Henrikh Mkhitaryan - Armenian Footballer of the Year

Henrikh Mkhitaryan

Henrikh Mkhitaryan, who plays for Borussia Dortmund in the German Bundesliga, is the current recipient of the Armenian Footballer of the Year Award and has been awarded his country’s top footballing honour 4 times, in 2009, 2011, 2012 and 2013. He is described as indispensable by the Armenian national coach and has played for the Armenian league champions, the Ukrainian champions as well as the German title contenders.

Footballer of the Year
Like so many other professional footballing leagues Armenia has its own Footballer of the Year Awards. This is awarded annually to the very best professional footballer in the country.

The winner is voted for by coaches and officials from the Armenian Federation of Football, the managers from Armenian Premier League clubs as well as selected representatives from the media. Furthermore, each year there is a similar award the for the country’s top football coach.

Domestic League Success
After his success at Pyunik Yerevan, where he won four league titles, two league cups and the Armenian Super cup between 2006 and 2009, Mkhitaryan secured a move to Metalurh Donetsk in the Ukranina Premier League in 2009.

Big Money Moves
After 12 goals in 37 League appearances the giants of Ukrainian football took notice and a fee of €7.5 Million was agreed with Shakhtar Donetsk for his services in 2010. Three seasons and 37 goals later Henrikh Mkhitaryan’s reputation had gone international and a number of eye catching performances in European competitions saw the giants of European football come knocking on his door. In 2013, Borussia Dortmund paid €25 million to secure a transfer to the German Bundesliga and in the process broke their transfer record for a player.

Armenia National Team
On the international scene, Mkhitaryan made his debut with the national squad in a friendly against Panama in January 2007. Currently, he is considered to be one of the Armenia’s most important players.

During the qualifying matches for Euro 2012 he was the top scorer in Group B with six goals, however, despite Armenia’s failure to qualify for the championships Mkhitaryan was included in the UEFA Euro 2012 Qualifying Dream Team due to his impressive scoring record.

Honorary Citizen of Yerevan
In honour of his achievements he was awarded the "Honorary Citizen of Yerevan” in 2012 for his contribution to football and sport in Armenia.