We haven’t given up in the Premier League yet’ Henrikh Mkhitaryan says Manchester United CAN still win title
Jose Mourinho's side sit nine points behind fourth-placed Arsenal, but midfielder is not throwing in the towel
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HENRIKH MKHITARYAN says Manchester United have not given up on the top four – despite their poor start to the Premier League season.
Jose Mourinho’s side are currently NINE points off the Champions League places after making their worst start to a campaign since 1989.
United finished 13th that year, and victory in the Europa League already looks like their best route back into the continent’s elite competition.
But midfielder Mkhitaryan, 27, insists the Red Devils can still challenge domestically this season.
He said: “We haven’t given up in the Premier League yet. So we're not saying we are out of the competition.
“We're still in the competition and there are a lot of games to play, so we're trying to do our best to be in the top four.
“And, of course, in the Europa League we're going to try and go as far as we can.”
United need a point against Zorya Luhansk tonight in frosty conditions in Ukraine to secure a place in the knockout stages.
And boss Mourinho confirmed that his side are determined to challenge on both fronts.
He added: “We go in the same direction. We assumed from the beginning that it was an important competition for us, but difficult because we play Thursdays and then Sundays.
“We're never given a Monday match to have one more day to rest and prepare.
“It’s a difficult competition to play, with the rest of the competitions, but we want to try to win it.
“While we are in the competition, we will try to win it. We want to go to the knockout stage and go as far as possible, step by step. The first step is a difficult one, to qualify from a very difficult group.
“The most important competition is always the next match. Today I’m saying the most important competition is the Europa League, and after the match here it will be the Premier League.”