Jose: Mata has to adapt

[AttackingFlair]

Jose Mourinho has left him out, substituted him and played him on the right wing but yesterday the Chelsea manager was finally explicit that Juan Mata, player of the year at the club for the last two seasons, is firmly behind Oscar in the pecking order as the team’s playmaker.
Chelsea’s new manager issued a detailed and passionate defence of his four-year plan for the club following two consecutive defeats, against Everton and Basel in the Champions League on Wednesday, saying that while “the project is beautiful”, the reality for his side was that “we had two very ugly results”.
Unfortunately for Mata, who played 64 games last season for his club, scoring 20 goals, there is not yet a part for him in that project. The 25-year-old has played just three games this season, only two of them starts, and is yet to complete a full 90 minutes. Mourinho said that he was unable to disclose all the reasons why the player had barely featured, although those reasons are football-related and not personal.
Mourinho said: “The reasons why, in this moment, he’s not playing so much, are things I can speak about with him but not with you. But he played against Everton from the start and you can analyse his performance. And he played against Basel, not like Demba Ba or John Obi Mikel coming in to rescue the game, but he came on when the team was winning 1-0 and had specific tasks to do.
“It’s part of a process with him, too. One option is to play with Ramires and Oscar on the wings, those two closing down each side, and Mata as a No 10 behind a striker. He can offer clever assists, clever passes, fantastic actions, because he has great talent. It’s another thing to adapt to the way we want to play.
“At this moment, Oscar is my No 10 [playmaker] and, if somebody tells me that Oscar has not been Chelsea’s best player this season, I’d have to disagree. These are football issues.”
Put simply, Mourinho said that he could not leave Oscar out “because he plays in that [No 10] position for the country with more talented players there than anywhere in the world”. Neither was he currently prepared to play Oscar wide, he said, in order to accommodate Mata in the centre. “I want to build with Oscar as my No 10. I want the other two players, on the wings, to adapt to that reality and learn how to do things they were not ready to do before.”
Mourinho’s stark analysis of Mata’s position followed a resolute pledge that he would not deviate from the course that he has plotted for Chelsea since he returned to the club in June, even if that meant a fair amount of pain along the way. Thus far, they have not won in four games and have made their worst start to a season in a decade.
“The situation is pure,” Mourinho said. “I don’t like the way Chelsea were playing in the last couple of years. The club doesn’t like it. We want to change. We have the players with the profile to change. We want to play a different style.”
He was not afraid to list what he did not like about Chelsea last season: elimination at the Champions League group stage, a third-place league finish, David Luiz playing in midfield, long balls to a “lonely striker”, Oscar tracking full-backs. He said, though, that this was not a criticism of his predecessor, Rafael Benitez. “Rafa had a different profile of job to me,” he said. “This is not a criticism; he did his job very well.” Instead, Mourinho assessed what he sees as the scale of his task as Chelsea go into a critical game at home to Fulham today. What about him pleading youthful immaturity against Basel despite fielding a team that averaged 27 years and eight months? Mourinho’s answer was that he had played “kids”, like Marco van Ginkel, in key influential positions, out of the way “at full-back”.
Asked whether it was too soon to talk about a “crisis”, Mourinho said: “Crisis of what? Syria? Ah, Chelsea. No, for me, no problems, no crisis. For me, it’s two bad results.” He said he had “never worked so hard in my life” as he was doing now.
The change in Mourinho from his previous time at Chelsea is significant. Last time he put much into cultivating the mystique of the ultra-capable, all-powerful modern coach. This time the back-story is already in place but the task in hand is more difficult – and as a result he is more given to explain his thinking in greater detail.
With Mourinho there will always be a cunning plan unfolding in the background but there is no doubt he is being more open. He conceded that there will be occasions when he will have to park the proverbial bus. “I went to Barcelona with Inter and, for 60 minutes, we played with 10 men,” he said. “If we needed to be there longer, we’d have played for another 60 minutes. But I don’t want my team to play like that.”

Article from the independent. Mata has to adapt to a wide position and track full backs if he wants to get into the Chelsea team. Jose full of praise for Oscar.

 

[anver]

Time we made an approach.

 

[Vato]

He should just put in a transfer request and leave that shower.

 

[Interval]

Think Jose will utilise him towards the second half of the season. Probably some genius mind games thingie he thinks he is playing.

 

[anver]

His mind games could feck him up. Let him keep at them.

 

[Treble]

If he can find a place for Lampard and Schurle, he must be able to accommodate Mata as well. Poor excuses from Jose. Treating Mata like that is a big mistake that's going to have unhappy consequences for the Happy one...

 

[coolredwine]

I can lol at the thought that he is down in the pecking order after Oscar.

 

[kouroux]

I used to say that Mourinho hated the spanish as some sort of joke but I'm starting to believe it to be true.

