Vahan Bichakhchyan, the midfielder of the Armenia national team and Warsaw's "Legia," has issued a statement on social media explaining why he did not join the national team for the last two group stage matches of the Nations League.
The 27-year-old footballer, who is gradually returning to the field after a long break, noted that he is still not fully ready for the physical load, especially given that he previously had a recurring injury.
"I deeply regret that I am not with my national team for the last two games of the Nations League. I have just returned to the field after my injury and am still in the phase of fully restoring my physical condition. During this time, it is very important for me to gradually return to the game rhythm, properly distribute physical load, and avoid rushing—especially considering my injury had recurred.
By gradually increasing my playing time at the club, my goal is to restore the necessary physical fitness and approach the spring part of the season in full shape so that I can help our national team with full strength. I wish our guys success in the upcoming games and am confident they will do their best to please our fans. I am always with the team in spirit and heart. We will meet soon," wrote the Armenian midfielder.
After a lengthy absence, Bichakhchyan returned to the field for the first time on October 30, coming on as a substitute in the 73rd minute in the Polish league match against "Gornik." And yesterday, on November 8, in the 14th round of Ekstraklasa against "Rakow" (2:4), the Armenian footballer started the second half and scored a goal in the 63rd minute. After a pass from Bogdan Vunnyk, he opened his goal account for the current season with a precise shot from the edge of the penalty area.
Recall that on November 6, the head coach of the Armenia national team, Yegishe Melikyan, announced the squad for the upcoming matches. According to the official statement of the Football Federation of Armenia (FFA), Vahan Bichakhchyan, Kamo Hovhannisyan, and Erik Simonyan have recently recovered from injuries and are not yet in full shape. Additionally, due to injuries, Eduard Spertsyan, Henry Avagyan, Sergey Muradyan, Julio Bueno, and Finn Geeragusyan will also not be able to help the national team during this camp.
It should be added that in the final rounds of the Nations League, Division C, Group 2, the Armenian team will host Cyprus on November 12 at the Vazgen Sargsyan Republican Stadium in Yerevan, and on November 15 will play as visitors against Latvia in Riga. After round 4, Montenegro leads the group standings with 10 points, Cyprus has 7, Armenia 4, and Latvia 1 point.
