Henrikh Mkhitaryan suggests he may not be where he is now if it were not for the death of his father.

Hamlet Mkhitaryan passed away tragically from a brain tumour in 1996 when Henrikh was only seven years of age.

In a candid interview with The Players' Tribune, the attacking midfielder indicated that if Hamlet was still alive today, his own career path may have been different, but he chose football to pay homage to the former Ararat Yerevan and Armenia star.

"When you walk onto the pitch at Old Trafford, it is not just a pitch, it is a stage," the 27-year-old said.

"If my father could see me on that stage, I think he would be very proud.

"I was always kind of chasing him and I think, even though he's not here, he helped me to get to this place. If he was still alive, maybe I would be a lawyer or a doctor right now. Instead, I am a footballer.

"The year after my father died, I started football training. He was the drive for me, he was my idol. I said to myself, I have to run just like him. I have to shoot just like him.

"By the time I was 10 years old, my entire life was football. Training, reading, watching, even playing football on PlayStation. I was totally focused on it. I especially loved the creative players — the maestros.

“I always wanted to play like [Zinedine] Zidane, Kaká and Hamlet. (Pretty good company for my father)."