[Alock1]

I actually think @akash02 is wrong and Mata deserves praise for getting in those positions. I'd rather him miss the chances than have no chances at all.

World class strikers have rates of 30-50% when it comes to converting clear cut chances and Mata isn't even a striker. His scoring rate for us has been very good, so there's no reason to show anything more than slight frustration here after him doing so well to offer up those opportunities.

That Mata was the only one who had any chances of note yesterday says a lot when you had Van Persie, Di Maria and Rooney all playing upfront for atleast a good chunk of the game each. And it's definitely worth noting and praising.

If it was a common theme with Mata then fair enough.. but it's not.

 

[Bojan11]

This league is too phisically for him

Wanyama was pushing the great Barca midfield about a few seasons ago, when playing for Celtic.

He was decent. RVP, Rooney and Di Maria were the biggest culprits the other day.

 

[YzWayne]

The worrying thing is, Mata gets into good position better than our strikers does. His finishing was bad on that day, but he go into the correct spaces therefore get his chances.

 

[cesc's_mullet]

This league is too phisically for him

Mata was a sensation when he first signed for Chelsea. Player of the year two-years running whilst he was there says it all.

Granted Chelsea weren't at their best during those two seasons, but he was still a top player none-the-less.

 

[YouOnlyLiveTwice]

He has proved himself in the premier league, 12 goals and 12 assists in 2012/13 prl season is pretty damn good. He has also raked up a good number for us, if we use him he is going to produce.
Not the biggest fan myself, but he is a class player no doubt.

 

[izec]

He was totally different at Chelsea. Now he is a shadow of his former self. The only thing that he kept is his goal scoring, the rest changed. His confidence is low, he doesnt run with the ball much, doesnt take players on and his creativity is near zero. At Chelsea he was phenomenal in every aspect, now he plays like he was injured for half a year. Maybe i am a bit exaggerating, but he was a top top player, at the moment just a good player. I dont know if we are restricting him and arent using him to his strenghts, but he isnt the same player anymore

 

[YouOnlyLiveTwice]

He was totally different at Chelsea. Now he is a shadow of his former self. The only thing that he kept is his goal scoring, the rest changed. His confidence is low, he doesnt run with the ball much, doesnt take players on and his creativity is near zero. At Chelsea he was phenomenal in every aspect, now he plays like he was injured for half a year. Maybe i am a bit exaggerating, but he was a top top player, at the moment just a good player. I dont know if we are restricting him and arent using him to his strenghts, but he isnt the same player anymore

This is exactly the problem, Moyes was putting him out wide which limits him alot. LvG has not been showing great confidence in him, he has played alot - but a player like Mata should play all the time. Also he needs movement around him like many have said. I think there is a good chance he is being sold this summer, doesn't fit the philosophy.

 

[Ballache]

He needs runners around him and pace in front of him. He thrives on movement and ours has been atrocious.

 

[limerickcitykid]

This is exactly the problem, Moyes was putting him out wide which limits him alot. LvG has not been showing great confidence in him, he has played alot - but a player like Mata should play all the time. Also he needs movement around him like many have said. I think there is a good chance he is being sold this summer, doesn't fit the philosophy.

What part of the philosophy does he not fit?

 

[YouOnlyLiveTwice]

What part of the philosophy does he not fit?

Okay, i said it the wrong way. What i meant is he doesn't fit Van Gaals profile of a player, atleast that is what i think. Not good enough defensively and not robust enough. Playmaking wise he isn't a player that dictates a game either, which i think is what LvG are looking for and therefore he is playing Rooney in midfield.

 

[limerickcitykid]

Okay, i said it the wrong way. What i meant is he doesn't fit Van Gaals profile of a player, atleast that is what i think. Not good enough defensively and not robust enough. Playmaking wise he isn't a player that dictates a game either, which i think is what LvG are looking for and therefore he is playing Rooney in midfield.

His role isn't to be defensive, he is just as defensive as Di Maria. Not everyone needs to be robust. He was at the heart of everything against Southampton and has done similar in most matches lately, especially when teamed with someone who likes to pass quickly like Ander. Rooney is playing as a #8 because Mata isn't a #8 and never has been one. I fail to see this constant Mata doesn't fit in stuff, he has played 90 minutes in the last 9 league matches for a reason and I don't think it is because van Gaal wants to sell him.

 

[YouOnlyLiveTwice]

His role isn't to be defensive, he is just as defensive as Di Maria. Not everyone needs to be robust. He was at the heart of everything against Southampton and has done similar in most matches lately, especially when teamed with someone who likes to pass quickly like Ander. Rooney is playing as a #8 because Mata isn't a #8 and never has been one. I fail to see this constant Mata doesn't fit in stuff, he has played 90 minutes in the last 9 league matches for a reason and I don't think it is because van Gaal wants to sell him.