"Put simply, Mourinho said that he could not leave Oscar out “because he plays in that [No 10] position for the country with more talented players there than anywhere in the world"

 

[Castia]

He made his mind up about Mata from day 1, after last season I just don't understand Jose' thinking, he's easily their best player. Mata out wide chasing down full backs...talk about wasting a player.

 

[NoLogo]

I find this change quite interesting. While Mourinho in the past was all about instant success, which then often left the club in bad shape when he left, he seems to now have adopted a more SAF style approach. He mentioned building a team and playing style as a 4 year process, funnily the same thing that SAF pretty much talked about in his lecture at Harvard.

Of course that fits into the fact that he talked about earlier this year that now that he is 50 "the second phase of his career" has started and that now was the time to build a legacy at one club and stay there for the long run. So I guess he is okay with having a rocky start this time and maybe not fighting for the title this year if it means he can build a team that will be there to dominate the league in 3-4 years time.

I'm sure Abramovich is in on all that and pretty much got him to the club for exactly that purpose but I wonder if he really has that patience to let Mou build the team he envisions and another factor will probably be the impatience of their fans as well.

 

[Vato]

I find it a cnut's move to be talking about how important Mata is for him a few weeks ago just to come to this conclusion after the transfer window closes, it's like he's trying to ruin his year on purpose or something...

It's a fecking shame that such a great player will rot on the bench when there are many top teams out there that would be over the moon with him in the ranks.

 

[Wumminator]

I find this change quite interesting. While Mourinho in the past was all about instant success, which then often left the club in bad shape when he left, he seems to now have adopted a more SAF style approach. He mentioned building a team and playing style as a 4 year process, funnily the same thing that SAF pretty much talked about in his lecture at Harvard.

Of course that fits into the fact that he talked about earlier this year that now that he is 50 "the second phase of his career" has started and that now was the time to build a legacy at one club and stay there for the long run. So I guess he is okay with having a rocky start this time and maybe not fighting for the title this year if it means he can build a team that will be there to dominate the league in 3-4 years time.

I'm sure Abramovich is in on all that and pretty much got him to the club for exactly that purpose but I wonder if he really has that patience to let Mou build the team he envisions and another factor will probably be the impatience of their fans as well.

Yeah but saying it and thinking it is all well and good. He's never shown any attempt at doing it before though so it might not work

 

[amolbhatia50k]

I find this change quite interesting. While Mourinho in the past was all about instant success, which then often left the club in bad shape when he left, he seems to now have adopted a more SAF style approach. He mentioned building a team and playing style as a 4 year process, funnily the same thing that SAF pretty much talked about in his lecture at Harvard.

Of course that fits into the fact that he talked about earlier this year that now that he is 50 "the second phase of his career" has started and that now was the time to build a legacy at one club and stay there for the long run. So I guess he is okay with having a rocky start this time and maybe not fighting for the title this year if it means he can build a team that will be there to dominate the league in 3-4 years time.

I'm sure Abramovich is in on all that and pretty much got him to the club for exactly that purpose but I wonder if he really has that patience to let Mou build the team he envisions and another factor will probably be the impatience of their fans as well.

Even if that true, I still think you don't drop your best player like this. Mata is outstanding and mourinho is missing a trick by not using him well.

 

[kouroux]

I find it a cnut's move to be talking about how important Mata is for him a few weeks ago just to come to this conclusion after the transfer window closes, it's like he's trying to ruin his year on purpose or something...

It's a fecking shame that such a great player will rot on the bench when there are many top teams out there that would be over the moon with him in the ranks.

These top teams are in a way rubbing their hands as Mata won't wanna stay for long at Chelsea if his situation doesn't improve.

 

[NoLogo]

Even if that true, I still think you don't drop your best player like this. Mata is outstanding and mourinho is missing a trick by not using him well.

If he doesn't fit the system why not? It's like he said more a matter if Mata will be able and willing to adept and if not he gets sold, simple. Isn't there the famous phrase surrounding our club "no player is bigger then the club"? Same goes for Mata at Chelsea if he doesn't fit the way Mou wants them to play he needs to move on, not that I would be unhappy about it.

Naturally we can have different opinions then Mourinho about if he would fit into the team and the way he wants the to play but I have a feeling that the only one who can really make that judgment is the man himself. If his plan will work out is on another page that still needs to be written.

 

[Vato]

These top teams are in a way rubbing their hands as Mata won't wanna stay for long at Chelsea if his situation doesn't improve.

Still a damn shame for the player though, I wouldn't mind if it happened to a cnut like Torres but Mata seems like such a nice guy and on top of that he's originally from Asturias in Spain like me, so I'm a bit biased towards him.

