Edin Dzeko is hopeful that Henrikh Mkhitaryan will stay with Roma beyond the end of the season following the Arsenal loanee’s impressive start at the club.
The 30-year-old Armenia international signed for the Serie A side on a season-long loan following an underwhelming 18-month stint in north London.
Mkhitaryan enjoyed the perfect start to his Roma career, scoring 22 minutes into his debut against Sassuolo on Sunday as his team romped to a 4-2 win.
And Dzeko, who joined Roma from Manchester City in 2015, has been impressed with what he has seen by Mkhitaryan having also played against him for Bosnia last week.
Speaking about Mkhitaryan’s debut, Dzeko said: ‘I expect it from him. I know him as a great player, and he is a very good addition to our attacking team who wants to play football.
‘I am one hundred per cent sure he is going to be a big help for us. I was definitely happy to see this transfer happen.
‘After we played for our national teams and he scored two goals against us I told him ‘my friend, next games you have to score for Roma as well!
‘He’s a great pro. I remember him also from Borussia Dortmund times and he will be a big player for us. Hopefully, he can stay a long time here.
‘He will see that we are playing football here and immediately he scored a goal so hopefully, he can have more goals and a lot of assists for us.’
Mkhitaryan made an equally good first impression at Arsenal following his switch from Manchester United, providing three assists in a 5-1 victory over Everton in his first appearance.
However, he struggled to maintain that early promise and was deemed surplus to requirements by Unai Emery following the club-record purchase of Nicolas Pepe from Lille.
Last week, Mkhitaryan admitted he struggled during his time in the Premier League, saying: ‘I have to enjoy playing football, no matter the place. In England, I no longer felt happy.’
