Chelsea: What's the Mata with Mourinho?

One of the simplest rules to be successful in football, or any sport for that matter, is to play your best players week in and week out. Unfortunately, Jose Mourinho seems to have forgotten this and his cold treatment towards Juan Mata is one that defies all logic.

Or does it?

There are conspiracy theories that the Chelsea manager is reluctant to pick the Spaniard because of what transpired during his days in Madrid. Back in 2011, Mourinho signed Fabio Coentrao for €30m. But a little later, Mata, a Madrid youth product – who Real Madrid were also interested in – went to Chelsea for lesser and rumors did the rounds that Mourinho had no cash in the bank after spending it all on the Portugal international left-back.

Fabio Coentrao’s agent was Jorge Mendes and Mourinho’s preference for players managed by the super-agent meant the club lost out on Mata. Back then, Mourinho said that the reason he didn’t sign Mata was because he didn’t fancy him and not because he didn’t have the funds. But, if Mata was to play for Chelsea now, the stories of him picking one of Mendes’ clients over Mata would be vindicated and some believe that it is precisely why Mata isn’t playing right now.

Then there are those that believe that his hatred for Rafael Benitez has led him to ostracizing players that publicly supported the Spaniard. Mata and David Luiz are two prime candidates who have barely gotten any game time since Mourinho arrived. And finally, there is Mourinho’s own admission that he prefers Oscar, who he believes is a more complete player.

Whilst all these conspiracy theories are doing the rounds, there are also a bunch of Mourinho’s loyal supporters who have a completely different reason for Mata’s limited playing time. Some claim that after an exhausting campaign, which saw the Spaniard play over 60 games and also in the Confederations Cup, Mata is just getting back to full fitness. When he is back in form, they claim that Mourinho will play him and is merely waiting for the opportune moment as he did against Swindon.

The truth, however, is somewhere between the two. And whilst the player has been critical of Mourinho, it seems illogical to keep one of the team’s finest attackers on the sidelines, just because you don’t like him. But that is exactly what Mourinho is doing right now. For all the talk of Mourinho wanting his players to develop a defensive facet to their game, how is Juan Mata supposed to show that he can adapt, when he can’t even make the side?

After all, Tuesday’s night game against Swindon Town was the first time the Spaniard completed the entire 90 minutes since Mourinho’s return to Stamford Bridge. The Spaniard ended the game boasting a 95 % passing accuracy, and somewhat surprisingly, completed three tackles and committed three fouls. The latter two are startling statistics which are out of character for the play-maker, but one that shows that Mata is more than willing to get accustomed to playing his defensive duties as well.

Mata’s improved work rate against Swindon was on the back of Mourinho’s recent comments of wanting his midfielders to do a better job of occupying midfielders off the ball. After the game, the Spaniard said “It’s easy for me to focus on football and just do what I have to do.” The Spanish international attacker also went on to say that he has “played in three positions” and that he is “comfortable playing in any offensive position.”

On the face of it, there is not much room for debate. Dropping a European Championship and World Cup winner, the club’s current Player’s Player of the year, and one of the finest attackers in the world from the side, on the basis that he is defensively suspect, seems downright silly to say the least.

Whilst it is easy to argue that it is wrong to drop Mata, the fact is that this is Mourinho we’re talking about after all. And for someone, who is known to value functionality over flamboyance, the move should come as no surprise. And whilst it may not be a popular decision to overlook the club’s most potent attacker from last season, only time will tell if Mourinho was right or not. But, the fact is that, whether by design or default, Mourinho’s insistence of ostracizing Mata is in no one’s best interest.