The story of his Man Utd career so far has been a defiant tweet 2 days before a match to say that the team is now ready to start destroying other teams followed by a groveling apology on twitter the day after the match for yet another woeful performance
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Season Average Rating
- Appearances
- 35
- Goals
- 10
- Assists
- 4
- Yellow cards
- 2
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In the latest episode of the United Hour Podcast, Nik and Imran hold a long overdue conversation about United's awful league form with 1 win in 7. They discuss a disappointing draw at Bournemouth, a not so disappointing draw against Liverpool and a crushing defeat at Chelsea - Is time nearly over for Erik Ten Hag?
Then in a special second half of the pod, Nik welcomes Natalie ( https://twitter.com/natalie_17) to discuss the fortunes of Manchester United Women as they booked a place in the FA Cup Final after a historic first ever win vs. Chelsea.
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Controversial opinion but I think we'd be better if we play Herrera in a more advanced role with 2 proper CMs behind him in a 4-3-3.
feck my life, is hererra better as a no.10? why do we keep buying players in that position instead of actual fecking Central midfielders.
Controversial opinion but I think we'd be better if we play Herrera in a more advanced role with 2 proper CMs behind him in a 4-3-3.
He played one game as a #10, although it was against Galaxy and looked majestic in that role. The more I watch him the more I think he is suited better to that position, he seems caught between wanting to join the attack and collecting the ball from defense to drive forward that he is almost in two minds. The other game he played really well was when Fletcher had a brilliant game as well distributing the ball like he hasn't done before and likely won't repeat again.
He's been making a conscious effort to play as a #8 but he is at his best behind the strikers, has a lot more defensive awareness than Mata and sustains his game against a bit of physicality without surrendering possession. There's a reason Mourinho shifted Mata out as soon as he could.
It's a curse. We need to pour the blood of an decent midfielder over the ground to rid the curse.
Does the midfielder have to be decent?
He needs to man up and play better. Maybe lift some weights too. Was underwhelming last season besides some tap ins, long balls and free kicks.
glad to hear he has the self respect to be disgusted with that performance.
I agree.
A lot of the criticisms in here were unjustly levelled at Ozil last season, and the same reasons to justify it - needing pace/runners is what us Arsenal supporters were stating too.
He is, yeah. One good season at Athletic Club under Bielsa as a central midfielder and another poor one, otherwise he's spent his entire career in the number 10 position.
Soon our craziest fans will say he should close this blog of his and focus on his matchI was particularly disappointed at his lack of positional awareness for Swansea's first goal. He's average defensively, and at Chelsea no one really brought up his defensive contribution - until Mourinho arrived last season - because his output was excellent. Fortunately, his pressing has improved thanks to Mourinho, but he needs to take more responsibility and realise that the team is going to rely on him way more in a 3-5-2 than any other system. Regarding his attacking, he'll benefit off players actually making runs. Welbeck will definitely help in this aspect. He's much, much better than what he's shown for us thus far, however.
Amazing how people are starting to turn on him after the first game of the season.
I still love you Juan. Hugs.
I still love you Juan. Hugs.
Turned might not have been the right term but so many now coming out and saying what a poor signing it was and that he is hurting the way we line up. I know it's just out of frustration but he has copped a lot of blame for the Swansea loss.
Not a poor signing by any means but he has yet to replicate his Chelsea form which is frustrating for some but im backing him to find his form this season.
He could potentially be a poor signing. He is frustrating at the moment. For me the frustration is compounded by the fact that a lot of other players cop a large amount for their performances but Mata seems to escape it.
I am a massive fan of Juan Mata but we signed him when we really didn't need him. We had Kagawa, Rooney and Januzaj to play where he plays.
Talk his cheap.And he does his fair share of that.
He played with better players at Chelsea. I really don't think that should be overlooked. Take him right now and drop him in the City team and he'll look like a superstar again. This is one of the poorest United teams I've ever seen. I've been saying that since SAF was still in charge.
You can't just expect guys like Mata to turn up and be the player he was in a different system with better players around him.
That's in no way to excuse some of his performances which have of course been below par but it does go some way to explaining why he's not even looked close to being the same player he was.
The team is completely lacking cohesion and balance alongside quality, but he's still not been anywhere near what we expected. He's been mediocre at best.
He suits a more open and direct style, which is exactly what we're looking to move away from.
