Juan Mata

[The only place to be 11,313]

If you take the game against Swansea (1-0) for example, twice did Mata play in Samuel Eto'o with 2 brilliant passes. Would he have been substituted and dropped for the next game if those 2 had resulted in goes? I wonder. Would you honestly say that any other AM in our team, apart from the occasional Hazard moment, can produce moments like that? Whilst there may be complaints about Mata's workrate and pressing/defending abilities, surely there is no denying that he is by far the best creative AM player we have, and hence he shouldn't be sidelined to the extent he has been.

Mata plays in passes better than anyone. But Jose's focus is clearly on more than who can play in pretty passes otherwise Josh would probably be a fixture too.

This thread is really boring and predictable now

Pro mata (which i belong to btw) will argue that mata is our most creative player and should be getting more game time etc etc which is then always countered with the argument that he doesn't fit into jose's system and Oscar deserves to be ahead in the pecking order on the basis of his tactical superiority. wash rinse and repeat.

If he has any sense and knows what's best for his own career then he would push really hard for a transfer out of the club.

Pro Mata? So are we about to start printing Team Mata and Team Oscar shirts?

Sorry, the only shirt I need is the Chelsea one.

BTW, you have to admit that not fitting into a system is a pretty fucking good argument, especially when that system seems to be getting results. I'm sure he could push for a move but I can't see him going to a bigger club than us.

Sorry but I'm not going to sit here and accept the fact our player of the season for 2 straight years can't get get a start to the limit that Ramires is ahead of him on the right wing. players like Mata are rare, I'd gladly accept the fact Oscar has earned his place this year, but the lad isn't given a fair shot compared to the other 3. he has 1 game to prove himself and he's played out of position, then he's taken off at the 60'th minute. he played 90 minutes vs Arsenal and got MOTM. if Jose wants his wingers to track back/defend then Oscar should be on that right wing because he's the most hardworking player after Rami.

Why move Oscar to the right wing when we have Willian there? It's almost like there's a desperation to play Mata no matter what it does to the structure of the team. He's a great guy and was POTY two seasons in a row but football is about what is best NOW. You can't live off past glories.

And he was taken off in the 50th minute against Southampton and thank fuck. People like to talk about his reaction to the subbing and that glosses over the fact that we looked shit with him on the pitch and Oscar came on and had a stormer.

I'd accept Mata not tracking back/defending in ratio to the creativity he provides.

Jose won't....and he's better than you.

Hasnt played since he reacted negatively against Saints,

Also hasn't played since he was poor against Southampton.

But I hope he gets a start against Stoke next week, on the right-wing. He's too good a player to give up on and having a leftie on the right could give us a new dimension.

[blu35_army 550]

with Matic as DM,,there's chance for mata to get the spot without worried about track back or deffence again. it's remember me of Ozil (which is shit on deffence) while he play alongside Khedira - Modric in the pivot,,that's why he has given name as "King of Assist"...

[kellzfresh 7,226]

with Matic as DM,,there's chance for mata to get the spot without worried about track back or deffence again. it's remember me of Ozil (which is shit on deffence) while he play alongside Khedira - Modric in the pivot,,that's why he has given name as "King of Assist"...

Madrid had guaranteed 2 goals from every match from ronaldo. So mourinho could sacrifice his tactics and still win when madrid conceded many goals. Here we have eto/torres/ba, we cannot go all out with that system bcos we will lose more than win when we miss all our chances as usual compared to madrid.

Its unfortunate, I love mata's assists but were moving on to a pressing and quick transition system. Which means the slow guys with low energy (KDB, mata) will find it hard to fit in. That is why luiz even plays ahead of mikel in the big games (before matic comes) against manutd and liverpool, because he has more energy than mikel.

I really thought mata will cope because he was naturally a winger for valencia and in his first season with us under AVB.

[Jase 43,479]

when he get a chance, i wonder!

