Some Thoughts on Juan Mata in Jose Mourinho’s Plan

Not long before Jose’s committing his charge at Stamford Bridge, many papers (especially Spanish ones) made nonsense rumours about Juan Mata’s future. They said Mata wasn’t in Jose’s plan (along with David Luiz), ignoring the quality he has and the fact that he was voted twice as Chelsea Player of The Year in his only two seasons with The Blues.
Those rumours seem off at least for now with Jose already revealed his plan for Juan Mata. The Special One spoke about position for Mata in tactical-wise. Sadly, the comment he made regarding his plan for Mata isn’t really satisfying me.

“We will try to help him perform better in those situations. I’ve always liked a right-sided player to be left-footed. I started with (Arjen) Robben and (Damien) Duff, then (Goran) Pandev at Inter, and (Angel) Di Maria and (Mesut) Ozil. Many clubs do it. It’s more than a tendency. I like wingers coming in on the inside for the penetrative movement, for the pass, for the shot. And Juan is the only player we have to do that on the right. I like wingers coming in on the inside for the penetrative movement, for the pass, for the shot. And Juan is the only player we have to do that on the right.”

That plan makes lot of sense since the wingers have to cut in to the 6 yard box and beat defenders by take-ons frequently, while the marauding full-backs will use the width to cross from deep or byline. To do so, the wingers need to be quick and comfortable with their dribbling. Juan Mata, as we know, is comfortable with the ball but he’s not a quick-paced player. He tends to do the playmaking instead of dribbling a lot. He has tremendous touches but he’s not going to beat opponents that often because his style of play is using more intelligence rather than speed. To compare him with Robben, Duff, or Di Maria isn’t apple-to-apple comparison.
If Jose prefers inverted wingers, then we lack of option for the right flank. Mata is great but he’s not that type of man who can offer speed since he will move centrally to have more influence rather than playing wide. Much like seeing Oscar on the wing which actually an attacking midfielder who plays as false winger, or a winger in the lineup only.
What worries me the most is when he said “Juan is the only player we have to do that on the right”. That said, he didn’t feel his squad is good enough to play penetrative games from right flank. Amid the fact that we already have Oscar, Hazard, De Bruyne, Moses, Schurrle, or even Marin and Piazon who can play there, Jose seemed indicating that only Mata who fits into his gameplan for the right flank.
At the moment, Schurrle, Hazard, and Moses arguably competent to play as right winger. I actually consider Hazard as the player who comes up with ability to cut inside from the right flank and uses his left foot to shoot or to pass but Jose didn’t mention that. Schurrle isn’t proven to play penetrative from the right flank and Moses is Moses. Furthermore, De Bruyne and Oscar seem unlikely to play wide on regular basis especially on the right flank, with Jose seems prepare them to play centrally or deeper since they have better work rate, physical and defensive attributes.
Speaking about left-footed players, we had Sturridge who actually a left-footed, quick, and quite prolific but now he’s playing for Liverpool. Lukaku and McEachran are left-footed as well but it’s ridiculous to play them as inverted wingers whilst Kakuta is still far from being Chelsea calibre. With that in mind, it leaves Juan Mata as the only viable left-footed option for right wing. It’s possible if Jose’s still looking for a left-footed winger in the market but I won’t talk about buying this player or that player since we already have too many players for winger spot.
The decision to use Mata as inverted winger, I’m afraid, wouldn’t let Mata showing his very best since Mata’s best position in Chelsea shirt is no. 10 role by far. I can only hope Mata fits the plan and being as productive as he was in his 2 previous seasons at Chelsea. If it isn’t, I wish Jose realizes this situation and do the best for Mata and the rest. If Jose chooses to use 4-3-3, then no doubt Mata will play as winger. But if Jose chooses 4-2-3-1 instead, there’s still a chance for Mata to play at no. 10 role with a left-footed guy playing on the right flank, like he did with Ozil and Di Maria. That guy is nobody else but Bertrand Traore who impressed me the most during pre-season in Asia but that’d only happen if he could get his work permit. If so, then he could play for U-21 squad while being actively involved and learn from the first team. Later on, Juan Mata still can unleash his best ability by playing at his best position while teaching the young Traore to be as good as him.
What do you think would be Mata’s role under Jose Mourinho? Thanks for reading and please let us know your opinions below through comments.