 

[amolbhatia50k]

If he doesn't fit the system why not? It's like he said more a matter if Mata will be able and willing to adept and if not he gets sold, simple. Isn't there the famous phrase surrounding our club "no player is bigger then the club"? Same goes for Mata at Chelsea if he doesn't fit the way Mou wants them to play he needs to move on, not that I would be unhappy about it.

Naturally we can have different opinions then Mourinho about if he would fit into the team and the way he wants the to play but I have a feeling that the only one who can really make that judgment is the man himself. If his plan will work out is on another page that still needs to be written.

Are you actually buying his reason? How does mata not fit Chelsea's system? Firstly he's a much better player than oscar and should be playing ahead of him and secondly, does hazard or his other wide players defend fantastically? I don't see how they are any better defensively than mata. And he's better on the ball than all of them.

 

[NoLogo]

Yeah but saying it and thinking it is all well and good. He's never shown any attempt at doing it before though so it might not work

Of course it might not work and I think especially at a club like Chelsea with a boss as unstable as Abramovich there is a high chance of it all going tits up but maybe Abramovich has gotten a bit more clam about things after winning the CL and the EL, not very likely but still a possibility.

 

[amolbhatia50k]

These top teams are in a way rubbing their hands as Mata won't wanna stay for long at Chelsea if his situation doesn't improve.

Would be brilliant if we went for him in jan or the summer but they'll probably sell him abroad.

Interesting how moyes had the "situation" with Rooney and has gotten him motivated and in good condition and form, whereas mourinho had a motivated player in a good condition and form but has made a "situation" out of it

 

[amolbhatia50k]

Of course it might not work and I think especially at a club like Chelsea with a boss as unstable as Abramovich there is a high chance of it all going tits up but maybe Abramovich has gotten a bit more clam about things after winning the CL and the EL, not very likely but still a possibility.

If long term sustainable success was his goal, and he sat down and looked at his options on that basis, then Chelsea is a very strange choice for that purpose. You can't say he tried to do something long term and it just didn't work out because he didn't have go to chelsea.

 

[MDFC Manager]

Does anyone else get the feeling that Jose is trying to appear like a clueless cnut on purpose?

 

[NoLogo]

Are you actually buying his reason? How does mata not fit Chelsea's system? Firstly he's a much better player than oscar and should be playing ahead of him and secondly, does hazard or his other wide players defend fantastically? I don't see how they are any better defensively than mata. And he's better on the ball than all of them.

What do you think is the reason then? That he hates Spaniards after his years at RM and doesn't play him because of his nationality? I issued this theory before but if he comes out and explains that he isn't fitting into the system he wants to play I take that for an answer because it quite frankly makes more sense.

I know I'm probably naive in trusting a coach of his caliber that he knows what he is doing.

 

[devilish]

We should focus on having Rooney sign a new contract. After that we can try and get Mata. A 4-2-3-1 system with Mata-Rooney-Nani backing RVP would be tremendous.

 

[NoLogo]

If long term sustainable success was his goal, and he sat down and looked at his options on that basis, then Chelsea is a very strange choice for that purpose. You can't say he tried to do something long term and it just didn't work out because he didn't have go to chelsea.

How do you know what Roman and Mou talked about when they agreed he would come back? You think Mou didn't reveal to him his plans of wanting a long term approach and building a legacy that could last for decades? Roman will know exactly what Mou's plans are and considering that he brought him back into the club seems to suggest he is on board with all that but like I said it might go all tits up considering that the Russian oligarch isn't well known for being a patient or rational man.

 

[amolbhatia50k]

What do you think is the reason then? That he hates Spaniards after his years at RM and doesn't play him because of his nationality? I issued this theory before but if he comes out and explains that he isn't fitting into the system he wants to play I take that for an answer because it quite frankly makes more sense.

I know I'm probably naive in trusting a coach of his caliber that he knows what he is doing.

I guess what I meant is that if that's the reason do you actually buy it being the correct one. I personally don't think so. He might be doing it for that reason, he might not be, but he's basically gone there and nullified the best thing Chelsea had going for them over the last few years. That's not great management imo.

 

[NoLogo]

These top teams are in a way rubbing their hands as Mata won't wanna stay for long at Chelsea if his situation doesn't improve.

Of course a lot of teams will be in for him and I hope we are too but I can't really see it happening unless we agree to sell them Rooney, which imo is fairly unlikely because we would probably prefer to sell him abroad.

 

[amolbhatia50k]

How do you know what Roman and Mou talked about when they agreed he would come back? You think Mou didn't reveal to him his plans of wanting a long term approach and building a legacy that could last for decades? Roman will know exactly what Mou's plans are and considering that he brought him back into the club seems to suggest he is on board with all that but like I said it might go all tits up considering that the Russian oligarch isn't well known for being a patient or rational man.

That's true. You never know, maybe roman has turned a new leaf. But I'm skeptical over this working long term.

