Henrikh Mkhitaryan has said he should be blamed for his slow start at Manchester United and not Jose Mourinho.
The Armenia international joined the Old Trafford outfit from Borussia Dortmund in the summer for £26.3million.
He was taken off at half-time in his first Premier League start against Manchester City in September and was left out until late November.
Mourinho insisted the Mkhitaryan needed time to adapt to life in England and the player says he now understands why his manager kept him out.
“There was no bad relation with him [Mourinho], it was always good but the problem wasn’t him, it was me,” he told Sky Sports News HQ.
“Now I understand why I have got my chance and I will keep it, I will hold it, because it is very important for me to play, to be a part of Manchester United.
“I was thinking that I would be here as a starting line-up player but when I arrived I saw that there were 25 players fighting for their place and I understood that it wasn’t going to be easy.
“I had a bad game against Manchester City but that is in the past so I kept working. I have done a great job to get my chance back and I think I did it a really long way until I start playing.”
Mkhitaryan has featured heavily for United in recent weeks, starting in three of their last four games. The midfielder says he wants to keep his place in the team.
“I hope so because it is really very important to play in every game, doing your best, because if you are not going to do your best then you are not going to play in the next game,” he added.
“The manager has a lot of choice, he has five or six players in that position but I know that playing now I know what I have done bad in the past and what good I can do in the future. So I know how I can help the team and I will be doing my best.”
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