Juan Manuel Mata García (born 28 April 1988) is a Spanish professional
footballer
A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugb ...
who plays as a
midfielder
A midfielder is an outfield position in association football.
Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in that case known as defensive midfielders. As central midfielders often go across boundarie ...
for Turkish
Süper Lig
The Süper Lig (, ''Super League''), officially known as Spor Toto Süper Lig for sponsorship reasons, is a Turkish professional league for association football clubs. It is the top-flight of the Turkish football league system and is run by the ...
club
Galatasaray. He mostly plays as a central
attacking midfielder
A midfielder is an outfield position in association football.
Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in that case known as defensive midfielders. As central midfielders often go across boundarie ...
, but he can also play on the
wing.
A graduate of
Real Madrid's youth academy, Mata played for
Real Madrid Castilla in 2006–07, before joining
Valencia in the summer of 2007. He became an integral part of the club's midfield, making 174 appearances over the course of four seasons. In August 2011, Mata signed for English club
Chelsea of the Premier League for a fee believed to be in the region of €28 million, and in his debut season, won the
UEFA Champions League and the
FA Cup
The Football Association Challenge Cup, more commonly known as the FA Cup, is an annual knockout football competition in men's domestic English football. First played during the 1871–72 season, it is the oldest national football compet ...
. The following year, Chelsea won the
UEFA Europa League, making Mata and teammate
Fernando Torres the first players to hold the
Champions League,
Europa League,
World Cup, and the
European Championships simultaneously. After falling out of favour at Chelsea under
José Mourinho, Mata was sold to
Manchester United in January 2014, for a fee of £37.1 million. He made 285 appearances over nine seasons at United, winning the Europa League and FA Cup again as well as the
EFL Cup and
FA Community Shield. He joined Galatasaray after his contract with United expired in the summer of 2022.
Mata was a Spanish international, having represented Spain at
under-16,
under-17,
under-19,
under-20,
under-21,
Olympic
Olympic or Olympics may refer to
Sports
Competitions
* Olympic Games, international multi-sport event held since 1896
** Summer Olympic Games
** Winter Olympic Games
* Ancient Olympic Games, ancient multi-sport event held in Olympia, Greece bet ...
and
senior levels. He played for the under-20 side in the
2007 FIFA U-20 World Cup
The 2007 FIFA U-20 World Cup was the 16th edition of the FIFA U-20 World Cup (formerly called the FIFA World Youth Championship), hosted by Canada from 30 June to 22 July 2007. Argentina defeated the Czech Republic in the title game by the sco ...
. In June 2009, Mata played at the
2009 FIFA Confederations Cup, his first senior tournament. In September 2009, Mata scored his first goal for the senior team, against
Estonia
Estonia, formally the Republic of Estonia, is a country by the Baltic Sea in Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland across from Finland, to the west by the sea across from Sweden, to the south by Latvia, an ...
, securing the nation a place at the
2010 FIFA World Cup
, image = 2010 FIFA World Cup.svg
, size = 200px
, caption = ''Ke Nako. (Tswana and Sotho for "It's time") Celebrate Africa's Humanity'It's time. Celebrate Africa's Humanity'' (English)''Dis tyd. Vier Afrika se mensd ...
in South Africa, and was part of Spain's World Cup-winning squad. In 2011, he resumed playing in the under-21 side, helping Spain win the
2011 UEFA European Under-21 Football Championship in Denmark. He won the
Golden Player award and was part of the Team of the Tournament. Mata returned to the senior squad for
UEFA Euro 2012
The 2012 UEFA European Football Championship, commonly referred to as UEFA Euro 2012 or simply Euro 2012, was the 14th European Championship for men's national football teams organised by UEFA. The final tournament, held between 8 June and 1 ...
and, after coming on as a substitute, scored Spain's fourth goal in
the final
Final, Finals or The Final may refer to:
*Final (competition), the last or championship round of a sporting competition, match, game, or other contest which decides a winner for an event
** Another term for playoffs, describing a sequence of cont ...
as Spain defeated
Italy
Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...
4–0 to retain their title as champions of Europe.
Early life
Mata was born in
Burgos
Burgos () is a city in Spain located in the autonomous community of Castile and León. It is the capital and most populated municipality of the province of Burgos.
Burgos is situated in the north of the Iberian Peninsula, on the confluence o ...
,
Castile and León. He inherited his name from his father,
Juan Manuel Mata Rodríguez, who was also a footballer, playing as a
forward for nearby
Burgos CF in the 1980s and early 1990s. Mata was raised in his father's home town of
Oviedo,
Asturias. His father later acted as Mata's agent, becoming
FIFA
FIFA (; stands for ''Fédération Internationale de Football Association'' (French), meaning International Association Football Federation ) is the international governing body of association football, beach football and futsal. It was found ...
-registered in the process. In his spare time, Mata enjoys
table tennis, a sport he played as a child.
Club career
Early career
Mata started his football career at
Real Oviedo in 2000, where his father spent part of his career, before joining Real Madrid's youth academy,
La Fábrica, in 2003 at the age of 15. After appearing for their ''Cadete A'' team, he then swiftly progressed through the junior teams, ''Juvenil C'' and finally ''
Juvenil A''. In his last campaign (2005–06), he scored two goals in the league and three more in the ''
Copa de Campeones'', including the winner in the final against
Real Valladolid, adding another three in the ''
Copa del Rey Juvenil
Copa or COPA may refer to:
COPA
COPA may refer to:
* Computer Operator Programming Assistant. trade of ITI
* Child Online Protection Act, a former U.S. law to protect minors from certain material on the internet
* Canadian Owners and Pilots Asso ...