I would imgaine in the next 2 (home) games against Stoke and West Ham especially the former.

[lionsden 4,689]

I posted the same in the oscar thread but here's opposition view of the debate for some much needed balance and unbiased views

pulled straight out of redcafe

ekeke said:

Its good he puts his foot in and tries to win the ball but he also needs to have an impact in the final third

Those are average numbers for a number 10 at Chelsea. An average of 36 passes isnt exactly impressive either, its not like hes the heartbeat of your team. So while he has done a very good job defensively, he's been underwhelming offensively. 36 is a couple more than Kagawa averages and he hasn't been influencial enough either and has played plenty of times on the wing. His end product has been more disappointing as well. The point is that while Mourinho obviously loves the fact he will try and pinch the ball and close people down, you're playing as a number 10 for a top club. You need to be producing more offensively than he has in the league. Interestingly, while Oscar has made double the tackles Mata has, an out of form and unconfident Mata has created almost double the chances Oscar has. At the end of the day its no surprise you're just nicking results and largely playing dour football (other than Hazard) if your number 10 is valued for his closing down and defensive work rather than his attacking. Heskey, Kuyt and Valencia are valued for theirs as well and Oscar should be aiming a lot higher than that.

Gerald g wrote:He was anonymous today. I've thought this all season but Mata should be ahead of him in my opinion

B20: I think Ekeke makes a valid point. Mourinho has sold the world a false dilemma with this Oscar vs Mata thing and Oscar being one of your better players only masks the actual fact that he is not as good as Mata has been for you the past two years.

Robbie boy: Mata is the better player, for me, and his productivity is better than Oscar's

[ephreak 42]

http://blogs.grada360.com/juanmata/en/2014/01/20/el-dia-de-etoo/

Mata updated his blog (does it ever monday).

[zolayes 14,489]

http://blogs.grada360.com/juanmata/en/2014/01/20/el-dia-de-etoo/

Mata updated his blog (does it ever monday).

thanks

[bushman 2,043]

Sorry to disappoint some of you here, but Mata will not be sold now.

He will play in the next two games. Even BA will get his chance. Jose needs to rest some of his players for Citeh. Chelsea must not drop points against Citeh. It will be the most important game for the PL title, I feel.

[BlueLion. 21,491]

This thread is really boring and predictable now

Pro mata (which i belong to btw) will argue that mata is our most creative player and should be getting more game time etc etc which is then always countered with the argument that he doesn't fit into jose's system and Oscar deserves to be ahead in the pecking order on the basis of his tactical superiority. wash rinse and repeat.

If he has any sense and knows what's best for his own career then he would push really hard for a transfer out of the club.

I don't think anyone should be labelling themselves "pro-Mata" or "pro-Oscar".

However, if we are desperate to categorise, stick me in the "pro-Chelsea" group, because it is pretty clear to me that the inclusion of Oscar and Willian, based on their form, performances and their defensive capacity, is an absolutely correct one by José for the betterment of the team.

[The Skipper 20,593]

One thing I would like to see Mourinho try is Mata at number 10 with Willian and Hazard out wide, and with a solid pivot like Matic and Mikel behind them. I think that would be interesting to see but doubt it will ever happen.

Mata isn't as great as anyone else in his defensive responsibilities but he isn't that much of a liability.

[Gilvorak 3,734]

Arsenal are starting Ozil who's even worse than Mata and they're having their best League season in years to go along with the best defensive record in the League.

I mean even while Oscar was out injured he was still playing out wide. I can't remember the last time he was played in his preferred position. It's bad management, simply don't freeze out a fan favourite and the best player in the team out like that and any other manager would have been under fire for it.

As long as we don't sell him to any other club in the League where he will continue to haunt us until he retires I'm fine with him leaving. The way he's been treated is a disgrace.

[Korea 734]

Arsenal are starting Ozil who's even worse than Mata and they're having their best League season in years to go along with the best defensive record in the League.

