Sunday 17 July 2016 18:17, UK
Jose Mourinho believes "magnificent" talent Henrikh Mkhitaryan will be a huge hit with Manchester United fans after watching the Armenian's debut against Wigan.
Mourinho got his tenure as United manager off to a winning start with a 2-0 pre-season friendly victory over the Latics, thanks to second-half goals from Will Keane and Andreas Pereira.
New signings Mkhitaryan and Eric Bailly both started in the victory, with the former Borussia Dortmund midfielder making a particularly strong impression on his new boss.
Speaking to MUTV, Mourinho said: "Mkhitaryan is a top-class player and currently at the best stage for a footballer - 27/28 years old.
"He is magnificent the way he thinks about football, he thinks very quickly and it's so sweet how he touches the ball. He can play in different positions behind the striker. He doesn't have the sharpness yet but his performance was very positive.
"With Eric, the way the fans showed how much they liked his performance when I changed him is enough.
"Of course he is a very young boy coming from a very different environment, but you could see what he is at this moment.
"I will give him everything to try to make him better and better like I did with other central defenders I've had in my hands. He has showed the potential we saw when we decided to buy him."
Another player to get a ringing endorsement from Mourinho was 18-year-old defender Axel Tuanzebe, who replaced Bailly after 82 minutes.
Mourinho said of Tuanzebe: "You can play 90 minutes or one minute. Sometimes one minute is enough. With Axel, 10 minutes is enough. The potential is there, you see it immediately.
"You know him better than me because you know him for a few years but if anyone sees him for the first time, 10 minutes is enough to see the potential."
Pereira, who struggled for regular first-team action under Louis van Gaal, sealed the win with a stunning strike in the 58th minute and Mourinho is excited about the 20-year-old Brazilian's potential.
"Andreas [Pereira] has an amazing talent, he has incredible vision and incredible technique," Mourinho said.
"I've just spoke about two but the reality is that the kids without pressure in the calm environment - in a cool situation for them rather than the fire - was very good for them and very good for me to see what they can do."