''.
Switching to
Real Madrid Castilla in
2006–07, Mata was given the number 34 shirt in the first team, while wearing number 28 in Castilla. In spite of Castilla's final
Segunda División relegation, he finished the season as the side's second best scorer with nine, behind
striker Álvaro Negredo
Álvaro Negredo Sánchez (; born 20 August 1985) is a Spanish professional footballer who plays for Cádiz as a striker.
Nicknamed ''La fiera de Vallecas'' (The beast of Vallecas), he has played for Rayo Vallecano, Real Madrid B, Almería, R ...
, who registered 18.
Valencia
Mata had a release clause at Real Madrid during his last season at the club, and eventually agreed to sign for fellow
La Liga
The Campeonato Nacional de Liga de Primera División, commonly known simply as Primera División in Spain, and as La Liga in English-speaking countries and officially as LaLiga Banco Santander, Santander for sponsorship reasons, stylized as LaL ...
side
Valencia CF in March 2007, with the contract starting on 30 June 2007.
Benefitting from constant injuries to
Vicente
Vicente is an Italian, Spanish, and Portuguese name. Like its French variant, Vincent, it is derived from the Latin name ''Vincentius'' meaning "conquering" (from Latin ''vincere'', "to conquer").
Vicente may refer to:
Location
*São Vicente, Ca ...
and the ostracism to which then-manager
Ronald Koeman
Ronald Koeman (; born 21 March 1963) is a Dutch professional football manager and former player. He is the younger brother of his former international teammate Erwin Koeman and the son of former Dutch international Martin Koeman. Koeman was capab ...
condemned
Miguel Ángel Angulo, Mata gradually carved a niche in Valencia's first eleven. On 20 March 2008, he scored twice in the
Copa del Rey
The Campeonato de España–Copa de Su Majestad el Rey, commonly known as Copa del Rey or simply La Copa and formerly known as Copa del Presidente de la República (1932–36) and Copa del Generalísimo (1939–76), is an annual knockout footb ...
semi-final match against
FC Barcelona
Futbol Club Barcelona (), commonly referred to as Barcelona and colloquially known as Barça (), is a professional football club based in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain, that competes in La Liga, the top flight of Spanish football.
Found ...
to help Valencia reach
the final
Final, Finals or The Final may refer to:
*Final (competition), the last or championship round of a sporting competition, match, game, or other contest which decides a winner for an event
** Another term for playoffs, describing a sequence of cont ...
against
Getafe CF where, on 16 April, he scored the opener in a 3–1 win. During that first season, he was voted the team's ''Best Young Player'' by fans and players alike.
In the
2008
File:2008 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Lehman Brothers went bankrupt following the Subprime mortgage crisis; Cyclone Nargis killed more than 138,000 in Myanmar; A scene from the opening ceremony of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing; ...
Spanish SuperCup
Spanish might refer to:
* Items from or related to Spain:
**Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain
**Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries
**Spanish cuisine
Other places
* Spanish, Ontario, Can ...
, Mata scored against his former club Real Madrid in a 3–2 first leg win, but Valencia lost 5–6 on aggregate after a 2–4 away loss in the second game. He started
2008–09 well, scoring in the opener against
RCD Mallorca in a 3–0 win. He also scored the only goal of the game against
CA Osasuna, latching on to a long ball from
David Villa
David Villa Sánchez (; born 3 December 1981) is a Spanish retired professional footballer who played as a striker. Villa is regarded by pundits as one of the best forwards of his generation, and one of the best Spanish strikers of all time. ...
.
On 25 September 2008, Mata proved to be growing in efficiency, as he set up two of his teammate's goals in a 2–0 away win over
Málaga CF. Three days later, he put in a superb performance against
Deportivo de La Coruña, scoring one and creating the other three, in a 4–2 home victory.
Towards the end of the campaign, Mata managed to score two very important late goals for Valencia: the first, the 3–2 winner at
Sporting de Gijón
Real Sporting de Gijón, S.A.D. (), commonly known as Real Sporting, Sporting Gijón, or simply Sporting (although in an international context this can lead to confusion with Sporting Clube de Portugal) is a Spanish football club from Gijón, ...
, and the second a
penalty
Penalty or The Penalty may refer to:
Sports
* Penalty (golf)
* Penalty (gridiron football)
* Penalty (ice hockey)
* Penalty (rugby)
* Penalty (rugby union)
* Penalty kick (association football)
* Penalty shoot-out (association football)
* Penal ...
against
Sevilla FC
Sevilla Fútbol Club () is a Spanish professional football club based in Seville, the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Andalusia, Spain. It plays in Spanish football's top flight, La Liga. Sevilla have won the UEFA ...
at home, to put Valencia 2–1 up (specialist Villa had already been replaced due to injury) in an eventual 3–1 success. He achieved impressive stats during the season, finishing with 11 successful strikes and 13
assists, behind just Barcelona's
Xavi as the league's best.
