Manchester United manager Jose Mourinho suffered his biggest Premier League defeat of 4-0 at the hands of former employers, Chelsea. It must’ve felt like the whole world was conspiring against the Portuguese boss, but Mourinho is a strong character and he will look to bounce back soon.
He is also a stubborn manager in the sense that he sticks to his decisions and the way he sets out his team to play and the match against Liverpool is a valid example for this. Liverpool have been defensively poor all season and have conceded unnecessary goals. But Jose still set his team up defensively and made it hard for Liverpool to play. This is what Manchester United fans were used to under Louis Van Gaal and that they’re getting more of the same with Mourinho.
Another thing that Mourinho has been stubborn with is his usage of Marouane Fellaini. The Belgian also started the games against Manchester City, Liverpool and also the drubbing at the hands of Chelsea. It’s clear to see what’s wrong and Mourinho must act fast to rectify the situation he finds himself in. The Belgian is a good player on his day but he just cannot play next to Paul Pogba as it is having a restricting effect on Pogba’s freedom to surge forward.
Mourinho must instead field Juan Mata, who has been more effective. The Spaniard was shunned out by Mourinho at Chelsea due to his physique and unwillingness to track back for defensive duties. It’s quite a twist of fate that he ended up again under Mourinho. But at this time of calling, Mata has done decently well when given the chance. One telling stat is that when Mata has played, United have got 13 points out of a total of 15. Whereas, when he hasn’t, they’ve accumulated just 1 point from 12.
The Spaniard might be small in stature and weak physically, but there are several other attributes to his game that Mourinho must not ignore. He has the ability to link-up play and pose a real threat from anywhere on the pitch. His range of passing, dribbling and shooting have all enthralled the Premier League since he made the move from Valencia to Chelsea in 2011.
Here are 3 reasons why Juan Mata must be preferred in the starting lineup –
Ability to influence the game
Although the Belgian sits in a deeper role, he will be expected to impact and influence the game with runs into the box, influential passes, so on and so forth. But the Belgian has failed to do so in his appearances so far this season. Mata, on the other hand, has done exceptionally well, when given a chance to shine. He has 2 goals to his name this season and when given further chances, is likely to create more for his teammates and create chances for himself too.
Offers more mobility
The Spaniard is more than comfortable in playing the floating role which sees him roam throughout the attacking side of the pitch. Whilst doing so, he can link up well with the likes of Pogba, Ibrahimovic, Rashford and Lingard. These are players who need the ball at their feet and Mata is a good bet to find them with the right passes. Having Fellaini in the team as opposed to Mata gives a very defensive look to the team and opposition teams will know whom to target in midfield. Kante and Matic did exactly the same to Fellaini and out-ran him throughout the game at the weekend.
Lack of creativity in the United team
It is clear that United are lacking on the creative front at the moment. No one in the team is able to conjure up enough chances and this is failing Mourinho big time. Henrik Mkhitaryan doesn’t quite look ready for Premier League football or he has rather been underplayed by Jose. Juan Mata, who has been in the Premier League for close to 5 seasons now, can obviously make an impact. On his day, there aren’t many players who can match his excellence. Mourinho must understand this sooner or later and make Mata an integral part of his team.