Juan Mata image 8

Juan Mata Spain flag

2015-16 Performances

View full 2015-16 profile

5.7 Season Average Rating
Appearances
54
Goals
11
Assists
11
Yellow cards
7
Red cards
1
Status
Not open for further replies.
So clinical, eh? More like so invisible.
 
Big Mata fan but he is anonymous atm. Of course we also learned during the week that we aren't any better with him on the bench either.
 
Eddy_JukeZ said:
He was a passenger today.

The Mata at Anfield is the Mata we need.
Click to expand...

Why was that? He was getting into space all right but he wasn't getting the ball. He's got Rooney ahead of him for the number 10 spot so he has to do what he can where he's told to play. Maybe Rooney needs a few games on the bench because when he went off, Mata actually started to play a bit.
 
He really needs replacing with someone who offers something extra. With the two central midfielders, we have too many other players that make it seem like we're lining up with 3 or 4 cms in that they don't commit anyone and keep possession. Carrick and Bastian, added to Mata and Rooney is too little dynamism in the front 6. When one of the other two is 'Not Neymar', then it's 5 of 6 that can't beat a manner produce any magic.
 
Moriarty said:
Why was that? He was getting into space all right but he wasn't getting the ball. He's got Rooney ahead of him for the number 10 spot so he has to do what he can where he's told to play. Maybe Rooney needs a few games on the bench because when he went off, Mata actually started to play a bit.
Click to expand...

Oh Rooney definitely needs to be replaced, but it's not Rooney's fault for Mata performing poorly lately.

He just lets the game pass him by. He's too content with playing it safe(like most of our players).
 
Should be dropped not that it will make much of a difference mind. Everyone bar Martial is different shades of crap.
 
Requires a heck lot more time and space than his counterparts (Countinho, Silva, Ozil, Eriksen, Sanchez, Carzola) to turn and create. Not to mention his obvious lack of pace on the ball compared to some of them.
 
He is just so vanilla too often, did nothing of any real note but was tidy enough in what he did.
 
Today you saw why playing him in the centre doesn't help either. He is completely lost there and gets bullied
 
Can't remember him doing too much today. Not that he was bad, and I wouldn't blame him at all. Him, Carrick and Schweinsteiger got the ball to our wide players on numerous occasions in 1 v 1 situations. Darmian and Young just have an absolutely woeful final ball and cross. If they could get that yard of space and put in good crosses consistently, what Mata/Schweiny/Carrick do before then would look so much more useful IMO.
 
Raw said:
Invisible for 90% of the game.
Click to expand...
It's always like this with Mata he is totally anonymous for 90% of the time, now and then he showes up with a moment of brilliance which results in a goal or a assist but he has never been nor will he never be a player who can dictate the play and have great influence on the game. He is like a offensive midfield poacher.
 
Akash said:
Should be dropped not that it will make much of a difference mind. Everyone bar Martial is different shades of crap.
Click to expand...
Even Martial isn't looking all that. Our attackers are not that bad, yet they are all underperforming. I think other managers could get a lot more out of our forwards. Seems like a systematic problem, as if we need elite players to look decent going forward.
 
Lovely guy, delightful blog, utterly underwhelming player. The guy just doesn't have the strength of character to stamp his authority on a game. He's an adornment.
 
I'd like to criticise Mata, and Rooney, however, when all our forwards have slowly become completely useless, there's more to it.
 
Bit of an overreaction. Wasn't good by any means but certainly not the main problem either. Second half was quite decent.
 
Genuinely forgot he was playing.

I don't remember him doing anything bad, I just don't remember him doing..well, anything?
 
Wasn't our worst player but it was unfortunate he didn't do more. He kept the ball well though, which LVG will like. The positioning of him and Rooney confused me though and I wasn't really sure who was playing where.
 
The fact that he was our best attacking player says a lot about our football.
 
Yeah I really struggle to blame any of our attackers apart from the wingers/wing backs. They get the ball in one on one situations all the time and their role is the same no matter the tactics. Take the man on, make a yard of space and pick out a man with a good cross or put dangerous crosses in. Our wingers, consistently over the last few years have failed to do that consistently and that's just on them, not the style. The rest are more culpable to the style I think.
 
He was useless, I hope he is moved on in the summer because he is too limited to be effective regularly. He has lots of ability but is too dependent on other players and having some time and space, when it works it's great but too often he is a passenger and offers virtually nothing.
 
Di Maria's angel said:
I'd like to criticise Mata, and Rooney, however, when all our forwards have slowly become completely useless, there's more to it.
Click to expand...
Since LVG came in, have any of our forwards looked any good? Sure they've not all been top class players but they're not mid table standard players.
 
He was completely anonymous yesterday, I'm surprised he wasn't taken off because he offered absolutely nothing.
 
Mata is another enigma like Rooney as far as I'm concerned. Is he toothless because of the lack of movement and tempo around him, or is he a contributor to those problems? I'm leaning towards the latter option. He's so fecking slow and, for someone lauded as having fantastic technique, he needs two, three touches to get the ball under control.
 
Roboc7 said:
He was useless, I hope he is moved on in the summer because he is too limited to be effective regularly. He has lots of ability but is too dependent on other players and having some time and space, when it works it's great but too often he is a passenger and offers virtually nothing.
Click to expand...

Could say this about Memphis, Rooney, Mata, Young... It was applicable to di Maria, RvP, and Falcao, before them. LvG must have thought the same of Nani and Hernandez, too.
 
Feed Me said:
Mata is another enigma like Rooney as far as I'm concerned. Is he toothless because of the lack of movement and tempo around him, or is he a contributor to those problems? I'm leaning towards the latter option. He's so fecking slow and, for someone lauded as having fantastic technique, he needs two, three touches to get the ball under control.
Click to expand...

Pure bullshit.
 
Godfather said:
Today you saw why playing him in the centre doesn't help either. He is completely lost there and gets bullied
Click to expand...

People keep acting as if he has never played centrally for us.He has been underwhelming most of the time he played there that's why he was shifted to the right.He's a luxury player and we have to accept it or move him on.
 
Feed Me said:
It bloody well isn't.

He's not in the class of Silva, Cazorla, Ozil, etc.
Click to expand...

What's that got to do with his control? He's got the best first touch in our team, and that, too, by quite a distance. Your statement of "for someone lauded as having fantastic technique, he needs two, three touches to get the ball under control" is pure garbage.
 
He has been at the club nearly 2 years and he is in his peak years. It's fair to conclude that what we have seen from Mata to date is pretty much as good as it gets. He may not be the most glaring of our many attacking problems but we still need an upgrade in the summer. He simply hasn't done enough to warrant a third season here as a senior player.
 
Di Maria's angel said:
What's that got to do with his control? He's got the best first touch in our team, and that, too, by quite a distance. Your statement of "for someone lauded as having fantastic technique, he needs two, three touches to get the ball under control" is pure garbage.
Click to expand...

That's the biggest backhanded compliment I've heard in ages.

Mata is weak, slow and nowhere near enough risky with his passing.

He's a squad level player.
 
Feed Me said:
That's the biggest backhanded compliment I've heard in ages.

Mata is weak, slow and nowhere near enough risky with his passing.

He's a squad level player.
Click to expand...

Oh, I wonder why?

Just add him to list of players who've lost all ability under the Messiah.
 
Feed Me said:
Ha, I knew you'd say that.

Mata's been pretty consistent since he's arrived here, including under Moyes.

Funnily enough, his best run of form came under Van Gaal last Spring.
Click to expand...

That's quite shocking, actually. Footballer manages to play well under one of his two managers.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.