In the following two seasons, Mata was an ever present offensive figure for Valencia, scoring 17 goals in 68 league games combined, with the club achieving back-to-back third-league places. On 10 April 2011, he scored two in a 5–0 home win against
Valencian neighbours
Villarreal CF. On 9 May, England-based Spanish journalist
Guillem Balagué
Guillem Balagué (born 2 November 1968) is a Spanish football journalist, author, and pundit. He was a regular pundit on Sky Sports' show ''Revista de la Liga'' and has also written for some of Britain's newspapers as well as several Spanish n ...
reported interest from several
Premier League clubs.
Chelsea
Transfer
On 21 August 2011, Valencia announced they had agreed a £23.5 million fee for the transfer of Mata to
Premier League club
Chelsea, subject to a medical. On 24 August 2011, Mata signed a five-year deal with Chelsea. He revealed that compatriot
Fernando Torres helped persuade him to move to
Stamford Bridge, saying "Fernando got me excited about the thought of coming here. He said it would be good for me here, and that me and him together could be good. I also talked to my family and friends about it as well."
On 26 August 2011,
Yossi Benayoun offered Mata his number 10 shirt. The
Israeli
Israeli may refer to:
* Something of, from, or related to the State of Israel
* Israelis, citizens or permanent residents of the State of Israel
* Modern Hebrew, a language
* ''Israeli'' (newspaper), published from 2006 to 2008
* Guni Israeli (b ...
captain said, "I decided to give Mata the number 10 – his favourite. For me, it's just a number, not my lucky 15." (
Florent Malouda wore number 15 for Chelsea at the time.) Mata wore number 10 for Valencia and for Spain's under-21s in the summer, and expressed his gratitude to Benayoun. "It is a very important number to me so I'm pleased to be wearing it. I want to thank Yossi," he said. Mata followed on from Chelsea players
Joe Cole,
Mark Hughes,
Ian Hutchinson, and
Terry Venables in adopting the number 10 shirt.
2011–13: European success
Mata made his debut for Chelsea against
Norwich City on 27 August 2011, where he came on as a 68th-minute substitute for
Florent Malouda and scored the club's third goal in the 11th minute of stoppage time. Chelsea went on to win the match 3–1. He started his first game for his new club in their next fixture on 10 September away to
Sunderland, helping Chelsea secure a 1–2 win. On 14 September, Mata made his
UEFA Champions League debut for Chelsea and scored in stoppage time to help his side defeat
Bayer Leverkusen 2–0.
On 29 October 2011, Mata assisted Chelsea's 6,000th league goal with an in-swinging cross which was headed in by
Frank Lampard
Frank James Lampard (born 20 June 1978) is an English professional football manager and former player who is the manager of club Everton. He is widely regarded as one of Chelsea’s greatest ever players, and one of the greatest midfielde ...
. In the same game, Mata scored with a spectacular 25-yard strike in a 3–5 home defeat to London rivals
Arsenal. On 26 November, Mata set up the first two goals which were scored by
John Terry
John George Terry (born 7 December 1980) is an English professional football coach and former player who played as a centre-back. He was previously captain of Chelsea, the England national team and Aston Villa. He was most recently the assi ...
and
Daniel Sturridge and also scored the third goal himself in a 3–0 win against
Wolverhampton Wanderers
Wolverhampton Wanderers Football Club (), commonly known as Wolves, is a professional football club based in Wolverhampton, England, which compete in the . The club has played at Molineux Stadium since moving from Dudley Road in 1889. The club' ...
. He was awarded the Man of the Match in a 0–3 away win at
St James' Park for his performance against
Newcastle United.
On 6 December 2011, during Chelsea's decisive Champions League match against former club
Valencia CF, Mata created two assists for both of
Didier Drogba goals. The game ended in a 3–0 win, which resulted in Chelsea qualifying first from their group. On Boxing Day, Mata scored his side's only goal in a 1–1 draw at
Stamford Bridge against
Fulham. Mata scored Chelsea's first goal of their
FA Cup
The Football Association Challenge Cup, more commonly known as the FA Cup, is an annual knockout football competition in men's domestic English football. First played during the 1871–72 season, it is the oldest national football compet ...
campaign in a 4–0 win over
Portsmouth
Portsmouth ( ) is a port and city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. The city of Portsmouth has been a unitary authority since 1 April 1997 and is administered by Portsmouth City Council.
Portsmouth is the most d ...
at Stamford Bridge.
In an FA Cup fourth round tie with
Queens Park Rangers at
Loftus Road, Mata scored his side's only goal from the penalty spot in a 0–1 victory. On 5 February 2012, Mata scored against
Manchester United in a 3–3 draw. On 21 February, Mata scored his side's only goal in their 1–3 defeat away at
Napoli in the first leg of the Champions League round of 16.
After the appointment of
Roberto Di Matteo as interim first-team coach, Mata was played as a central attacking midfielder rather than being played on the left wing. Mata scored and had a penalty saved by
Colin Doyle in the FA Cup fifth round replay against
Birmingham City
Birmingham City Football Club is a professional football club based in Birmingham, England. Formed in 1875 as Small Heath Alliance, it was renamed Small Heath in 1888, Birmingham in 1905, and Birmingham City in 1943. Since 2011, the first te ...
at
St Andrew's, which Chelsea won 2–0, helping them into the quarter-finals of the
FA Cup
The Football Association Challenge Cup, more commonly known as the FA Cup, is an annual knockout football competition in men's domestic English football. First played during the 1871–72 season, it is the oldest national football compet ...