He's closer to Kagawa than Silva in terms of style, and he isn't as impressive when the team attempts to slow things down and suffocate the opposition, because he hasn't Silva's ability to keep the ball glued to his feet under extreme pressure or go past a man with ease without space ahead of him. Silva can hold the ball under pressure while waiting for the pass, whereas Mata's technique and shielding of the ball isn't as good, so he needs to release it earlier or lose it.
He's lovable and all that, but just like anyone else, he shouldn't be given a free ride. Assuming we're going to look to control in their half and not to play on the counter, I'd try Herrera in the advanced role against Sunderland, with Fletcher and Cleverley behind and see what happens, because, like with Kagawa, this hasn't really been working.
He suits a more open and direct style, which is exactly what we're looking to move away from.
He's closer to Kagawa than Silva in terms of style, and he isn't as impressive when the team attempts to slow things down and suffocate the opposition, because he hasn't Silva's ability to keep the ball glued to his feet under extreme pressure or go past a man with ease without space ahead of him. Silva can hold the ball under pressure while waiting for the pass, whereas Mata's technique and shielding of the ball isn't as good, so he needs to release it earlier or lose it.
He's lovable and all that, but just like anyone else, he shouldn't be given a free ride. Assuming we're going to look to control in their half and not to play on the counter, I'd try Herrera in the advanced role against Sunderland, with Fletcher and Cleverley behind and see what happens, because, like with Kagawa, this hasn't really been working.
He needs to up his game and do it fast because very soon the heat will turn up and he will be cast into the ''waste of money'' bracket. We know he is better than anything he has shown in a United shirt but the excuses an only hold for so long.
Probably because he's actually been quite good. Our best player from February onwards, certainly. One bad game doesn't negate that. Mata is the best player at the club, only Van Persie, Bale and Suarez have arguably bettered or come close to replicating his individual output and technical brilliance over the past few seasons. Yaya Toure, too, perhaps. He was that good at Chelsea and was slowly beginning to find some form in a team bereft of any idea under Captain Calamity.
It's really unfair how people completely ignore that. Neither of our best players(Rooney and van Persie mainly) were even close to Mata in 2014, but he had poor game against Swansea(where half of our players looked even worse) and some people decided isn't good enough for this team.
Good thing that van Gaal seems to like him and hopefully might get the best out of him proving doubters wrong.
Not really. Kagawa after 2 years is still being praised for the brilliant player he was at Dortmund and its our fault for not getting the best out of him......
He was still poor compared to his form for us. Maybe it is to do with the players around him a bit, but he doesnt seem as deadly as he was for us.
He had some decent games at the end of last season but who were the opposition? He played well against Newcastle who had completely stopped at that stage. It isn't one bad game either. He's had a few bad games, this shouldn't be denied because it is obvious. I know he was good at Chelsea and I accept that, but how much longer can people defend him by saying how good he was two years ago? I don't care about two years. He isn't reaching anywhere NEAR that level now, and if that Chelsea form is his level then I wouldn't say he has been "quite good" at all.
You can say the same of almost all our players nowadays too. Just finished reading the Rafael thread and someone made the same comment. I don't mind the comparisons though, we know the guys can reach those levels. They just need to start believing again.
Cleverley is average defensively (at best). Mata is really poor defensively, it's completely unexisting part of his game. But we knew that when we were chasing him. He is closer to a second striker than playmaker aka Silva in City IMO.
Kagawa offers better defensive contribution (he has good positioning and stamina), Januzaj is much better at running with the ball at pace. Clearly he's better player than both of them because of his productivity, but I have a feeling he won't be first choice at the end of the season.
Also, very good post about Mata from another thread:
One bad game, he scored 6 goals in his last 6 games for us last season together with a few assists. He's our best player. He was also Chelsea's best and most consistent player for 2 seasons running.
As far as i'm concerned, until the midfield is sorted the defence and attack cannot be judged fairly.
But, i'm not worried about Mata, Rooney or RVP
They are the best players in the squad!
But, i'm not worried about Mata, Rooney or RVP
They are the best players in the squad!
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If you confuse creativity behind the striker with creativity from midfield, you should lose your job for life
All true, Mata is a top player he proved it at Chelsea, it is up to us to get him settled, and comfortable in the team so he can reach that level again, the guy is class.
How long does this go on for, really? Player after player is doubted here, their recent form picked to pieces. Players that have excelled for teams all across Europe. People are often sceptical of Kagawa and his previous form, and I can get that. It's understandable. Rafael has been doubted again. Ok, I'll accept that. Smalling and Jones? I can see the reasoning.
