Arsenal midfielder and captain of the Armenian national team Henrikh Mkhitaryan has revealed which team he will be rooting for in the FIFA World Cup in Russia.

“There is no single favorite in the 2018 World Cup, all the teams are ready. I would name Spain, France and Argentina as contenders for the title,” Mkhitaryan said.

At the same time, he noted that "there is no need to put pressure on the Russian team."

“I know the players of the national team are under a lot of pressure. I would ask everyone to leave them alone. Russians will prepare very carefully," he said.

“If they win the first game, they will have excellent chances to succeed. I personally will root for the Russian national team. Russia has done a very good job.

“Everyone knows that my grandmother is Russian. I really like Russian culture and history.”

The 2018 FIFA World Cup will be the 21st FIFA World Cup, a quadrennial international football tournament contested by the men's national teams of the member associations of FIFA. It is scheduled to take place in Russia from 14 June to 15 July 2018, after the country was awarded the hosting rights on 2 December 2010.