Henrikh Mkhitaryan is relishing the prospect of playing in Italy and beginning “a new chapter” at AS Roma.
The midfielder left Arsenal on Monday before the European transfer window closed after Roma made a deadline-day move for him.
The Serie A side have paid a loan fee of £2.75million to sign the 30-year-old for the season as part of a deal that has no obligation to buy clause.
The move comes just over 18 months after Mkhitaryan joined Arsenal from Manchester United and the Armenian is eager to get going in Rome.
“It will be nice to be able to live the experience of Italian football,” he said.
“For me it means a lot. It is a new opportunity, the beginning of a new chapter in my career. Doing it in this club is fantastic.
“I know what this club represents and I am sure that this team can achieve great things.”
Mkhitaryan is hoping to fit in well at Roma under new manager Paulo Fonseca after seeing how the 46-year-old transformed his old club, Shakhtar Donetsk.
The midfielder has worked under the likes of Arsene Wenger, Jose Mourinho, Jurgen Klopp and most recently Unai Emery during his career and hopes he can shine under Fonseca too.
“It's true, I learned a lot from every coach I had and I can say that they were all different,” said Mkhitaryan.
“It was a great experience to work with all of them, now I'm looking forward to start working with Fonseca.
“I know how he plays, I know because I was watching my former team, Shakhtar Donetsk, when he was the coach.
"I really liked the way they play, I hope he can pass on their ideas here in Rome too.
“I think he has good ideas, that he's smart. That is why he is here. My expectations are high, I think he can benefit the club a lot.
“All players want to play attacking football, it is nice to look at. We will also try to play an attacking football to make the fans happy.”