 

[Vato]

We should focus on having Rooney sign a new contract. After that we can try and get Mata. A 4-2-3-1 system with Mata-Rooney-Nani backing RVP would be tremendous.

So he'd leave Chelsea because he'd have to move to the left wing just to come to United to play on the left wing?

 

[LR7]

Mata is a fan favourite and whilst they were all creaming themselves over Mou's return, the fans aren't happy about Mata being left out, especially when they aren't winning games or playing good attractive football without him. Chelsea's win % with and without Mata in the team is shocking iirc. Mata is a proven match winner for Chelsea, why Mourinho would want to leave him out and force him to play a more defensive game if he wants to get back into the team is beyond me.
Mourinho seems to be picking up where he left at Madrid, instilling disharmony when he should be giving players like Mata confidence. Lucky thing for him is that Mata is unlikely to voice any discontent.

 

[The Man Himself]

Time we made an approach.

Came in to see how long before similar comment in this thread
You are right that we should be in for him but after Rooney episode, Chelsea won' be selling to us especially when there will be many clubs interested in Mata, including from abroad.

 

[NoLogo]

I guess what I meant is that if that's the reason do you actually buy it being the correct one. I personally don't think so. He might be doing it for that reason, he might not be, but he's basically gone there and nullified the best thing Chelsea had going for them over the last few years. That's not great management imo.

Yes I buy it because like I said it all depends on how long you are planing. Alan Hansen also thought we couldn't win anything with kids essentially criticizing that we had gotten rid of some our more experienced players in 1995 and trust our younger players. It payed off quite well for us almost exactly 4 years later with the same kids winning the treble and SAF had proven that it was worth trusting these youngsters in the long run.

Of course I'm not saying it will all pay off for Mou in the end because you can't really be 100% certain that a plan such as this will always work and he might very well regret it later on when Mata leaves and tears his team a new one wearing the our red jersey.

 

[NoLogo]

That's true. You never know, maybe roman has turned a new leaf. But I'm skeptical over this working long term.

Yes I'm skeptical as well but let's be honest if every risk of failure meant you shouldn't try it and just play it save football would be really boring and we would never have become the club that we are now.

 

[peterstorey]

Mourinho is full of shit as ever.

 

[duffer]

I really thought that the idea of Jose not rating Mata was crazy but it seems to be the case.

Madness Jose!

 

[NoLogo]

So he'd leave Chelsea because he'd have to move to the left wing just to come to United to play on the left wing?

Still better then signing for your club and playing water carrier for Ronnie and the talented Mr. Ripley.

No you are of course right that would make little sense. Only thing I can really see this deal happening is if he is still at Chelsea next summer and Rooney won't sign a new contract. Then we might be able to agree some sort of swap or something, we would finally have a real number 10 and Rooney could fall victim to the striker curse at Stamford Bridge.

 

[amolbhatia50k]

Yes I'm skeptical as well but let's be honest if every risk of failure meant you shouldn't try it and just play it save football would be really boring and we would never have become the club that we are now.

It's also about right and wrong decisions. If he gets booted out, for the intentions of long term club building it would be the wrong decision, brave risk or not.

 

[AttackingFlair]

So he'd leave Chelsea because he'd have to move to the left wing just to come to United to play on the left wing?

He can't even get into Jose's team on the left wing yet.

 

[amolbhatia50k]

Yes I buy it because like I said it all depends on how long you are planing. Alan Hansen also thought we couldn't win anything with kids essentially criticizing that we had gotten rid of some our more experienced players in 1995 and trust our younger players. It payed off quite well for us almost exactly 4 years later with the same kids winning the treble and SAF had proven that it was worth trusting these youngsters in the long run.

Of course I'm not saying it will all pay off for Mou in the end because you can't really be 100% certain that a plan such as this will always work and he might very well regret it later on when Mata leaves and tears his team a new one wearing the our red jersey.

You seem to be going off your faith in mourinho's managerial ability completely though. What about the case on its own merits? If mourinho had been the one to sell Ozil and not madrid's president, would you still stand by it. I'm never in favor of letting go off these top players unless they start holding the team back via their football or attitude, and if I saw that in mata I'd agree. But he seems, to me, to be nothing but a great asset to the Chelsea team.

 

[NoLogo]

It's also about right and wrong decisions. If he gets booted out, for the intentions of long term club building it would be the wrong decision, brave risk or not.

Given the history of Abramovich choosing Chelsea to build something for the long run might very well have been the wrong choice but maybe that was the only really good offer he got. We decided to go for Moyes so that option was out of the question but if City is a more stable place remains to be seen and we don't even know if they really tried to get him and apart from this there weren't any sutiable options for him in the PL really. I think it was more a case of having not much else to chose from.

 

[Vato]

He can't even get into Jose's team on the left wing yet.

Good point.