He is no footballing Messiah. He is no magic answer to Manchester United’s problems on the field. But he is a sign of positive intent from manager David Moyes.
Juan Mata’s arrival shows United can still attract the big players and while the Spanish international is not the central midfielder that the English champions need so badly, attacking intent this year has been sparse at Old Trafford.
United have stumbled their way through the season so far, last week’s League Cup semi-final defeat on penalties summing up perfectly the club’s slide from the top of the English game under former boss Sir Alex Ferguson to being one of the pack again.
Yet here he is and with Mata comes a new wave of positivity for all those involved at the club.
Mata represents a fresh start. The buzz that started when the transfer rumours first popped up was the most positive those around the club had been since the start of the season.
The fans took straight to Twitter to praise the signing. Mata offers a real boost to United, a chance to move on from a disappointing start and try and navigate their way to somewhere near their best.
Last summer’s transfer window mimicked the start to the season: it started off positively and snowballed towards a farce by the end.
Marouane Fellaini’s arrival at the club, a last-second deal after attempts to sign Ander Herrera collapsed in somewhat spectacular fashion, was hardly the starting point that Moyes would have wanted.
Fellani’s form then appeared to desert him from the moment he pulled the United shirt on. He became a rod with which to beat Moyes’ back – fans thought he was overpriced and overrated and they wanted him gone.
Mata’s signing is almost a polar opposite.
Mata signals a sign of intent from Moyes. It hasn’t worked up until now for him – so he’s changing it.
United have played some dull football this season. They’ve played some shoddy football too but the manner with which they’ve lost games, where they have looked helpless in defence, has been miles away from the United that many of us have known.
The last minute goals have all but disappeared, the attacking intent that smothered so many teams has been absent.
Mata is one of the missing pieces of the jigsaw. Moyes needs to create a United that is his and the new arrival gives him the chance to do this. The Spaniard’s face is well known to Premier League fans and they’ll be very aware what a good quality player he is.
Rewind six months and United were crowned champions. A team doesn’t suddenly become poor overnight so there is quite simply a lack of confidence at Old Trafford, especially for a team so used to winning.
Mata could be the catalyst United need to get their season up and running: he provides some maturity to the team and he proved his quality at Chelsea, so he could give the rest of the squad a kick up the backside.
A fresh face around the place can do wonders for a team low on confidence.
Crucially, Mata wants to come to United. He has not been forced to sign for them. He may have one eye on the World Cup, and having spent the majority of the season on the bench a move was always on the cards, but he chose United. They still have the pulling power that attracts so many players.
A high-quality signing such as Mata shows that United aren’t going to give up on this season quite so easily.
Image courtesy of Sky Sports via YouTube, with thanks.
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