. He continued his trait of scoring in each round; this run, however, ended against
Leicester City in the quarter-final, which Chelsea nonetheless won 5–2. On 7 April, Mata scored his 11th goal of the season against
Wigan Athletic
Wigan Athletic Football Club () is an English professional association football club based in Wigan, Greater Manchester, England. The team competes in the Championship, the second tier of the English football league system.
Founded in 1932, ...
, giving the Blues a 2–1 victory over the Latics and kept alive Chelsea's fight for a Champions League spot.
On 15 April, in Chelsea's 5–1 win against
Tottenham Hotspur in the FA Cup semi-final at
Wembley Stadium, Mata scored a controversial goal and assisted
Ramires and
Florent Malouda for their goals, adding to his statistics in the
2011–12 FA Cup with four goals and three assists. Mata started in both legs of Chelsea's Champions League semi-final clash with reigning champions
FC Barcelona
Futbol Club Barcelona (), commonly referred to as Barcelona and colloquially known as Barça (), is a professional football club based in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain, that competes in La Liga, the top flight of Spanish football.
Found ...
, helping his side to an unexpected 3–2 win on aggregate. and set up a
final
Final, Finals or The Final may refer to:
*Final (competition), the last or championship round of a sporting competition, match, game, or other contest which decides a winner for an event
** Another term for playoffs, describing a sequence of con ...
clash with
Bayern Munich on 19 May.
Mata provided two assists to fellow Spaniard Fernando Torres in the 6–1 thrashing of
West London rivals Queens Park Rangers on 29 April, bringing his tally to 13 Premier League assists on the season. Mata assisted the first goal in the
FA Cup final, which
Ramires scored, as Chelsea beat
Liverpool
Liverpool is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the List of English districts by population, 10th largest English district by population and its E ...
2–1 at Wembley, with Mata picking up the Man of the Match award. On 10 May, Mata was rewarded for his consistent form throughout his first Chelsea season by the fans voting him the club's Player of the Year, following on from Chelsea legends such as
Dennis Wise and
Gianfranco Zola, whom he had been compared to on various occasions.
In the
2012 UEFA Champions League Final against Bayern Munich on 19 May, Mata assisted Didier Drogba's headed equaliser from a corner kick in the 88th minute. The match went on to extra time and penalties, with Mata taking Chelsea's first, which Bayern goalkeeper
Manuel Neuer saved. Chelsea, however, went on to win 4–3 in the penalty-shootout, lifting their first Champions League title. Mata finished his first season at Stamford Bridge with 573 passes, creating 66 chances and completing 61 successful crosses, which all contributed to Chelsea's cup-double winning season. He finished the Premier League season with 14 assists – second highest in the league after
Manchester City's
David Silva – and six goals.
Mata missed all of Chelsea's pre-season games as he was playing for
Spain
, image_flag = Bandera de España.svg
, image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg
, national_motto = '' Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond")
, national_anthem = (English: "Royal March")
, ...
at the
2012 Summer Olympics in London, but he returned to play in the
2012 FA Community Shield
The 2012 FA Community Shield (also known as The FA Community Shield sponsored by McDonald's for sponsorship reasons) was the 90th FA Community Shield, a football match played on 12 August 2012 between the winners of the previous season's Premier ...
against Manchester City and was substituted after 74 minutes for Daniel Sturridge. Mata assisted his first goal of the season on 22 September 2012 against
Stoke City, providing a great flick to
Ashley Cole
Ashley Cole (born 20 December 1980) is an English football coach and former player who is currently a first-team coach at Premier League club Everton. As a player, he played as a left-back, most notably for Arsenal and Chelsea. Cole is cons ...
, which turned out to be the winning goal as Chelsea won 1–0. He scored his first goal of the season in the
2012–13 Football League Cup third round against Wolverhampton Wanderers, with the game finishing 6–0 to Chelsea. Four days later, he scored his first
Premier League goal of the season, assisting
Fernando Torres for the opener and then scoring directly from a free-kick in a 2–1 away win against Arsenal at the
Emirates Stadium.
Mata scored Chelsea's first and third goal in the
Champions League as Chelsea beat
Nordsjælland
North Zealand, also North Sealand ( da, Nordsjælland), refers to the northern part of the Danish island of Zealand which is not clearly defined but generally covers the area north of Copenhagen. The Danish tourist authorities have recently in ...
0–4 away in
Farum
Farum is a town on the northeast of the island of Zealand in eastern Denmark, 20 km northwest of Copenhagen. The town has a population of 20,312 (1 January 2022). , Denmark. He later provided two assists in Chelsea's 4–1 rout of
Norwich City, sending
Eden Hazard
Eden Michael Walter Hazard (born 7 January 1991) is a Belgian professional footballer who plays as a winger or attacking midfielder for La Liga club Real Madrid. Known for his creativity, dribbling, passing and vision, Hazard is considered ...
through on goal and later flicking a delightful ball for defender
Branislav Ivanović to volley in. In a
London Derby game against Tottenham Hotspur at
White Hart Lane on 20 October, Mata scored twice and provided an assist for Daniel Sturridge in a 2–4 victory for Chelsea, where he also earned Man of the Match honours. He next scored in a Premier League match with a beautiful free kick against
Manchester United. Chelsea, however, lost the match 3–2 after a late controversial goal from
Javier Hernández. Mata went on to win the
Premier League Player of the Month award for October after scoring three league goals.
