Why Mourinho was right to let go of Mata who could become the Special Juan at Manchester United

Signing a world class player like Juan Mata will be a big relief for David Moyes after the debacle of the summer transfer window.

With the World Cup just around the corner and the FFP about to kick in, the fact that the Spaniard started only 11 of Chelsea’s 21 league games (completing 90 mins on just 2 occasions) proved a decisive factor in Moyes managing to bring Mata to Old Trafford.

So was Mourinho right to sell Mata?

Stats show that Juan Mata started for Chelsea in all 3 of their League defeats this season and a side built around him was unable to challenge for the League in the past 2 seasons.

Jose Mourinho clearly wants his front men to press the opposition and contribute defensively and it can clearly be seen that both Willian and Oscar contribute much more defensively than Mata.

Attacking wise Hazard and Willian seem to contribute much more to than Juan Mata. Therefore we can clearly see that Mourinho is justified in playing Hazard over Mata on the left wing and and Oscar over Mata as a CAM. Willian’s defensive contribution combined with his flair and versatility makes him the third player of Chelsea’s attacking armada.

What will Mata bring to Old Trafford?

One of the main reasons for United’s struggles this season is their lack of creativity. Only Wayne Rooney has created more chances per game than Jaun Mata and no other United player has created more than 2 chances per game. Mata will surely help ease United’s over-reliance on Wayne Rooney (United have won just one game since Rooney’s injury against Spurs).

Most of the United’s attacks are built through either the left or right. As per WhoScored.com, 44% of United’s attacks were originated from the right hand side which is a league-high, while they have the league-lowest rating of 24% for the attack through the centre of the field.

The rate of 27 crosses per game clearly shows that David Moyes is depending more on their wingers this season for creating the chances.

How will United line up?

Considering everyone is fit – this would be United’s strongest line up with Mata and Januzaj playing as false wingers who are given the license to roam infield and link up with the attack.

United have attempted more crosses than any other team this season but rank 17^th for their crossing accuracy. Stats show that United have had more than 500 failed crosses this season with Antonio Valencia being the culprit on most occasions.

Based on the heat map this season, Moyes’ team have looked static and lost at times and clearly lacked the fluidity of Ferguson’s team.

Maybe a shift in formation to a fluid 4-2-3-1 with a team built around their talisman – Rooney, their star signing – Mata and their starlet – Januzaj will result in Manchester United playing exciting football once again.

Stats taken from: whoscored.com