old Trafford, the Portuguese never appeared to rate the winger.
Mkhitaryan went on to leave Old Trafford after just 18 months, joining Arsenal in a blockbuster swap deal for Alexis Sanchez.
In his new book, released in Italy, the Inter Milan star has detailed his astonishing final months at United.
He wrote of Mourinho: “I told him, you’ve been criticising me for a year-and-a-half now, ever since I arrived at Manchester United.
“Mourinho told me I was ‘s***’ and I just lost my temper. ‘You are the s***. An enormous one.’
“Mou replied: ‘Get out of here, I never want to see you again.’
“During the training sessions, the coach said nothing to me, he remained at a religious level of silence, but every evening he’d send me a message via WhatsApp. ‘Miki, leave, please.’
“The situation had become grotesque. I’d reply every time with the same copy and paste response. I will leave if I find the right team, otherwise I’ll wait for the summer.
“Towards the middle of January, the text changed slightly. ‘Miki, please leave, that way I can get Alexis Sanchez.’
“Mino Raiola was working on this exchange with Arsenal. So my response mutated too. ‘I am not leaving just to do you a favour, and please stop writing to me. If you want, talk to Mino.’”
Mkhitaryan went on to joke: “And everyone lived happily ever after.”
Sanchez, now 36, would be an unmitigated disaster at Old Trafford.
The Chilean scored just five goals in 45 appearances for the Red Devils, looking a shadow of his former self.
Mkhitaryan didn’t pull up any trees at Arsenal either, making 59 appearances for the Gunners as they came fifth in the 2018-19 season.
He eventually left for Roma, initially on loan, in September 2019.
Ironically he reunited with Mourinho in the Eternal City when the veteran boss took charge at the Stadio Olimpico in 2021.
The pair initially hashed out their differences, with Mourinho saying in 2022: “The thing that makes me happy, in the beginning people go for a negative, and they were trying to say ‘Mkhitaryan with Jose has no chance, Jose is the kind of the guy that when things go wrong they never go well again’.
“It has been proven the opposite, we were very mature, very honest with each other.”
Mourinho went on to add: “I’m so happy with him and I’m happy with people understanding with me everything is not black and white.”
Mkhitaryan signed for Inter Milan on a free transfer later that year, reportedly leaving his former boss “furious”.
The versatile wide man has so far made 154 appearances for the Nerazzurri, and remains a regular this season.
Ironically he played with the man he was once swapped for at San Siro, with Alexis Sanchez also turning out for Inter during the 2023-24 season.
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