Maybe your right, i do hope he goes on to have a great future here. I personally can't see him being a regular starter next year, especially if Di Maria is going to play CM in a 4-3-3 and i doubt he would be happy sitting on the bench.

 

[Nighteyes]

I never praised him for the missed chances, I criticized him for it, bloody hell.

I said his all round play was good. New age fans and kids though will just look at key moments and throw their toys out of the pram blaming a loss on things like the misses, not seeing the bigger picture.

What exactly is the bigger picture here? His all round play was no better than the rest, the difference being he does things in a more aesthetically pleasing way when comared to some of the team which seems to con some people on how he really played. Mata went with the general flow of the game and did practically nothing of note.

And for the record, I'm not criticizing him for the missed chances. One of them could barely be called a chance in any case. What I don't get is the praise for missing them (maybe not you).

That Mata was the only one who had any chances of note yesterday says a lot when you had Van Persie, Di Maria and Rooney all playing upfront for atleast a good chunk of the game each. And it's definitely worth noting and praising.

What it says is that Mata plays and thinks like a striker. The fact that Rooney, RVP and Di Maria didn't have a single chance between them for 90 minutes does not really reflect well on Mata to be honest and that has been a big problem in his United career.

 

[Amar__]

People aren't pleased with Mata even now? He is probably our best player in last month or so. Attacking wise, he is much better than anyone else recently. I have no idea what people expect from him, to make 15 dribbles per game and create everything by himself? He was involved in pretty much everything we created against Southampton. But yeah, blame him because he is the only player in the team who should be creating chances.

 

[Adam-Utd]

Mata needs to be played as the 10 in a 4-2-3-1 or similar team. He worked well for Chelsea because he had willing runners in Oscar, Hazard, Willian,Schurrle that allowed him to keep the ball moving quickly, while using his best attributes (movement, positioning) to keep away from defenders.

In a slow tempo like we play, it allows their markers to get much tighter to our players which limits their space. Mata when closed down can be negated too easily, as he doesn't have the acceleration to get away. This is probably a reason he has excelled for teams like Valencia/Chelsea and not been so great for Spain.

 

[Eric'sCollar]

What exactly is the bigger picture here? His all round play was no better than the rest, the difference being he does things in a more aesthetically pleasing way when comared to some of the team which seems to con some people on how he really played. Mata went with the general flow of the game and did practically nothing of note.

And for the record, I'm not criticizing him for the missed chances. One of them could barely be called a chance in any case. What I don't get is the praise for missing them (maybe not you).

The bigger picture was is the formation, the system and for me on the day, the complete lack of urgency. Mistakes, poor decisions and all that, I can accept that, I couldn't accept the lack of desire to win that match.

It's not praise for him missing the chances, it's praise (more acknowledgment) that he got into those positions, things our strikers are struggling to do at the moment.

 

[Bojan11]

Mata needs to be played as the 10 in a 4-2-3-1 or similar team. He worked well for Chelsea because he had willing runners in Oscar, Hazard, Willian,Schurrle that allowed him to keep the ball moving quickly, while using his best attributes (movement, positioning) to keep away from defenders.

In a slow tempo like we play, it allows their markers to get much tighter to our players which limits their space. Mata when closed down can be negated too easily, as he doesn't have the acceleration to get away. This is probably a reason he has excelled for teams like Valencia/Chelsea and not been so great for Spain.

Willian and Schurrle signed when Mata wasn't getting in the team. Hence why he left.

 

[Livvie]

He missed chances but was the only way who came close. He's been one of our best players this season.

I have far more belief than I had last year, but am a bit confused by some of VG's substitutions - and would hope there was a good reason for not using Falcao on Sunday, as RVP has been generally pretty dire.

 

[Ringo 07]

He's technically in the top 3 players in the league. But he'll 100% be sold at the end of the season if we can find a buyer as his lack of pace means he does not get involved enough which puts too much pressure on rvp and rooney and wrecks the balance of the team

 

[Annihilate Now!]

He's technically in the top 3 players in the league. But he'll 100% be sold at the end of the season if we can find a buyer as his lack of pace means he does not get involved enough which puts too much pressure on rvp and rooney and wrecks the balance of the team

That's a weird thing to say - he's probably been the most involved in our attacking player in our last few weeks then any other player?

From our front 4 on Saturday, he made the most passes, did more dribbles, had more shots (obviously) and, along with Rooney, touched the ball the most... I know stats don't say everything, but yeah, he's been more involved then anyone.