But there comes a time when you have to recognise the systematic failures within our entire set up over a period of time that just isn't allowing these players to perform. Because when players like Van Persie and Mata aren't playing well enough, as you put it, there's something more to the problem. Mata is legitimately part of the elite across Europe. He's that good a player. If he isn't firing, then something is very, very wrong with this team and its set up.
Last season Rooney was our main play maker and the onus had to fall to him to create. There's no excuses when you're the main playmaker for man united.
This season it will clearly be Mata. He's such a massive upgrade on sneider in the WC team, but clearly he doesn't have someone at Robben's level in front. It will be interesting to see how LVG gets the most out of him but still, if he isn't performing after 4 games he should be dropped for Kagawa for a spell and let them battle it out properly for #10
This season it will clearly be Mata. He's such a massive upgrade on sneider in the WC team, but clearly he doesn't have someone at Robben's level in front. It will be interesting to see how LVG gets the most out of him but still, if he isn't performing after 4 games he should be dropped for Kagawa for a spell and let them battle it out properly for #10
He's obviously a world class player and will probably have a very productive season, but a thing about him is he's not a flashy player, he's not particularly quick and doesn't make the crowd really excited when he gets the ball. He can pick a pass out and is a good finisher and has great movement, but when he has a poor game, you just don't notice him. He's not quick, not a great dribbler and can't really go past players. Players like Januzaj will still get on the ball a lot and dribble past players, still being a threat and exciting, but when they have a poor day, their final ball is off.
As great as it was to sign a player like him, he was completely unnecessary at the time for plenty of reasons and basically forces us to either sell one of our star players, bench them, or play them out of position (or play the 3-5-2 like we will for now).
As great as it was to sign a player like him, he was completely unnecessary at the time for plenty of reasons and basically forces us to either sell one of our star players, bench them, or play them out of position (or play the 3-5-2 like we will for now).
Moyes clearly thought he was a winger when he bought him as he had played out on the wing at times for Chelsea. I honestly think Moyes just thought to himself that Mata would become for us what David Silva is for Man City without really giving too much thought about the whole thing. It was another panic buy from Moyes who was desperately trying to save his job by spending mega cash on whoever he could even if it was in a position we didn't really need strengthening in. The elite managers don't operate like that. LVG most certainly will give it his best shot at turning Mata into the player we all know he is....I have no doubt Mata will have a decent season but for me there are still huge question marks as to whether he is quick enough and imposing enough to be a Man Utd player
I am sorry but I don't agree with that. He had a bad game but you have to analyze the game against Swansea to really find the reasons for his anonymous performance where he only created one game from open play the entire game. I will just quote the post I made in another thread recently.
Truly exquisite the way he glided with one foot in the air and brilliant ball control as well.
Mata is easily one our best players and he is the best No 10 we have in the team. Unless we want to play a 4-4-2 with 2 strikers or a 4-3-3 with 2 wide forwards and a striker, he should be one of the first names on the teamsheet. He is probably the only player we have who is outrageously creative whilst being extremely productive in the final third as well. He is more of an attacking direct player rather than a pure playmaker like Silva or Ozil who are content with lying deeper, finding pockets of space and linking up play till they get the opportunity to play a deadly final ball. Mata looks to be more directly involved and is more adventurous than a typical playmaker.
However, he needs players to be stretching defences and making good runs for him to fully utilize his creative/link-up talents. He is not quick off the mark or a good dribbler like Iniesta or Silva, his gameplay drastically differs from them.
There have been quite a number of posts criticising his Swansea game. He had a bad game no doubt, but if you truly analyse the game, you will find the reasons for the anonymous game that he was having. Rooney and Hernandez esp had poor games against Swansea which naturally impacted Mata's game negatively. However, the prime reason for Mata's poor game was the lack of service from the deep.
Our centre backs/full backs weren't great in possession and were mostly conservative with the ball other than Blackett to a certain extent.
http://www.fourfourtwo.com/statszon...yer-stats/76359/1_PASS_01#tabs-wrapper-anchor
Jones played as a right back after the first half which had an impact but his first half passes weren't that great anyway.
http://www.fourfourtwo.com/statszon...er-stats/112133/1_PASS_01#tabs-wrapper-anchor
Blackett had a decent passing range but most of his passes were directed at the flanks and there weren't enough passes to the channels or dangerous areas in the middle of the final third.
http://www.fourfourtwo.com/statszon...yer-stats/55909/1_PASS_01#tabs-wrapper-anchor
Smalling had an extremely conservative passing range against Swansea with most of his passes in opposition's half failing to reach their target
http://www.fourfourtwo.com/statszon...yer-stats/18892/1_PASS_01#tabs-wrapper-anchor
Young had an absolute stinker when it came to passes and he played like he had an impenetrable wall in front of him and as though he had no left foot...