After manager
Roberto Di Matteo was sacked following a 3–0 defeat to
Juventus in the Champions League, Mata scored the first goal of new, interim manager
Rafael Benítez's reign at Chelsea against
West Ham United, although Chelsea suffered a 3–1 defeat in this game. He scored again in Chelsea's win over Nordsjælland in a Champions League game, but Chelsea still failed to advance to the knockouts despite a 6–1 win at home. He added to his tally of goals and his collection of fine performance at
Sunderland in a 1–3 Chelsea win. After this game, Chelsea traveled to Japan for the
2012 FIFA Club World Cup. Here, too, Mata continued his top form by scoring Chelsea's first goal in the tournament against
Monterrey in the semi-final, helping them on their course to the final with a 1–3 victory. The tournament, however, ended in disappointment as Chelsea were beaten 1–0 by Brazilian club
Corinthians
The First Epistle to the Corinthians ( grc, Α΄ ᾽Επιστολὴ πρὸς Κορινθίους) is one of the Pauline epistles, part of the New Testament of the Christian Bible. The epistle is attributed to Paul the Apostle and a co-author ...
in the
final
Final, Finals or The Final may refer to:
*Final (competition), the last or championship round of a sporting competition, match, game, or other contest which decides a winner for an event
** Another term for playoffs, describing a sequence of con ...
. The team put the defeat behind them by completing an 8–0 routing of
Aston Villa, a game in which though Mata did not score a goal, but nevertheless played a very influential part.
On 22 December 2012, Mata signed a contract extension with Chelsea which tied him up with the club until 2018. On Boxing Day, Chelsea traveled to
Carrow Road
Carrow Road is an association football stadium located in Norwich, Norfolk, England, and is the home of EFL Championship side Norwich City. The stadium is located toward the east of the city, near Norwich railway station and the River Wensum.
...
to face
Norwich City, where both Manchester United and Arsenal had suffered defeats earlier in the season. Mata scored a brilliant goal in the 38th minute, taking a pass from
Oscar into his stride and launching an unstoppable shot into the goal from 25 yards out. The goal turned out to be the winner. Then, on 5 January, Mata provided assists for new acquisition
Demba Ba
Demba Ba (born 25 May 1985) is a former professional footballer. He serves as the chairman of National Independent Soccer Association side ASC San Diego.
He made his first-team debut with French team Rouen in 2005 before moving to Mouscron and ...
and Branislav Ivanović to help Chelsea win 1–5 against
Southampton in the third round of the
2012–13 FA Cup. A week later, he forced an own goal from
Jonathan Walters
Jonathan Ronald Walters (born 20 September 1983) is a former professional footballer who played as a forward.
Walters started his career at Blackburn Rovers but failed to break into the first team and joined Bolton Wanderers. He then went ou ...
by putting in a tight corner and earned a penalty which
Frank Lampard
Frank James Lampard (born 20 June 1978) is an English professional football manager and former player who is the manager of club Everton. He is widely regarded as one of Chelsea’s greatest ever players, and one of the greatest midfielde ...
converted. Chelsea went on to win the game 0–4, which was Stoke's first home defeat of the season.
Mata scored his eighth goal of the season in the Premier League against Arsenal in a 2–1 home win.
On 3 March 2013, Mata made his 100th appearance in all competitions for Chelsea in a 1–0 win over
West Bromwich Albion at Stamford Bridge. On 14 March, Mata scored an opening goal in Chelsea's
Europa League 3–1 (3–2) win against
Steaua București. On 19 April, Mata was nominated for
PFA Players' Player of the Year in recognition of his contribution to Chelsea's season in all competitions. The PFA's decision was based on his "ability to not only create goals but also score them himself" and saw him nominated alongside teammate
Eden Hazard
Eden Michael Walter Hazard (born 7 January 1991) is a Belgian professional footballer who plays as a winger or attacking midfielder for La Liga club Real Madrid. Known for his creativity, dribbling, passing and vision, Hazard is considered ...
. He also scored an 87th-minute winner against Manchester United, a crucial one for Chelsea's Champions League qualification hopes.
On 15 May, Mata gave a fine performance in the
2013 UEFA Europa League Final against Portugal's
Benfica, assisting Branislav Ivanović's injury time winner from a corner kick. The next day, he was awarded Chelsea's Player's Player of the Year award. He modestly gave the credit to the whole of the squad, saying that, "he felt proud to play for Chelsea," and thanked his teammates. He was also awarded Chelsea's Player of the Year for the second successive season. On winning his second award of the night, he said, "I feel so happy. It's my second season here and winning the trophy two years in a row is amazing for me. I just want to say thank you to all the supporters and all my teammates."
2013–14: Mid-season departure
Under new Chelsea manager
José Mourinho, Mata spent a lot of time on the bench. Mourinho preferred
Oscar as a
playmaker, and suggested Mata needed to adapt to a wider position and to working harder defensively. On 28 September 2013, Mata came on as a half-time substitute against
Tottenham Hotspur to assist
John Terry
John George Terry (born 7 December 1980) is an English professional football coach and former player who played as a centre-back. He was previously captain of Chelsea, the England national team and Aston Villa. He was most recently the assi ...
to score an equaliser in a 1–1 draw, but his appearances in the first team remained infrequent. On 29 October, he scored his first goal of the season in a 2–0
League Cup victory at London rivals
Arsenal.
