Juan Mata | 2013/14 Performances

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Kevin said:
Meh. Been a bit of a nothing player for us so far plus a nice little flick or touch here and there.

Hope he does not go down the Ozil road for us.
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So far he's not given us that much in terms of solid end product, but I wouldn't go that far. We look far better when he's on the pitch, for example our ball retention in the final third is drastically better. There have been dozens of times (there's a few in that video) where he's managed to perfectly control a wayward or overhit pass to keep us on the front foot where otherwise we'd have lost possession. Ultimately these things add up, pressure tells etc.

That's not to say I don't expect more from him going forward, on his Chelsea form he's up there as one of the best in the country and I expect him to step up and justify the investment in the coming months, but I think 'nothing player' is a little harsh. It's early days.
 
It's not "a little harsh" ... it's utter nonsense. It's a compltely black and white statement... "Oh, Mata hasn't got 5 assists and 8 goals in his first 5 games.... he's a nothing player" ... when I think it'd very evident that we have begun to play much better football with him on the pitch (and there's a perfect counter-point in that the Olympiakos game is how we played without him...)
 
Annihilate Now! said:
It's not "a little harsh" ... it's utter nonsense. It's a compltely black and white statement... "Oh, Mata hasn't got 5 assists and 8 goals in his first 5 games.... he's a nothing player" ... when I think it'd very evident that we have begun to play much better football with him on the pitch (and there's a perfect counter-point in that the Olympiakos game is how we played without him...)
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Poor choice of words on my part there, I was trying to be diplomatic rather than having a go at Mata.
 
Annihilate Now! said:
when I think it'd very evident that we have begun to play much better football with him on the pitch (and there's a perfect counter-point in that the Olympiakos game is how we played without him...)
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Nah, Kagawa came on against Olympiakos and there was instant improvement as well. It's more the system and putting anyone competent in his rightful position on the pitch rather than Mata's individual qualities that influences our play from retardo to retardo almosto level.

We didn't play "much better football" in all the matches Mata's played in apart from the recent Crystal Palace and West Brom games, where his contributions seem more of that of a luxurious player than anything else. It wasn't Mata that 'inspired' us in either game.
 
Kevin said:
Nah, Kagawa came on against Olympiakos and there was instant improvement as well. It's more the system and putting anyone competent in his rightful position on the pitch rather than Mata's individual qualities that influences our play from retardo to retardo almosto level.

We didn't play "much better football" in all the matches Mata's played in apart from the recent Crystal Palace and West Brom games, where his contributions seem more of that of a luxurious player than anything else. It wasn't Mata that 'inspired' us in either game.
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So we didn't "play much better" - apart from in 50% of the games he's played in?! Right you are then... no coincedence there.
 
Annihilate Now! said:
So we didn't "play much better" - apart from in 50% of the games he's played in?! Right you are then... no coincedence there.
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Correct. I'd say the ''coincidence" lies in the fact that we didn't start Young and Valencia rather than Messi-like displays from Mata that caused for an ever so slight boost in our performances in these particular matches (and there's a perfect counter-point in that the Olympiakos game is how we played with both of them...)

Moyes played a little better.
 
Kevin said:
Correct. I'd say the ''coincidence" lies in the fact that we didn't start Young and Valencia rather than Messi-like displays from Mata that caused for an ever so slight boost in our performances in these particular matches (and there's a perfect counter-point in that the Olympiakos game is how we played with both of them...)

Moyes played a little better.
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So we played better because we didn't play rubbish players like Young and Valencia - but the person who displaced them (Mata) has also been rubbish - but we still played better, because it's a different sort of rubbish?

Never mind the fact that Mata had more of the ball then any of our 4 attacking players in both those games mentioned... thus you could say is a key element to the different approach taken in both those games.

Has he set the world on fire? No... there's definitely still more to come from him, but to say he has been a "nothing" player is just absurd. He's clearly a) an improvement on what we had and b) is a player who actually wants the ball and tries to do things with it, thus making us look more inventive and interesting as a result. He's brought a different style to the table, and we've been better for it.
 
Annihilate Now! said:
So we played better because we didn't play rubbish players like Young and Valencia - but the person who displaced them (Mata) has also been rubbish - but we still played better, because it's a different sort of rubbish?

Never mind the fact that Mata had more of the ball then any of our 4 attacking players in both those games mentioned... thus you could say is a key element to the different approach taken in both those games.

Has he set the world on fire? No... there's definitely still more to come from him, but to say he has been a "nothing" player is just absurd. He's clearly a) an improvement on what we had and b) is a player who actually wants the ball and tries to do things with it, thus making us look more inventive and interesting as a result. He's brought a different style to the table, and we've been better for it.
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Indeed, Mata and Januzaj are better than Young and Valencia and has improved our play somewhat. Is that because of Mata's brilliance? Yes if you are satisfied by a technically capable player mostly doing the simple things right and be a source of stability in the team, no if you remember his performances for Chelsea and know what he is capable of and what he is bought for - he has indeed been a bit naff when you compare him to that.

