We'd be several points worse off without his contribution statistically.
8
Season Average Rating
- Appearances
- 35
- Goals
- 10
- Assists
- 4
- Yellow cards
- 2
- Status
No, apparently you don't. Based on the evidence here he is a useless piece of shit who never did anything of merit and we should tear his contract up. The cafe has spoken.
Most of his assists since he has joined have been half assists ( as in the ball is passed to someone then a goal is scored rather than him 'setting up' the goal ). His goals have been handy but when you're playing as a no10 his primary role is to create and Mata has been extremeley disappointing in this regard. We have Rooney , RVP and Falcao all of which are more than capable of scoring 20+ goals a season but in order for them to do that they need the service and creativity and this should be coming pre-dominantly from Mata. On the contrary, most of it is coming from Di Maria, Rooney and even Valencia. Yes Di Maria is a better creator but he has only played a few games in the position which he creates most effectively and yet tops our assists charts.
Mata has generally done absolutely feck all in terms of creativity this season ( He was infact better in that regard last season ) and we really don't need him in terms of goals as I've already mentioned so why have him on the pitch ? On top of this when we don't have the ball, he's a complete and utter passenger which wouldn't be as much of a problem if he actually did something when we do have the ball.
Basically, IMO, his all round game has become quite atrocious. We might as well play him as one of the strikers and stick Di Maria in the hole because Mata offers nothing there anymore. I know he is capable of a lot more but the fact is he is not showing it and he hasn't showed it for a length of time now. His goals have really papered over the cracks.
Basically, what I'm trying to say is that I would happily sacrifice Mata's productivity for someone who actually gets the game flowing in the final third like Silva for City where although his productivity is not that impressive, he brings out the best in the players around him and his primary focus is to create chances, which he does several times a game. If we had someone in this mould that we could focus our play around in the final third, I think our attacking play would improve exponentially. Mata's game has been reduced to passing the ball sideways, backwards, or to the wing and then making a run into the box looking to poach a goal. It seems he is no longer capable of threading through a penetrating pass in the final third and this is arguably the most important aspect to a number 10's game.
I don't give a flying feck what he has done for Chelsea. He's not doing the same for United and should be benched based on his recent performances.
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Ok, so first of all, do "half assists" not count? Does the goal at the end of them not count?
Second, Rooney Falcao and RvP have not shown this season that 20 points is a realistic target for any of them. Its not Mata's fault that they've all been pretty average in front of net. I agree that Mata is not at his best currently but the state of the witch hunt he's getting this season is absolutely over the top. he is an excellent player that would make it into the squad for most of the best teams in the world.
We shouldn't have to take anything. We bought him £37.1m, and he isn't performing anywhere near that standard.
Anonymous once again today, he is a luxury player who in most games contributes very little to the team in general, if he scores a goal or gets an assist it's worth it but when he doesn't it's easy to forget he is playing. Even worse when he is playing with Falcao and RVP because you have three players who are basically goal scorers.
Juan didnt set that price! This is what we got okay. Get back to me when he saves our bacon with another of his goals or assists. It just it what it is man.
Shouldn't start away games. Does nothing at all.
Home games is a different matter.
Home games is a different matter.
As of right now, I think thats a pretty fair assessment.
No half assists do not really count as assists in my book. Playmakers like Mata should be able to pick out penetrating passes at least a couple of times a game. Look at practically every other playmaker in every other top team there is around. I can't even remember the last time Mata picked out a player in the final third to set him up on goal. Don't mention Rvp's goal in the last game because my 10 year old brother could have made that same pass to set him up.
Also, did you not read my post? If Mata was doing his job properly(you know, things like creating chances which he has been unable to do well for a while now) then Rooney, RVP and Falcao would all look a lot more like reaching that 20 goal target. Strikers tend to benefit from good service which again, as I've already said should be coming pre dominantly from Mata, unless we're playing a crossing or hoof ball game which I think most people would agree is not what we want to be aiming for.
Instead, he dilly dallies on the ball, passes it backwards, sideways, or to either wing with no penetration or conviction whatsoever. Oh but he is pretty good at making runs into the box and finishing chances which ironically is what he should look to provide in the first place... As I said we might as well play him as a striker because he is not doing what a no10 should be doing.