Jones played as a right back after the first half which had an impact but his first half passes weren't that great anyway.
http://www.fourfourtwo.com/statszon...er-stats/112133/1_PASS_01#tabs-wrapper-anchor
Blackett had a decent passing range but most of his passes were directed at the flanks and there weren't enough passes to the channels or dangerous areas in the middle of the final third.
http://www.fourfourtwo.com/statszon...yer-stats/55909/1_PASS_01#tabs-wrapper-anchor
Smalling had an extremely conservative passing range against Swansea with most of his passes in opposition's half failing to reach their target
http://www.fourfourtwo.com/statszon...yer-stats/18892/1_PASS_01#tabs-wrapper-anchor
Young had an absolute stinker when it came to passes and he played like he had an impenetrable wall in front of him and as though he had no left foot...
This is where we could have largely benefited from a defender who is comfortable in carrying the ball out of the defence and also capable of playing good incisive passes to our forwards in good positions. Hopefully, Rojo is that guy and Evans returning will help in this regard. The return of Rafael and Shaw would hugely benefit the team with the injection of pace and adventure that they provide with the ability to link up with the forward players as well. Shaw has been rather tentative in pre-season but he has the pace and ability to carry the ball and link up with players. With time he will settle in and help the team offensively.
Our midfield duo didn't have the best of games as well.
http://www.fourfourtwo.com/statszon...yer-stats/59846/1_PASS_01#tabs-wrapper-anchor
Herrera is still settling in and was at the receiving end of some real harsh tackles. He didn't have the best of games and couldn't influence proceeding enough. His passes into the final third were rather negligible and he could have been more adventurous in this regard.
http://www.fourfourtwo.com/statszon...yer-stats/14295/1_PASS_01#tabs-wrapper-anchor
Fletcher mostly made sideways or backwards passes and struggled to truly produce penetrative incisive passes into the final third. He barely made more than 2 or 3 extremely short passes into the final third anyway
Herrera is still settling in and was at the receiving end of some real harsh tackles. He didn't have the best of games and couldn't influence proceeding enough. His passes into the final third were rather negligible and he could have been more adventurous in this regard.
http://www.fourfourtwo.com/statszon...yer-stats/14295/1_PASS_01#tabs-wrapper-anchor
Fletcher mostly made sideways or backwards passes and struggled to truly produce penetrative incisive passes into the final third. He barely made more than 2 or 3 extremely short passes into the final third anyway
Which all ultimately leads to this
http://www.fourfourtwo.com/statszon...yer-stats/43670/1_PASS_07#tabs-wrapper-anchor
NOTE: This is Mata's receiving position for passes, not the passes he made.
He barely received the ball in the danger areas you would want you primary creative force to receive the ball in. He had to drop deep more often than not and he hardly made an impact in the final third as a result. Remember like I've stated earlier he is not a player who is great at dribbling or carrying the ball forward, he is great at linking up and providing killer balls when he receives the ball in dangerous areas.
Heck I would go as far as to say even David Silva would be struggling to exert an influence on a game if those were the positions he was receiving the ball in. Mata is an extremely intelligent player and always looks to find pockets of spaces like every other No 10, when he doesn't get the ball in these positions he naturally has to drop deep to get into the game. In doing so it severely impacts his game and results in him only playing up to 60-70% of his full capability. If you have a genuine top notch player like Mata and you don't provide him with the service from deep or provide him with pacy forwards/wide players making intelligent runs, you can't quite expect him to have a brilliant game.
I can see him thriving sooner or later with Evans returning, Rojo joining, hopefully Carrick returning soon with the likes of Januzaj/Welbeck providing pacy stretching runs for him to capitalize on and linking up with RVP and Rooney to good effect in the final third.
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That's a problem in my opinion among English fans, in my opinion, it's players like Mata that get you excited when they are on the ball, players like him are so clever and technical that they can produce special moments at any given time.
The stereotypical English fan wants a fast players who is direct but they need to start appreciating the talents that these type of players have.
I understand and agree with the excitment when a flying winger gets the ball but these technical players are just as exciting in my opinion.
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