I mean even while Oscar was out injured he was still playing out wide. I can't remember the last time he was played in his preferred position. It's bad management, simply don't freeze out a fan favourite and the best player in the team out like that and any other manager would have been under fire for it.

As long as we don't sell him to any other club in the League where he will continue to haunt us until he retires I'm fine with him leaving. The way he's been treated is a disgrace.

Ozil plays wide a lot of games and they have Rosicky in the middle...

[Blue Armour 4,158]

I went as far as stating I didn't think Jose would punish him for the bratty behavior. I do wonder how much of this is just a coincidence and how much it's José just showing him his place. As I said back then, in the never end saga of his behavior, I don't think Mourinho would have blasted him to the media. I still can't say (though I tend to think that way) he was more frustrated on Mourinho than on himself. But there had been chances for him to get even a few minutes ever since (not today though given the scoreline and ManUtd scoring) and I wonder why he wasn't given especially because in many matches before the incident he's been given some odd minutes. He couldn't get minutes against Derby for God's sake!!!

Just so we're clear (I mean everyone else, not you), I'm not saying Mourinho is punishing him, I'm saying it looks an awful lot like it, but I can't say for sure, ofc.

Also the same old with the stats... He's had 11 starts plus a few subs (that only in EPL, without considering the cups). That's more than enough matches for him to give us something and he did very, very, very little. Don't give me the right wing crap, first because it's no excuse for him to give us even the minimum, second, he's had many cameos (some matches even stayed more in the center than in the wing) in the middle position. The positioning detracts his performances, but it shouldn't be that much. Or are you people trying to say that Mata is so limited, but so limited, that unless he's a few yards to the left he can't provide an assist or score a goal?

He'll never be able to give us as many goals and assists in the right wing, in this kind of system (especially when he isn't given plenty of freedom to do whatever he wants and no tactical responsibility), but he should be more than capable of giving us more than 2 goals and 1 assist. So I see a difference of not repeating last season's results because of the new system and positioning, but I can't justify only 3 goals created by his feet in 15+ matches on that. For me that's called bad form.

It should have been a middle ground here, such as he's in a position where he doesn't produce as much, but still produces enough. He hasn't produced enough.

Yes, we can't say for sure but Mata's prolonged absence from the team reminds me of the time this season when Luiz couldn't get any game time after his defensive blunder in one match (can't remember against which team).

But eventually Luiz did find his way back into Mourinho's plans, so I believe Mata will, although it could be longer (depending on squad fitness).

The flip-side is you have to remember players like Andre Schurrle have also not featured as much. In fact, Jose whenever possible, likes to keep the same back four and the same attacking midfielders. The only real changes happen in CM (depending on fitness/who's available) and ST (depending on the opposition, Torres for space and Eto'o against tight defences).

[manpe 10,855]

It's bad management, simply don't freeze out a fan favourite and the best player in the team out like that and any other manager would have been under fire for it.

If the manager bowed to fan pressure every single time, well... Mourinho may be frustrating at times (Real fans will agree), but at least he's not being populistic in his choices. For the past two or three years we've been very vulnerable defensively, if excluding Mata contributes to fixing that, I will accept it with a heavy heart. I'm still hoping though that they will find a way somehow, but if they don't and we end up swimming in titles, I won't even reflect on it more than I have to.

[Pizy 17,860]

One thing I would like to see Mourinho try is Mata at number 10 with Willian and Hazard out wide, and with a solid pivot like Matic and Mikel behind them. I think that would be interesting to see but doubt it will ever happen.

Mata isn't as great as anyone else in his defensive responsibilities but he isn't that much of a liability.

Very good point and what I'm thinking as well.

Now that our CM isn't tissue paper thin we can afford to play Mata in his most effective #10 role without him having to worry as much about tracking back.

I REALLY want both Mata and Jose to silence the critics and see Mata get a run of games at #10 to get his form back. Think Juan can be a massive player for us in this half of the season and may be the ace up our sleeve. He doesn't have the wear and tear of our other players and will be desperate to do well in a World Cup year.

