Juan Mata has said that he is ‘very happy’ living in Manchester, describing the city as ‘laid back’, whilst praising its culture and history.
The Spaniard has struggled to really assert himself at Old Trafford since his £37.1million move in January 2014, but has started the campaign in fine form, scoring three and assisting three in the first eight Premier League matches and earning a recall to his national team.
Speaking to Spanish publication El Pais, the 27-year-old compared life up North to ‘crazy’ London and insisted that there is more to come from his Red Devil career.
“I am very happy in Manchester,” he said.
“I have the feeling that I have only just arrived and I’ve got a lot of things I want to do.
“The best thing about living in Manchester is that it has a very ‘British’ atmosphere, very English.
“And then there is the music – a lot of really big groups have come out of Manchester.
“As for the architecture, it’s a very English city.
“There are galleries, museums, good restaurants – the only down side is the weather.”
Mata’s praise will be music to the ears of Manchester United fans, after his compatriot and teammate David De Gea’s girlfriend stated that the city was as ugly as ‘the back of her fridge’.
The playmaker has appeared 63 times for United, scoring an impressive 20 goals despite often finding himself on the right wing under Louis van Gaal’s management.
That comes after his two-and-a-half year spell at Chelsea, where he won player-of-the-year in his first two seasons, before Jose Mourinho determined him to be surplus to requirements.
And Mata said that his time at Stamford Bridge was good preparation for his move to United.
“I adapted really well because I had already lived in London,” he said.
“Now I’ve spent five years in England and it’s gone really quickly.
“London is fantastic – it’s like various cities in one but it moves so quickly, at a thousand miles an hour, it’s a bit crazy.
“Manchester is more laid back, it’s a normal city.
“It only seems like yesterday when I was in Valencia. I’m really happy with how it’s all turned out.”
Image courtesy of Sky Sports, via Youtube, with thanks
