The Old Trafford faithful gave a huge cheer as Henrikh Mkhitaryan's name was read out on Thursday, part of the Manchester United starting XI for just the second time since his summer arrival.Fans on social media were similarly enthused about his inclusion. And by the time he was taken off in the 82nd minute, he had given a man-of-the-match performance, which stands a decent chance of kicking off his United career in earnest.Nominally starting on the left in a flexible front four, he was immediately involved in the Red Devils' buildup play. He drifted inside and played a simple pass back to Michael Carrick within moments of kick-off.Shortly afterward, he ghosted into the box. Zlatan Ibrahimovic's header back across goal nearly fell to him. Given this all happened within the first minute of the game, it was immediately clear he would be an important factor in United's performance.After a spell on the left, the flexibility of his position was clear. He, Juan Mata, Wayne Rooney and Ibrahimovic clearly had a remit to roam. He made himself available in the box for a cross from Rooney at around the five-minute mark.Nothing came from that, but a minute or so later, the weighting on the Armenian's pass to Rooney was delicate and perfect as the two men linked up.His superb ability with the ball was on display again just after the ninth minute. He played a sumptuous one-two with Rooney, though the England captain's final ball was overhit, allowingFeyenoord 'keeper Brad Jones to break up the move. That passage of play took place through the centre of the pitch, demonstrating how fluid they could be.Mkhitaryan's touch was clearly in.That allowed him to pull off a beautiful spin move a few minutes later, as he controlled the ball, turned his back to the defender and laid it off to Daley Blind. This was followed up by a through ball for Paul Pogba on the left. Then came a cross for Ibrahimovic, though the range was just slightly off, and it fell short of its mark.The first quarter of an hour gave plenty of evidence that manager Jose Mourinho had made the right decision in bringing Mkhitaryan back into the fold.He was almost rewarded with an assist when he laid a simple pass off to Paul Pogba on the edge of the area after a nice run. The France international's excellent shot was saved, and the ensuing corner saw Mkhitaryan's shot blocked, though it looked as if it were heading wide.Moments later,Ibrahimovic's stunning, improvised outside-of-the-boot looped cross found the Armenian in the centre of the box. He did well to get his hooked volley on target, though it lacked power. It had been a flurry of attacking activity from the Red Devils, and Mkhitaryan was at the heart of it.The following 10 minutes saw Feyenoord threaten for the first time and United enter a patch of sloppy play. When they finally reasserted themselves, some smooth buildup play led to the former Borussia Dortmund man seemingly spurn a one-on-one chance, though he had been flagged offside, so the missed opportunity was less costly than it first appeared.In the end, it was a combination of Rooney and Ibrahimovic that made the breakthrough, but Mkhitaryan had been an important part of the collective attacking unit throughout the half.He was singled out for praise by Paul Scholes and Michael Owen on BT Sport's half-time coverage, with Owen drawing attention to his Scholes-esque tendency to continually look around him, building a constantly adapting picture of the positions of the other players on the pitch.It is worth saying that he did not complete a defensive action during the half. In the first 45, none of United's 16 tackle attempts, nine interceptions or five clearances came from the Armenia international, per WhoScored.com. He did track back when he was meant to and maintained United's shape well, but he was not particularly active in a defensive setting.However, it was a day when attack was more important than defence for United, and he started the second period as brightly as he had started the first.First came a driving run through the centre of the pitch. There was an element of good fortune in his ability to retain possession as defender after defender tried to stop him, but his will to keep going was evident. Moments later a goalbound shot from inside the box was blocked.Then came another run. This time, there was no need for good fortune, as some delightful control allowed him to bypass a Feyenoord defender while travelling at speed. He was extremely unfortunate not to get a direct free-kick in a dangerous area.He looked to have lost his balance, but just as he was about to regain itleaving him one-on-one with the 'keeperthe defender trying to keep up with him clipped his heel.It was easy to see why referee Manuel Grafe had not awarded a free-kick given it looked as if Mkhitaryan had already stumbled, but he may well have kept his footing without the defender's interference.He remained heavily involved thereafter. The Armenian attempted a give-and-go with Ibrahimovic on the edge of the box, though the Swede's return pass left him wanting. Then he fired in a shot from the left-hand edge of the penalty area that took a deflection. It found Mata, who tapped it in, but the Spain international was offside.The 27-year-old often served as a supplementary striker. He made a run in behind the defenders for a Mata chip into the box that was cleared up by the Feyenoord defence, then broke fractionally too early, being flagged offside as he attempted a David Platt-against-Belgium-in-the-1990 World Cup swivelling volley (check that out if you've never seen it; it's a belter).Unlike Platt, Mkhitaryan could not keep his shot down.He went as close as the side-netting on the 60th minute. His interplay with Ibrahimovic carved out the opening, and for a split second, plenty in the ground thought he had scored. In the end, he probably should have passed to Mata, who was in an excellent position. But it was hard to fault him for having a go.He followed up on that by finding Antonio Valencia from a much deeper-lying position with a sweeping pass in spite of losing his balance, then pulled off some wonderful interplay with Rooney, getting the ball to Ibrahimovic, whose shot was blocked around the penalty spot.It was an electric few minutes. Almost everything about his performance made it seem utterly bizarre that he has featured so little this season.In the 67th minute, as United had been under a brief spell of pressure, it was he who relieved it, with a driving run taking him to the halfway line, where he was fouled.He ended up playing an around-the-corner through ball to Luke Shaw in the ensuing passage of play. While Shaw's return pass sold him short, it was in the immediate aftermath of that when Rooney found Mata for United's second.Mkhitaryan should probably have had an assist of his own within a few seconds of the restart. A slipped through ball found Ibrahimovic, whose shot was disappointing.That ball had been played from the right, to where he had moved following Marcus Rashford's arrival in place of Mata. His versatility means he can comfortably play on either flank.He even had a tangential say in Jones' own goal from anIbrahimoviccross. It was in covering the potential pass to Mkhitaryan that Jones found himself floundering.His next attacking contribution of note came in the 80th minute, wherein he fired a deep cross for Ibrahimovic. It was fairly easily dealt with by Jones, but given his earlier mishap, it was not the worst moment to put some pressure on the 'keeper.That was Mkhitaryan's race run. He was taken off with Rooney after 82 minutes, a pretty clear indicator that he will be involved against West Ham United on Sunday. And given he played so well, it would be shocking if he had not done enough to keep his place for the Hammers' arrival atOld Trafford.Mourinho has made it pretty clear that will not be happening. It will be fascinating to see whether this game marks the beginning of an extended spell in the first team for Mkhitaryan. If it does, the next few months could be pretty exciting.
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