It appears Juan Manuel Mata is on the verge of signing for Manchester United, with almost every leading sports paper in Britain reporting the deal is close and Sky Sports reporting a medical is set.
David Moyes will be making just his second signing as the Red Devils manager, and it’s fair to say—pound for pound—he’s a lot better than his first one.
For around £37 million—£5 million less than Mesut Ozil’s cost—Man Utd will receive an elite playmaker in the prime of his career. Mata is a born creator, and he was Chelsea’s best player across the entire 2012-13 campaign.
Yet there are many who don’t feel the Spaniard is the “right” signing for United, which is odd given the huge boost the players receive when they see a UEFA Champions League winner walk through the door.
Yes, he plays as a No. 10 which happens to be one of two positions United don’t actually need to reinforce, but the precedent of star power has been set long before Mata’s controversial switch north.
At the start of the 2012-13 season, Robin van Persie joined Sir Alex Ferguson at Old Trafford in what can only be described as a total luxury purchase. Stealing the Dutchman off Arsenal weakened Arsene Wenger’s troops, while RvP’s goals catapulted a relatively weak United side (by title-winning standards) to league glory.
Earlier this season Ozil swapped Madrid for North London despite the Gunners needing reinforcements in every position other than the No. 10 role. His presence has inspired the troops and they currently sit top of the Premier League—the very position Moyes yearns to be in.
Signing Mata might require a slight re-jig in the short-term, but this is exactly the sort of signing players at clubs crave; Wayne Rooney will travel to training with a skip in his step if he knows he gets to go and play with Mata.
For now, you can expect a 4-2-3-1 formation with Mata playing from the left, drifting inward and looking for space in central zones. With Rooney in behind van Persie—both dove-tailing, as they do so well—and Antonio Valencia stretching the pitch wide on the right, the system is balanced out well. Patrice Evra bombing forward from left-back adds to the party.
That leaves Shinji Kagawa marginalised, but that’s the case now anyway; signing Mata isn’t going to improve his chances of making the team, and Moyes doesn’t look too fussed about the Japanese international to be frank.
When Rooney eventually leaves, Mata can slide inside, Kagawa (or a new signing) can slot in on the left and Valencia (or a new signing!) can provide width from the right. Mata and RvP combining? it’s not something you can really sniff at, is it?
The Spaniard will inspire a camp that’s sitting at rock-bottom; a squad of players who have lost an astonishing five of their last six games.
You’d be mad to think Mata can’t help. What do you think? Comment and vote below.
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I like the point of the article but Valencia starting over januzaj?