I miss our little magician so much!

[The only place to be 11,313]

I mean even while Oscar was out injured he was still playing out wide. I can't remember the last time he was played in his preferred position. It's bad management, simply don't freeze out a fan favourite and the best player in the team out like that and any other manager would have been under fire for it.

You're right. We do have a great bunch of supporters who aren't going to bitch and moan simply because a player isn't playing because the manager's system (which has seen us do pretty fucking well) doesn't suit him at the present time.

That's one of the reasons I love this club. The vast, vast, vast majority are sensible folk who see that the club's needs take precedence over their favourite player playing (not just playing, but playing in the exact position he wants and in the exact system he wants) and don't whinge about him being treated disgracefully.

Very good point and what I'm thinking as well.

Now that our CM isn't tissue paper thin we can afford to play Mata in his most effective #10 role without him having to worry as much about tracking back.

I REALLY want both Mata and Jose to silence the critics and see Mata get a run of games at #10 to get his form back. Think Juan can be a massive player for us in this half of the season and may be the ace up our sleeve. He doesn't have the wear and tear of our other players and will be desperate to do well in a World Cup year.

I miss our little magician so much!

What critics? We're playing well and most people couldn't give a fuck about Mata playing or not and do you know why?? Because Mourinho ALREADY silenced the critics.

I like the idea that now we're doing well and have this system in place that we should go back to a type of football that gives Mata complete freedom from pressing. He deserves games but I don't see why out of the 20-odd players in the squad and 50 odd players at the club and even the hundred (s?) of young players associated with this club, one player should be exempt from certain things.

And here comes the blasphemy....there are maybe 5 players in the world that you build systems around, if that. Mata ain't one of them.

[BlueLion. 21,491]

Arsenal are starting Ozil who's even worse than Mata and they're having their best League season in years to go along with the best defensive record in the League.

I mean even while Oscar was out injured he was still playing out wide. I can't remember the last time he was played in his preferred position. It's bad management, simply don't freeze out a fan favourite and the best player in the team out like that and any other manager would have been under fire for it.

As long as we don't sell him to any other club in the League where he will continue to haunt us until he retires I'm fine with him leaving. The way he's been treated is a disgrace.

What? What AVB did to Anelka and Alex is disgraceful treatment. José is being fair - he has told Mata what he has to do to win his place back; which is to contribute more defensively. Whenever he's played, he's put in less of a shift than even Hazard or Schurrle have, let alone contribute less than Oscar or Willian have in recent weeks. He's had ample opportunities to impress, and for me, he's playing at about 40% of the capacity he did last season when he was given all the freedom and centrality of Rafa's system. Mourinho is doing the right thing, for my money. He's forgotten more about football than I'll ever know, so I'll go with his judgement on the matter.

[Pizy 17,860]

What? What AVB did to Anelka and Alex is disgraceful treatment. José is being fair - he has told Mata what he has to do to win his place back; which is to contribute more defensively. Whenever he's played, he's put in less of a shift than even Hazard or Schurrle have, let alone contribute less than Oscar or Willian have in recent weeks. He's had ample opportunities to impress, and for me, he's playing at about 40% of the capacity he did last season when he was given all the freedom and centrality of Rafa's system. Mourinho is doing the right thing, for my money. He's forgotten more about football than I'll ever know, so I'll go with his judgement on the matter.

I agree that he's made the right choice in Oscar, but you can't really blame Mata for looking as poor as he has this season. Even a top, top class player needs to be playing regularly to be at their best. Mata can't be his world class self if he gets 50 minutes every 3rd match.

I just wish there were some way to have him on the pitch along with Oscar. It just makes me sad reminiscing about how insanely incredible he's been for us and now seeing him not get a look in.

Like I said earlier, I hope he has a big player for us going forward in some capacity.