Henrikh Mkhitaryan insists only 'hard work' will keep him being dropped from Manchester United's first team again

The Armenian spent much of the first half of last season left out by Jose Mourinho

Mkhitaryan proved his worth in the Europa League last season (Getty)

Henrikh Mkhitaryan has revealed he has learned he and his Manchester United teammates must continue to work hard to ensure he doesn’t fall out of favour with Jose Mourinho.

The former Borussia Dortmund playmaker suffered the indignity of being hauled off at half-time during his full United debut against Manchester City last year before being absent from the team for most of the first half of the season.

It was only his performances in the Europa League which persuaded Mourinho to give him another chance in the Premier League, which he eventually took and is expected to start the season in United’s first-choice XI.

But Mkhitaryan is not resting on his laurels and insists he is pushing even harder to ensure since second season at Old Trafford does not begin like his first.

“I'm always trying to help the team to achieve their dreams, I'm always trying to help the team score goals and to assist because it is very important, that's what we are playing for," he told Sky Sports News.

“Of course, there will be games where you are not able to do this but you have to try to help the team and your team-mates to do that for you.

“He [Mourinho] always tries to find the best for the player and he is always looking to the players if they are working very hard and that's what I am doing. I am working hard, I'm doing my best to show him that I am ready to play.”

He also demanded that all United players must have the mentality of wanting to win trophies after getting his hands on both the EFL Cup and the Europa League last season, and is sure that that is something new signings Victor Lindelof and Romelu Lukaku have.

“Every player who is playing for Manchester United must have this mentality because if you are here, it means you have to win. You are not here just to say you are a player of Manchester United,” he said.

“You are here to show off your quality, to help the team win trophies and to be the best.

“I'm very pleased, I'm very happy that they have joined Manchester United, they are very good football players and it is not just like that they are here. It means they are strong enough to play for this team.

“Of course we are going to help them to settle down and adapt themselves to help us win the games.”