Mata struggled to secure a regular first-team place under Mourinho as he had started just 11 of Chelsea's 22 Premier League matches. Mata scored 33 goals and provided 58 assists in 135 appearances over two-and-a-half seasons with Chelsea.
Manchester United
Transfer
On 24 January 2014, Mourinho said Chelsea had accepted a transfer offer from
Manchester United and he allowed Mata to travel to Manchester to undergo a medical, after the player said he was "really happy to go". Manchester United confirmed later in the day that a transfer fee had been agreed, but that the deal was still contingent on Mata agreeing personal terms and passing a medical. The transfer was completed the following day, with Manchester United paying Chelsea
a then club record fee of £37.1 million (€46 million), with Mata signing a contract until the summer of 2018.
2014–15: Debut season and individual success
He made his debut against
Cardiff City
Cardiff City Football Club ( cy, Clwb Pêl-droed Dinas Caerdydd) is a professional association football club based in Cardiff, Wales. It competes in the Championship, the second tier of the English football league system. Founded in 1899 as R ...
on 28 January and provided one assist in the 2–0 home victory. Mata scored his first goal for United in a 4–1 win over
Aston Villa on 29 March 2014. He also went on to score two goals against
Newcastle United in a 4–0 away victory, two more against
Norwich City after coming off the bench in another 4–0 win, and the only goal in a 1–1 draw against
Southampton in the final match of the season.
Mata ended the season having scored six goals for Manchester United, all in the Premier League, since he was cup tied and unable to play in the Champions League and other cup competitions due to his participation in the tournaments with Chelsea earlier in the season.
Mata began the new season in fine form. He scored the only goal in
Manchester United's second game of the Premier League season, a 1–1 draw against
Sunderland at
Stadium of Light, following it up with a goal against
Queens Park Rangers in a 4–0 thumping, which was also
Louis van Gaal's first competitive win in charge of United. He was later dropped to the bench for the following two matches, making cameo appearances against Leicester and West Ham, with van Gaal preferring an attacking trinity of
Wayne Rooney,
Robin van Persie
Robin van Persie (; born 6 August 1983) is a Dutch football coach and former professional footballer who played as a striker. Regarded as one of the best strikers of his generation, Van Persie was known for his excellent technique and ball c ...
and new signing
Radamel Falcao in both games.
Following Rooney's sending off and suspension due to a foul on
Stewart Downing in the match against West Ham, Mata was reinstated to the starting lineup, and he started the next match against
Everton, a 2–1 win at Old Trafford in which he provided the assist for
Ángel Di María's goal. Mata later scored winning goals in home games against
Crystal Palace and
Stoke City, the former after coming on as a second-half substitute. He made his return to the starting line-ups for the first time, in a 3–0 win over
Tottenham
Tottenham () is a town in North London, England, within the London Borough of Haringey. It is located in the ceremonial county of Greater London. Tottenham is centred north-northeast of Charing Cross, bordering Edmonton to the north, Wal ...
but was substituted in the 77th minute for
Andreas Pereira. On 22 March 2015, Mata scored a brace, including a
bicycle kick, in a 2–1 victory over
Liverpool
Liverpool is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the List of English districts by population, 10th largest English district by population and its E ...
, a performance which he rated as his best for Manchester United. His second goal against Liverpool was also voted as Premier League Goal of the Month in March 2015. His inspired performances led to him being named as Manchester United's Player of the Month for March.
2015–16: FA Cup win
Mata, just as he had in the previous campaign, had a fine start to the season, getting an assist in the second game of the campaign against
Aston Villa, which helped maintain his side's impressive record at
Villa Park. September was a month to remember for Mata as he scored two goals and made two assists in just three games, as Manchester United claimed wins against
Liverpool
Liverpool is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the List of English districts by population, 10th largest English district by population and its E ...
,
Southampton, and
Sunderland. As a result, Mata was crowned the club's Player of The Month.
Mata was made
captain for the home game against
Watford on 2 March and scored a free kick, which was also the match-winner. On 6 March, in a 1–0 defeat to
West Brom, Mata received his first career
red card A red card is a type of penalty card that is shown in many sports after a rules infraction.
Red card may also refer to:
Art, entertainment, and media
* ''Red Card'' (album), 1976 release by Streetwalkers
* Red card, suit (cards) of hearts or dia ...
after obtaining two yellow cards in the space of three minutes. Mata assisted an
Anthony Martial goal against
West Ham in the final game at the
Boleyn Ground; however, United lost 3–2, ending their chances of beating
Manchester City for fourth-place.
On 21 May 2016, Mata scored for United in the
FA Cup Final against
Crystal Palace, leveling the score at 1–1 just three minutes after
Jason Puncheon's 78th-minute goal. Mata was substituted in the 90th minute and replaced by
Jesse Lingard, who would score the winning goal for United in extra time.
2016–17: UEFA Europa League, League Cup wins
At the beginning of the summer, Mata was reunited with his former Chelsea manager and the person who sold him to Manchester United,
José Mourinho. On 7 August 2016, Mata was selected to be on the bench in the
FA Community Shield. Mata replaced
Jesse Lingard in the second half, then was substituted in added time for
Henrikh Mkhitaryan
Henrikh Mkhitaryan ( hy, Հենրիխ Մխիթարյան, ; born 21 January 1989) is an Armenian professional footballer who plays as an attacking midfielder or winger for club Inter Milan.
