The evolution of Juan Mata in the Premier League

Juan Mata – the no.10 who would be pushed to the wing

While Manchester United have had a decent start to the season, it has been far from ideal. The Red Devils squad saw a huge overhaul this summer as a slew of signings were made across the field. Understandably, a majority of the focus has been on their inability to score goals (the 7-1 aggregate win over Club Brugge aside).

Skipper Wayne Rooney has been unable to escape the spotlight, having failed to score in each of the four league games. Meanwhile, people have been discussing and dissecting the impact of the new purchases who cost a combined total of more than £100m – second only to Manchester City in the EPL.

However, one man has quietly gone about his business and started all six games in a side with huge competition for places across midfield. Juan Mata has always been a playmaker best suited for the No. 10 role, but he has been deployed on the right side of United’s midfield and succeeded in putting in a good shift in all games so far.

But it’s not just his attacking capabilities that have seen him stand out. The Spaniard has visibly made an effort, and succeeded, in the defensive aspects of his game. For a player who was discarded by Jose Mourinho for lacking defensive qualities, Mata has slowly transformed himself from an elegant playmaker to a hardworking player both on and off the ball.

Why Mata didn’t fit into Mourinho’s plans

To understand how the transformation has taken place, we need to take a look back at his career at Stamford Bridge. There was a reason he was awarded Chelsea Player of the Year twice after his arrival in 2011 – he was simply one of the best creators in the league at the time, if not the best.

Deployed centrally as a playmaker in a 4-2-3-1 system and without the added pressure of defending, Mata thrived with two midfielders behind him and the wide forwards generally tasked with the dirty work of helping out the full backs. In this system, Mata was usually sitting right behind the striker and he played in advanced positions where he found pockets of space between the midfield and defence.

Making good use of space to position himself and dictate play was arguably Mata’s biggest asset. Averaging close to 3 key passes per game, Mata was directly involved in 43 goals in the league alone in his first two seasons. His set piece delivery was also a huge bonus, with Mata having one of the best free-kick conversion rates ever in the EPL.

But when Mourinho took charge for a second spell with the Blues, he had a different template for the side as he looked to rebuild in his first season. Possession football was replaced with a counter-attacking approach where Eden Hazard, Oscar and Willian were key to Chelsea’s attack. All three players rely on their ability to drive forward with the ball, with Hazard and Willian utilizing their pace.

Jose Mourinho hauling off Juan Mata was a common and saddening sight at Chelsea

But what set them apart from Mata was their defensive contributions. Oscar, in particular, was very adept at regaining possession and winning the ball back in the final third under Mourinho, while Mata’s stats started to trail off after the Portuguese manager’s arrival. The trio of Hazard, Oscar and Willian fit Mourinho’s mould of an attack who could put in a good shift without the ball and create opportunities – either on the counter or by pressurizing the opponents in their own half.

Mata had neither the pace nor could he meet the physical demands of a Mourinho-type midfielder. That would also be the case with Andre Schurrle and Kevin De Bruyne – both of whom were also packed off by Mourinho in successive seasons.

When Manchester United came in with a bid, it was simply a matter of getting rid of a player who did not do justice to Mourinho’s system, combiend with the fact that it would significantly help the club get in line with UEFA’s Financial Fair Play regulations. Having signed a new five-year deal in 2012, there was no way he was going to Old Trafford cheap.

Mata makes his case at Manchester United

While the signing of Mata gave David Moyes a small reprieve from the unrelenting pressure associated with his below-par performances for a club of United’s stature, it did little to save his job when the Red Devils were mathematically out of the top four race. However, Mata’s arrival briefly elevated the spirits of the Old Trafford faithful for they had signed a player who was a constant thorn in their flesh whenever United played Chelsea.

Fully respecting the circumstances in which he was offloaded from Stamford Bridge, Mata was up for the “new challenge”, as he himself termed it. Though he was cup-tied, he still made his impact felt in the Premier League (six goals and four assists) in a season that was already a failure even before he’d arrived. The Red Devils were seventh in the table when they signed him and that was where they finished in May.

As the 2014/15 season started with renewed optimism following the arrival of Louis van Gaal, there were instances when Mata oscillated between looking in complete control or completely out of place as the Dutch boss switched formations every other game. As the United squad came to terms with Van Gaal’s “philosophy”, Mata was one of the few players who, although was doing much of the same in attack, had started to change his game to fit with the program.

Mata was slowly beginning to make his presence felt off the ball. The 5’7” midfielder is by no means a physical player or a ferocious tackler. But his positioning had improved to make more interceptions than other comparable players in the league such as Oscar, Mesut Ozil or even his compatriots Cesc Fabregas and David Silva.

A brace at Anfield – Mata’s best performance in a United shirt

Then came probably the high point in his United career when he was deployed as a ‘false right-winger’ in that game at Anfield where they came away with all three points in a 2-1 win. Mata had scored both goals – the winner a sublime overhead kick – that stamped his authority in a man-of-the-match performance which saw him put not one foot wrong over the 90 minutes.

This season, Van Gaal has played Mata in the same position in all six games so far – on the right in a 4-2-3-1 formation. Although the sample size is small, the stats clearly show that he is doing twice the amount of defensive work as last season – making more tackles and interceptions. While numbers do have the tendency to reveal a lot and hide other truths, there is no questioning his work rate on the pitch as he concentrates his efforts on cementing his position in a side replete with midfielders and wingers.

What is also interesting to note is that he is taking more shots on goal now than before. As he tries to mould himself into a complete goalscoring midfielder, his ability to roam into the box at the right time has come in handy. He is also playing 90 meaningful minutes without looking like he isn’t just there to make up the numbers when they lose the ball.

Will Van Gaal give Mata a consistent run of games?

At this point, it must be mentioned that Mata never had the opportunity to flourish consistently under one manager. Since he arrived in England in 2011, he has played under six different managers – Andre Villas-Boas, Roberto Di Matteo, Rafael Benitez, Jose Mourinho, David Moyes and Louis van Gaal (seven if you count Ryan Giggs) – all with different tactical set-ups. It is the constant chopping and changing of formations, tactics and players around him that have seen Mata deployed in various roles – some more suited to him than others.

This is one of the biggest factors why Mata hasn’t made the step up to the starting XI of the Spanish national team. Although a joy to watch when he is in his element, such performances were so few and far between that one would barely give him a chance to challenge the already established elite in Vicente Del Bosque’s squad that is bursting at the seams with world-class midfielders.

Will Louis van Gaal experiment with Mata again this season?

If Van Gaal is to get the best out of Mata, the Spaniard needs a consistent run of games – in one position. The time to experiment and make the transition is over. With Ander Herrera now the preferred central attacking midfielder behind Wayne Rooney and Adnan Januzaj bizarrely out on loan, there is no question that Mata’s best position is now on the right where he is given time and space to drift into the centre and link up with the energetic Matteo Darmian on the flank.

Unless Van Gaal’s philosophy calls for route-one football with Mata being sacrificed for the poster-boy of physicality in the final third – Marouane Fellaini.

All stats taken from WhoScored

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