Don't even get me started on his defensive contribution. No matter how much any body loves Mata, the one thing that can be agreed upon is that he is a complete passenger when the other team have the ball. As I said before, I personally wouldn't mind this if he was playing well when he do have the ball.
And yes, although he might make it into the squads of most top teams, I very much doubt he would be a starter for any of them. Literally any of them.
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Poor visibility. Cloudy over the Med and the English Channel.
I never understood why Cazorla got the pick over Mata at Spain, nothing is more clear to me than this right now.
We could apply for some day release passes.
He isn't performing anywhere near the standard he was when he was at Chelsea. The problem then was that he was a passenger in terms of working to win the ball back and defend, which is dangerous in big games. The problem with us is that he still does that, but he is becoming stale in his attacking abilities too. Must be dropped for the next game
I expect to see him returned to bench duty with di Maria back and Rooney, van Persie and Falcao all available. He may come up with a goal or assist now and again but so could those 4 and, beyond that, he brings very little. The lesson is - don't buy players Mourinho is happy to let go.
That might be a good shout actually. We need fighters in the away games and he really is not that. He can be brilliant at home though.
At the minute our best front three is Rooney, RVP and Falcao. I am fed up of having Rooney in MF. He is too good to be wasted there.
When everyone is fit, Mata may not be starting every game.
That’s not the case. He is not the player who dictates the game and influences general team play. His positioning in the final third is world class, but the rest of his game is really average really. Mind you I’m talking about what he does for us, not what he used to do at Chelsea or what he’s capable of (and we know it’s a lot more than he’s showing).
Exactly.
Probably most here would disagree but I say we would be better off with him not starting games, in terms of goals scored and conceded. Put him on for the final 20 mins when the game is more loose and let him play his game.
I wouldn’t complain for their efficiency in front of the goal. What I do complain about is the number of chances we create, what is Mata’s job, isn’t it?
You’re probably one of the last here to name him a midfielder. He is a very good second striker but as we don’t play in 4-4-2 or 4-2-3-1, he shouldn’t be starting games.
Sorry to quote in you in another thread but I have a feeling that’s what has been happening with Mata. I don’t think he is happy with Mata’s performances.
Rooney should start instead of him in the next game although he looks a bit better at home. Rooney is wasted in the midfield and Mata isnt offering enough at AM right now.
The thing I hate the most is is inability to hold onto the ball when under pressure. If he has his back to an opponent they seem to rob him way too easily. He needs to learn how Silva / Nasri and the like shield the ball.
Thats just not true. Mata never was that bad defensively, but more importantly during his run of games as a CM for us he's won the ball as much as almost anyone else. Its a good improvement, its just one thats going unnoticed because he isnt as big as Fellaini
And unfortunately he isnt in the team to win the ball, hes in the team to play teammates in on goal and thats where he hasnt been doing enough except against Liverpool
Wouldn't be surprised to see sneijder come in to take his place
He's the reason we didn't win today.
He should've been removed sometime in the game, he was being absolutely bullied on the ball. He doesn't have the physical capabilities to influence himself on the game. His complete silencing by the opponents was the reason we were bottlenecked in possession, we didn't have the confidence to pass the ball into the hole to start our next phase of attack and found ourselves keeping the ball at half line and between our back 3 for the whole game. Nothing you can really blame on him personally, apart from not being physically capable, but Van gaal should know his limitations as a player in the hole against big teams. Villa set up with 5 at the back with Vlaar in the middle to solely shit on Mata, and that's all they had to do to make our possession completely futile. Don't understand the reasoning behind Van gaal's substitutions and tactical changes made to the top 2 strikers, the midfield pair and our defence. He addressed everything but the problem and I'm sure he'll learn from that in his post match analysis; Mata's abilities can only be used when allowed the freedom to express them at home games. We were lucky not to lose really.
He should've been removed sometime in the game, he was being absolutely bullied on the ball. He doesn't have the physical capabilities to influence himself on the game. His complete silencing by the opponents was the reason we were bottlenecked in possession, we didn't have the confidence to pass the ball into the hole to start our next phase of attack and found ourselves keeping the ball at half line and between our back 3 for the whole game. Nothing you can really blame on him personally, apart from not being physically capable, but Van gaal should know his limitations as a player in the hole against big teams. Villa set up with 5 at the back with Vlaar in the middle to solely shit on Mata, and that's all they had to do to make our possession completely futile. Don't understand the reasoning behind Van gaal's substitutions and tactical changes made to the top 2 strikers, the midfield pair and our defence. He addressed everything but the problem and I'm sure he'll learn from that in his post match analysis; Mata's abilities can only be used when allowed the freedom to express them at home games. We were lucky not to lose really.