Mkhitaryan won four Armenian Premier League titles w ...
. Although there were reports about tensions between the player and manager, after the match, Mata stated that there were no tensions between him and Mourinho. He started in the opening match of the season against
AFC Bournemouth and scored Manchester United's first Premier League goal of the season with a tap-in after
Simon Francis' error. After José Mourinho dropped captain
Wayne Rooney, Mata served as the stand-in captain in the 0–0 draw against
Burnley
Burnley () is a town and the administrative centre of the wider Borough of Burnley in Lancashire, England, with a 2001 population of 73,021. It is north of Manchester and east of Preston, at the confluence of the River Calder and River Br ...
on 29 October 2016.
2017–20: Later years and contract extension
Mata scored his third brace of his Manchester United career, scoring both goals in a Boxing Day fixture against
Leicester City. However, his efforts were cancelled out by a late equaliser from
Harry Maguire
Jacob Harry Maguire (born 5 March 1993) is an English professional footballer who plays as a centre-back for club Manchester United and the England national team.
Maguire came through the youth system at Sheffield United before graduating ...
which saw the match finish 2–2. Mata finished the season with three goals in 40 appearances for the Red Devils, as United finished second in the Premier League and lost in the
2018 FA Cup Final against his former club,
Chelsea.
Mata scored United's first goal of the season in a friendly against
Club América on 19 July 2018. Mata's first competitive goal came in the 3rd minute of United's
League Cup exit to
Derby County on 25 September 2018. On 6 October, Mata scored United's first goal in a 3-2 comeback win over
Newcastle United. Later, on 7 November 2018, Mata scored the equaliser from a free kick in another late comeback 2–1 win over
Juventus in a
Champions League group stage fixture. Mata also scored in a 4–1 win over
Fulham on 8 December 2018, before scoring his final goal of the season in a 1–1 draw against his former club
Chelsea on 28 April 2019.
On 19 June 2019, it was confirmed that Mata had signed a new two-year contract with Manchester United, keeping him at the club until June 2021 with the option of a further year. This ended months of speculation over his future.
Mata's first goal of the
2019–20 season came from the spot in 4–0 win over
AZ in United's final
Europa League group stage game. Mata later scored the only goal in January in an
FA Cup
The Football Association Challenge Cup, more commonly known as the FA Cup, is an annual knockout football competition in men's domestic English football. First played during the 1871–72 season, it is the oldest national football compet ...
third round replay against
Wolverhampton Wanderers
Wolverhampton Wanderers Football Club (), commonly known as Wolves, is a professional football club based in Wolverhampton, England, which compete in the . The club has played at Molineux Stadium since moving from Dudley Road in 1889. The club' ...
. Mata then scored in United's final game before the temporary suspension of football due to the
COVID-19 pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identi ...
in a 5–0 victory over
LASK
Linzer Athletik-Sport-Klub, commonly known as Linzer ASK () or simply LASK, is an Austrian professional football club, from the Upper-Austrian state capital Linz. It is the oldest football club in that region, and plays in the Austrian Football ...
.
2020–21 season
After scoring against
Luton
Luton () is a town and unitary authority with borough status, in Bedfordshire, England. At the 2011 census, the Luton built-up area subdivision had a population of 211,228 and its built-up area, including the adjacent towns of Dunstable an ...
and
Brighton in the third and fourth round of the
League Cup respectively, Mata received praise for his performance in a comeback 4–1 win against
Newcastle United in the
Premier League on 17 October 2020. Whilst not scoring he provided an assist for
Maguire's equaliser as well as being involved in the build up for all other goals. Manager
Ole Gunnar Solskjær described his game as "fantastic" while
Sky Sports said United's win was "largely thanks to
olskjær'sdecision to turn to Mata". On 23 May 2021, he scored his only Premier League goal of the season in a 2–1 away win over Wolverhampton Wanderers.
2021–22 season
On 2 July 2021, Mata signed a contract extension with Manchester United, keeping him at the club for another year. After having made twelve appearances throughout the whole 2021-2022 campaign, the last of which during the team's last
league
League or The League may refer to:
Arts and entertainment
* ''Leagues'' (band), an American rock band
* ''The League'', an American sitcom broadcast on FX and FXX about fantasy football
Sports
* Sports league
* Rugby league, full contact footba ...
fixture against
Crystal Palace (on 22 May 2022), Mata left the club at the end of the season following his contract expiration.
The Spaniard's time at Old Trafford came to an end after eight years, a total amount of 285 appearances and 51 goals and four trophies won with the club.
Galatasaray
On 8 September 2022, he signed a one-year contract with Turkish
Süper Lig
The Süper Lig (, ''Super League''), officially known as Spor Toto Süper Lig for sponsorship reasons, is a Turkish professional league for association football clubs. It is the top-flight of the Turkish football league system and is run by the ...
team
Galatasaray, with the option to extend the deal by a further year. He made his debut for the Turkish side on 24 September 2022, in a friendly match against Istanbulspor and showed an impressive performance.
International career
Mata represented Spain from 2004 to 2016 at
under-16,
under-17,
under-19,
under-20,
under-21,
Olympic
Olympic or Olympics may refer to
Sports
Competitions
* Olympic Games, international multi-sport event held since 1896
** Summer Olympic Games
** Winter Olympic Games
* Ancient Olympic Games, ancient multi-sport event held in Olympia, Greece bet ...
and
senior levels.