 

[Ringo 07]

It's called the berbatov effect. A luxury player that will get you tons of goals and assists but who weakens the team as a whole in the process

 

[Varun]

He's technically in the top 3 players in the league. But he'll 100% be sold at the end of the season if we can find a buyer as his lack of pace means he does not get involved enough which puts too much pressure on rvp and rooney and wrecks the balance of the team

If anything, the likes of RVP do not get involved enough. Mata's been very good the past few games when it comes to actually getting involved and not just scoring.

The balance of our team is getting wrecked because of the formation which suits no one.

 

[Orc]

Ironically, I think if he were back in this current Chesea side he'd be putting up monster stats again. Mourinho sold him because he was a liability in terms of workrate and defensively, but now that they have Matić in midfield I think he'd thrive there. He needs movement and pace in front of him and is best as the #10. With the pace of Hazard and Willian on the flanks and Diego Costa's excellent movement in front of him he'd look world class.

This is the kind of setup we need in order to see the best of Mata. We need top class, pacey wide players and a shield behind him in the middle of the park to make up for his weaknesses.

 

[Speak]

Ironically, I think if he were back in this current Chesea side he'd be putting up monster stats again. Mourinho sold him because he was a liability in terms of workrate and defensively, but now that they have Matić in midfield I think he'd thrive there. He needs movement and pace in front of him and is best as the #10. With the pace of Hazard and Willian on the flanks and Diego Costa's excellent movement in front of him he'd look world class.

This is the kind of setup we need in order to see the best of Mata. We need top class, pacey wide players and a shield behind him in the middle of the park to make up for his weaknesses.

Nope. They all put a shift in. That's why the system works. Mata would detract from that. Matic or no Matic.

 

[Freak]

Apart from his misses, I actually thought he was good.

 

[Orc]

Nope. They all put a shift in. That's why the system works. Mata would detract from that. Matic or no Matic.

Maybe. If they hadn't signed Fabregas and had a central midfield pairing of Matić and Mikel I think there would be enough of a screen behind Mata for the "Mourinho style" to work well.

I think he'd have similar statistical output to Cesc, anyways. The team may not be as good.

 

[roykeane19]

Great guy, our Mata

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/fo...hest-primary-schools-delivering-presents.html

 

[Kostur]

Christ he's such a class man.

 

[bosnian_red]

Genuinely thought he was one of our better players in that half. Made a great chance for Falcao. feck knows why he came off.

 

[sullydnl]

Genuinely thought he was one of our better players in that half. Made a great chance for Falcao. feck knows why he came off.

Yep. Bringing on Fellaini obviously worked but I think Mata is our best attacker atm, he didn't deserve to be taken off....

 

[Roboc7]

Poor again today but playing out of position, he really shouldn't be playing so deep especially away from home.

 

[Jev]

Genuinely thought he was one of our better players in that half. Made a great chance for Falcao. feck knows why he came off.

Think he was injured. He was limping a bit.

Don't think he was good today but he's been one of our best performers lately. Was due a bad one.

 

[Devil may care]

I thought him and Di Maria should have switched roles in the first half if LvG felt Rooney's physicality as needed in midfield.

 

[WyoManU]

I Don't think he played well at all. Says it all that Fellaini came on for him and made an immediate impact. Most matches he plays in I forget he is on the pitch. You don't think Mourinho sold him because he was so great, do you?

 

[FC Ronaldo]

Was he injured?

 

[bosnian_red]

I Don't think he played well at all. Says it all that Fellaini came on for him and made an immediate impact. Most matches he plays in I forget he is on the pitch. You don't think Mourinho sold him because he was so great, do you?

Mata has been our best player arguably this last month or 2, and today was the only one making chances in the first half. As for Fellaini's "immediate" impact, it happened after 15 minutes when we changed our formation. Nothing changed with him on while it was a 3 at the back.

 

[Nighteyes]

Didn't agree with him coming off but it turned out to be a good move.

 

[Boycott]

He's fine. I think he's what we need through the middle to allow our wide players to cause havoc. A player with composure, good vision and class on the ball. He gets nudged off the ball but often he's ended up in that state due to taking extra touches because of the lack of movement. He'd have a lot more assists had our players - mainly Falcao and RvP not missed some sitters. He has a good understanding between Rooney and I believe we can get the best out of both if Rooney goes up front.

 

[limerickcitykid]

Thought he was decent again today, the only one who looked like doing much in the first half. Let him play with the back 4 when everyone else actually does something and he might look even better.

 

[WyoManU]

Mata has been our best player arguably this last month or 2, and today was the only one making chances in the first half. As for Fellaini's "immediate" impact, it happened after 15 minutes when we changed our formation. Nothing changed with him on while it was a 3 at the back.

I cannot disagree more. I guess the massive differences in perception, not just in football, but in everything in life is why there are markets. For someone to buy and make good, someone had to sell thinking there was nothing there.