A key Manchester United midfielder is set to leave.
Up until the 2000s, Spaniards have rarely featured at Old Trafford. However in the late 00s, upon the resurgence of the Spanish national team and the commencing of the nation’s golden era, Manchester United enjoyed their very own Spanish renaissance.
Juan Mata was one of the first Spanish players to truly excel at Old Trafford. The diminutive midfielder had already enjoyed a stellar spell in the Premier League at Chelsea before the Red Devils managed to lure him away from Stamford Bridge.
It was a major coup at the time for one of the best players in the Premier League and Juan Mata’s move was meant to herald a new era at the club. It promised to be one that would make the fans forget about the absence of Sir Alex Ferguson.
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Ultimately, Juan Mata failed to deliver those promises. He was not helped by the perpetual chopping and changing of managers as well as the lack of cohesion and strategy at Old Trafford and his star power alone was not enough to supplement and largely lacklustre squad.
Nonetheless, Mata has become an endeared figure among the Stretford End. Quick-witted with an elegant gait and a low-centre of gravity, the Spanish international could drift past hoards of defenders and set his teammates up on platters.
He’s always been a hard-worker and willing to give it his all for the team. Yet the ravages of time seem to have slowly caught of with his legs. Mata is lacking the pace and the sharpness which made him such a lethal attacker.
As a consequence, his form has dwindled in the past couple of seasons and with the arrival of Bruno Fernandes, the Spaniard has found his time extremely limited in the starting eleven, especially since the re-start of the Premier League following its suspension.
And according to a report by Sansurzus Futbol via the Daily Mail, Juan Mata could subsequently be on his way out of Old Trafford with Fenerbache set to make a move for his services.
The move would make sense, Juan Mata is no longer a key player at United and moving him on could free-up vital financial resources to help fund moves for the likes of Jadon Sancho.
Nonetheless it’ll be sad to see the little Spaniard leave. After he played over 250 games for the Red Devils it is fair to say he has established himself as a United cult hero.
What is your favourite memory of Juan Mata?