The Juan Mata v Di Maria Debate (Liverpool) | Poll added

Who do you want to see out wide against Liverpool?

  • Total voters
    174
khoazany said:
Di Maria any day of the week if we need a winger.
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I like Di Maria like Bale started at Tottenham: further back than a true winger. He is far better at beating a midfielder and causing hell between the lines than taking on a fullback wide in the final third.

For me, Di Maria is at his most wasteful and least creative as a winger, so far.
 
Not real sure on this one.

Unless Di Maria has been killing it in training, it'd be hard to justify him over Mata after the last match. However, there may be better tactical options against Liverpool's wide men/side midfielder's than Mata.
 
Distracted Steward said:
Not real sure on this one.

Unless Di Maria has been killing it in training, it'd be hard to justify him over Mata after the last match. However, there may be better tactical options against Liverpool's wide men/side midfielder's than Mata.
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Mata deserves to keep his spot but it will be interesting against Liverpool as Sakho is a weak link when pressed and I`m not convinced Mata is the man to press him .
 
djembatheking said:
Mata deserves to keep his spot but it will be interesting against Liverpool as Sakho is a weak link when pressed and I`m not convinced Mata is the man to press him .
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How much does Sakho come up with the ball?

I could see Fellaini giving him hell either way. With Mata just inside of him to get the short pass, that would spring some good quick attacks.
 
IMO Di Maria has a poor effect on the mentality of the team. Players are looking for inspiration from our 'supposed' best player but he constantly loses the ball and then doesn't even track back.

He's obviously a class player but he needs to toughen up(stop falling over when the wind changes direction), build some upper body strength, generally look like he wants to be here & work a lot harder.

Currently he doesn't warrant his first team place, so Mata and Young should start with Di Maria on the bench.
 
This is such a hard one because if Di Maria plays very well then we will beat Liverpool. Then again if Mata plays to his best we can beat them. But which one is more likely?
I say Mata is more likely to play nearer to his best but I reckon LVG will go with Di Maria.
 
How about the option Young, Di Maria and Mata ?

----------------------DDG-----------------------------
Valencia----Smalling----Jones---------Blind
--------------------Carrick-----------------------
-----------Herrera--------Di Maria-------------
Mata--------------Rooney-------------Young
 
I've only just finished watching the game after a busy week. I actually wasn't particularly impressed with Mata. Surprised at the results to this poll. I thought he had the least impact of any of our offensive players. His complete lack of pace killed a few potential breaks dead.

I feel the same way I felt under Moyes. Mata needs to be played in the central #10 role. He is nothing like as effective out wide.

I should clarify that this isn't to say he had a good game against Spurs. Just that I think di Maria will have more of an impact in that wide role.
 
Mata drifting in from the right, Di Maria stretching the play on the left, Rooney up top, and 3 central midfielders. Incredibly harsh on Young.
 
I can't remember a time I've been torn like this. Perfect 50:50 in my head right now.

Mata - makes the team play better, deserves it for last week.

Di Maria - offers more threat with his pace and that could be key to pinning them back and creating space.


I think rather than picking for tactical reason I'd have to say Mata to see if we can recreate the Spurs performance and Di Maria makes an excellent impact sub.
 
Pexbo said:
I can't remember a time I've been torn like this. Perfect 50:50 in my head right now.

Mata - makes the team play better, deserves it for last week.

Di Maria - offers more threat with his pace and that could be key to pinning them back and creating space.


I think rather than picking for tactical reason I'd have to say Mata to see if we can recreate the Spurs performance and Di Maria makes an excellent impact sub.
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Agree with this. On normal game, I'd keep Mata. But somehow against Liverpool, I feel that we need players who can play hard, and has pace. But then, why would you change a team that did so well.
 
Mata generally struggles to make an impact in away games. However, he offers a significantly better goal threat than Di Maria. Hard call
 
I'd go with Di Maria only because this is an away game, and i think Mata will struggle with the physicality of it.
 
I do not consider Mata a winger but he did well in that position so I'd go for that 4-3-3 again and use him the same way with Herrera on the right

De Gea

Rafael(!) Smalling Rojo Shaw or Blind

Herrera Carrick Fellaini

Mata Rooney di Maria​
 
The match before Newcastle everyone though Adnan deserved to start. He didn't get the nod, surprisingly and now everyone forgets about him.

The upside is far greater than what Young can provide, especially when you factor Young is nearly 30 and his time here is going to be drawing to an end.

Di Maria, Mata, and Januzaj for me.
 
Why would you reward excellent performances from Young, Fellaini and Mata with a benching? Madness to suggest it.
 
TwoSheds said:
Why would you reward excellent performances from Young, Fellaini and Mata with a benching? Madness to suggest it.
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You have to take the context of the opposition into consideration, Liverpool are a very fast team who play possession football, we will need pace to counter them and Mata has none, where as Di Maria's biggest strength is his counter attacking ability.
 
Sied said:
I've only just finished watching the game after a busy week. I actually wasn't particularly impressed with Mata. Surprised at the results to this poll. I thought he had the least impact of any of our offensive players. His complete lack of pace killed a few potential breaks dead.

I feel the same way I felt under Moyes. Mata needs to be played in the central #10 role. He is nothing like as effective out wide.

I should clarify that this isn't to say he had a good game against Spurs. Just that I think di Maria will have more of an impact in that wide role.
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I agree with you somewhat. I do think Matas performance in that game has been blown out of proportion a bit. He had a decent game but I agree he had the least impact out of all the offensive players.

Its such a hard choice between Mata and Di Maria for me. But I am slightly leaning towards Mata and that's because one of the reasons I think we were so good against Spurs was because everyone new each others role, everyone was comfortable on the ball and everyone linked up well and kept possession which is of course what Van Gaal wants with his "Philosophy". Mata can do this well and helps knit everything together, where as Di Maria doesn't. On his own I would say Di Maria is more effective and dangerous but in a possession football team which Van Gaal is trying to create, then Di Maria disrupts that. He will lose possession a lot, constantly go for the Hollywood pass/cross or shoot or dribble and get barged off the ball, this completely goes against what Van Gaal is trying to achieve.

So I would go with Mata. Unless we are going to forget the possession football and sit back and counter attack then Di Maria would be the better option.
 
I did want to see Young and Di Maria before because I felt we could hurt Liverpool on the counter, but the more I think about it, I actually feel, given the right players, we could boss the game (well not boss it, but have more possession), and Mata is someone you put in to help you keep the ball, especially under the press Liverpool will put us under.

However, I've noticed that Liverpool only press from last third/middle third of the pitch of the oppositions half, then when it gets into their half, they kind of let the opposition have the ball, and if they win it, that's when they counter. That's my only worry - the counter, and how Mata will cope getting back, but I think he'll be fine.

People say Spurs were poor the other day, but when they had the ball, as Van Gaal said, we set up in a 4141, made ourselves narrow and compact, and made it very hard for Spurs to find pockets of space, thus forcing them to go wide.

I'm quietly confident for this game, despite Liverpool's good run of form.
 
Thank feck LVG went with Mata.

He got the big call right. At the moment, I would rather have Januzaj ahead of Di Maria. I think he needs some time out the spotlight.
 
LVG called this one right. Mata got both goals and got motm. Di Maria imo was poor when he came on.
 
In ideal case it could be Mata and diMaria, but the latter is so dreadful these days, I'd take Young - Mata again..
 
Having both of them on the pitch produced THAT goal though. :p
 
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