Looks a bit like him, too, oddly enough.
How come I didn't notice that earlier!Mata has been anything but convincing however lets keep in mind that bar DDG no other player has played well consistently this season. Or last season for that matter. One good game followed by two anonymous ones. Same goes for Rooney, RVP, Fellaini etc etc. The team as a unit is yet to gell properly.
Atm this team is set up to bring out the best of De Gea(non existent midfield, shoddy defense). Everyone else seems confused about their role and position.
Atm this team is set up to bring out the best of De Gea(non existent midfield, shoddy defense). Everyone else seems confused about their role and position.
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What would you call it then?
And you're going on as if I'm just talking about this game. My view is not just based off one game. Playing safe and being antonymous seems to be a constant feature in Mata's game nowadays, unfortunately, regardless of what formation we play.
Call it the same as you did.
I'm going on about this game and others featuring that system. I don't think anyone plays good apart from Young and Valencia too an extent. Some play worse but no one is doing really well apart from the wing backs and that's largely due to the fact that they don't get challenged much defensively and have a lot of space on the wings.
You can call it playing it safe. I call it sensible. It seems frustrating because we aren't creating anything and I put that solely down to the system. It's been way different in a diamond or a 4-3-3.
Mata needs players around him who are also technically good and looking to play the quick, sharp passing game. Herrera aside, and occasionally Rooney, he doesn't have anyone around him. When he plays with Herrera, his game goes up a level.
I was disappointed he didn't provide us with that special bit of quality today, considering we had so much of the ball. With Villa happy to sit back, we needed a bit of quality from Juan.
I was disappointed he didn't provide us with that special bit of quality today, considering we had so much of the ball. With Villa happy to sit back, we needed a bit of quality from Juan.
A through ball is a type of pass, so we'll stick with through ball then, eh?
Rooney was excellent against Arsenal (no.10) and Liverpool (no.8), when playing a 352.
You keep going back to the system, and yes, the system isn't the best, but regardless of what formation we play, Mata can often go hiding in games.
Another match where he doesn't do anything. He struggles to fit in with the team a lot of the time I think. Would be definitely re-considering his place in the squad at the end of the season.
mata is completely ineffective in build up play. i would only use mata as a super sub. if a game plan didn't work out and we need to shake things up, then probably mata is the first person to think about.
Even when he's not creating you can't say he's not moving the ball round and spreading play.
A massive part of Matas game is manipulating the space. Today with both teams adopting a 352 it just looked completely cramped in the middle. Persie, Falcao, Rooney and Mata - they were all treading on eachothers toes.
Our most obvious route was to just spread the ball wide and cross. No one else managed to create through the middle either.
A massive part of Matas game is manipulating the space. Today with both teams adopting a 352 it just looked completely cramped in the middle. Persie, Falcao, Rooney and Mata - they were all treading on eachothers toes.
Our most obvious route was to just spread the ball wide and cross. No one else managed to create through the middle either.
He's linked up well with Herrera this season, and Kagawa last season. Mata is the kind of guy who thrives on movement and quick passes.
He looks completely lost this season when Herrara isn't playing. Awfully disappointed in him today - we had two strikers that are known to make great runs on the pitch and he was barely able to spot them.
I believe the criticism of his performances are over the top but this I totally agree with.
I'd like to see him atleast try to put them through even if it doesnt come off. I just dont remember him trying any passes behind the defence.
He's a second striker and sadly in football that position is something that's misunderstood and basically coming to an end. He's never been a playmaker and most of the time we play him there. If we continue to do that then he'll never be a success here and should basically get sold.
I think he's a world class player, but he does seem to go missing in the away games. Whether he's being played out of position or not, I don't know, but his contribution yesterday was terrible.
I have the feeling Mata is too limited in his creativity with no creative players around him. Without Di Maria or Hererra to link up with, Mata seems a bit lost...
- Status