Case in point: 60% of this thread has been homo-erotic posts about his looks, 25% are lyrical praise about a gif and videos of that ice-skating move, 10% about what a genuine and nice guy he reading his weekly blog and the rest are tidbits like ''he hasn't been great, but I thought he came more into his own in that second half..."
 
Kevin said:
Indeed, Mata and Januzaj are better than Young and Valencia and has improved our play somewhat. Is that because of Mata's brilliance? Yes if you are satisfied by a technically capable player mostly doing the simple things right and be a source of stability in the team...
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Well the he hasn't been a "nothing player" has he?!
 
Kevin said:
Indeed, Mata and Januzaj are better than Young and Valencia and has improved our play somewhat. Is that because of Mata's brilliance? Yes if you are satisfied by a technically capable player mostly doing the simple things right and be a source of stability in the team, no if you remember his performances for Chelsea and know what he is capable of and what he is bought for - he has indeed been a bit naff when you compare him to that.

Case in point: 60% of this thread has been homo-erotic posts about his looks, 25% are lyrical praise about a gif and videos of that ice-skating move, 10% about what a genuine and nice guy he reading his weekly blog and the rest are tidbits like ''he hasn't been great, but I thought he came more into his own in that second half..."
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Delicious irony, coming from a Kagawa cheerleader.
 
People are expecting too much too soon, the team is trying to find a balance and the right way to use him. We will never get the best out of him out wide and I still feel we lack genuine pace in the final third. For me there is still a Van Perise/Rooney choice to be made before we get to see the best of Mata.
 
if anything mata's form suggests how big our systematic issues have been. that looking to one player to revolutionise the way we play is a bit much
 
Important Update

Further to the megathreads announcement, this megathread has been renamed and should be confined to discussing Juan Mata's performances this season. For any other discussions about Juan Mata, please bump or create separate threads.

Thanks!
 
Gladiator said:
if anything mata's form suggests how big our systematic issues have been. that looking to one player to revolutionise the way we play is a bit much
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Definitely. Moyes can't stick him into the same old way we are playing and expect him to massively improve us. He's not like C. Ronaldo or Inrahimovic. When we were playing the way that suited Mata's ability better (CP away, WBA home), he had more of an impact.

I think, initially, Moyes bought him so he can provide more passes forward/into the box (i.e. take more risks) from the wider, deeper areas. Good thing Moyes learned his lesson.
 
Glad to see him get player of the month. Him and de Gea are just lovely blokes. The Spanish ey, a great bunch of lads.
 
Reupload. Here's another Mata video I have created. All his "best" - subjective of course so please don't castrate me yet - passes in a Manchester United shirt.



Had to add effects to stop it from being taken down. I sold out like Tinie Tempah.
 
Yeah Mata hasn't really put in match winning performances, but Ozil's had a pretty dire month.
 
MoneyMay said:
Reupload. Here's another Mata video I have created. All his "best" - subjective of course so please don't castrate me yet - passes in a Manchester United shirt.



Had to add effects to stop it from being taken down. I sold out like Tinie Tempah.
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How does adding effects make a difference?
 
alastair said:
Has Mata been better than Ozil in the last month?

Hmmmm.
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I think so. Ozil only had two good games (against us and Liverpool) last month. However, Mata is still yet to play at his best for us.
Niall said:
How does adding effects make a difference?
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It stops the FA from recognising that it's their footage. I've tried to increase the contrast before, but that doesn't always help. If I use the effect above, it's going to be very hard for anyone to claim the content as theirs, and thus the video will remain. I always try to keep a clean look on my videos and try not to overdo anything, but it's been so hard to keep my videos up without these effects. My Van Persie video was blocked, for example. We'll see how it goes I suppose.
 
Mata is just one building block in a rebuild, I think it's one think to retain possession, but another to be creative whilst keeping the ball, Barcelona are a prime example, probing openings, if the ball isn't right the player will pass it back out to start the build again then have runners in behind (defenders are sometimes caught as they can't focus the entire time, sometimes ball watching with runners in behind, focusing so much on keeping their shape).

I think Mata is good running with the ball, inventive, keeps the ball, well worth his £37.5M tag, this summer we need 3 more midfielders in my opinion, world class, keep the ball, maybe bring in a winger too, a CB, the team will be incredible, I don't think Moyes has done a bad job with Fellaini and Mata at all.

Watch the new players next season, Mata, Fellaini & new-comers do what they do best after having a bit of a break, and a full pre-season under their belt.
 
kouroux said:
Did he really deserve that POTM award in all honesty ? I'd have given it to DDG
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He did not. Was a bit naff, as proven by the content in this thread: many are doing the pork sword jiggle over Mata's gliding touch gif/his looks/his blog entries. A few comments about how he came more into his own in second half of a particular match.

Hardly dazzling stuff.
 
Can't shoot, won't shoot. What happened to this?



 
Kagawa mark II. Actually Kagawa was more impressive in his first season. Not surprised though with those dinosaur tactics
 
Has he always been this slow? Feel sorry for him really. He's got next to no chance of making the WC squad now.
 
We've even managed to make Juan Mata look shit. I swear we're becoming a graveyard for talented players.

Come to United if you want to have all the spark and flair drilled out of you!
 
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