He helped Spain win the
2006 UEFA European Under-19 Football Championship, where he was a key player. He finished the championship second to his teammate
Alberto Bueno
Alberto Bueno Calvo (; born 20 March 1988) is a Spanish professional footballer. He operates mainly as a forward, but can also appear as a left winger.
After starting out at Real Madrid, he went on to represent mainly Valladolid and Rayo Valle ...
(five goals) as top goal scorer of the competition, with four in five matches.
On 1 February 2007, under-21 coach
Iñaki Sáez included him on his squad for the friendly against
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe ...
, alongside
Real Madrid teammates
Roberto Soldado
Roberto Soldado Rillo (; born 27 May 1985) is a Spanish professional footballer who plays as a striker for Segunda División club Levante.
After emerging through Real Madrid's youth system, he went on to appear in only 27 official matches fo ...
,
José Manuel Jurado,
Sergio Sánchez,
Miguel Torres,
Esteban Granero and
Antonio Adán
Antonio Adán Garrido (; born 13 May 1987) is a Spanish professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for Primeira Liga club Sporting CP.
A youth product of Real Madrid, where he acted mainly as a backup, he spent most of his career with ...
, at just 18 years and 10 months.
On 14 November 2008,
Vicente del Bosque called Mata up to the senior team to play in a friendly against
Chile
Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in the western part of South America. It is the southernmost country in the world, and the closest to Antarctica, occupying a long and narrow strip of land between the Andes to the eas ...
. He did not leave the bench in a 3–0 home win. On 28 March 2009, he finally made his debut, playing in the
2010 FIFA World Cup
, image = 2010 FIFA World Cup.svg
, size = 200px
, caption = ''Ke Nako. (Tswana and Sotho for "It's time") Celebrate Africa's Humanity'It's time. Celebrate Africa's Humanity'' (English)''Dis tyd. Vier Afrika se mensd ...
qualifier
In linguistics, a modifier is an optional element in phrase structure or clause structure which ''modifies'' the meaning of another element in the structure. For instance, the adjective "red" acts as a modifier in the noun phrase "red ball", prov ...
against
Turkey
Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with a small portion on the Balkan Peninsula ...
, a 1–0 win in
Madrid
Madrid ( , ) is the capital and most populous city of Spain. The city has almost 3.4 million inhabitants and a metropolitan area population of approximately 6.7 million. It is the second-largest city in the European Union (EU), and ...
. He came on as a substitute for teammate
David Villa
David Villa Sánchez (; born 3 December 1981) is a Spanish retired professional footballer who played as a striker. Villa is regarded by pundits as one of the best forwards of his generation, and one of the best Spanish strikers of all time. ...
in the 63rd minute.
In June 2009, Del Bosque included Mata for the
2009 FIFA Confederations Cup, the youngster's first senior tournament. He started in the second group match against
Iraq
Iraq,; ku, عێراق, translit=Êraq officially the Republic of Iraq, '; ku, کۆماری عێراق, translit=Komarî Êraq is a country in Western Asia. It is bordered by Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq ...
and came on as a substitute for
Albert Riera
Albert Riera Ortega (born 15 April 1982) is a Spanish former footballer who played as left winger but also as a left-back, currently manager of Slovenian club Olimpija Ljubljana.
He made a name for himself at Espanyol (with whom he won a Cop ...
in the semi-final loss to the
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...
.
On 9 September 2009, Mata scored his first goal for the senior team, as the 3–0 win against
Estonia
Estonia, formally the Republic of Estonia, is a country by the Baltic Sea in Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland across from Finland, to the west by the sea across from Sweden, to the south by Latvia, an ...
secured a place in the World Cup in South Africa. He followed this up with the winner against
Armenia
Armenia (), , group=pron officially the Republic of Armenia,, is a landlocked country in the Armenian Highlands of Western Asia.The UNbr>classification of world regions places Armenia in Western Asia; the CIA World Factbook , , and ''O ...
on 10 October, scoring a penalty to steal a 2–1 win. Picked for the final stages, he appeared once for the eventual champions, replacing
Fernando Torres for the final 20 minutes of the 2–0 group stage win against
Honduras.
In 2011, the following summer, he returned to the under-21 side as a senior squad member and helped Spain win the
2011 UEFA European Under-21 Championship
Eleven or 11 may refer to:
*11 (number), the natural number following 10 and preceding 12
* one of the years 11 BC, AD 11, 1911, 2011, or any year ending in 11
Literature
* ''Eleven'' (novel), a 2006 novel by British author David Llewellyn
*''El ...
in Denmark. Mata himself was included in
UEFA
Union of European Football Associations (UEFA ; french: Union des associations européennes de football; german: Union der europäischen Fußballverbände) is one of six continental bodies of governance in association football. It governs fo ...
's Team of the Tournament and named as the tournament's
Golden Player.
Mata returned to the senior squad for
UEFA Euro 2012
The 2012 UEFA European Football Championship, commonly referred to as UEFA Euro 2012 or simply Euro 2012, was the 14th European Championship for men's national football teams organised by UEFA. The final tournament, held between 8 June and 1 ...
and, after coming on as a substitute, scored Spain's fourth goal in the
final
Final, Finals or The Final may refer to:
*Final (competition), the last or championship round of a sporting competition, match, game, or other contest which decides a winner for an event
** Another term for playoffs, describing a sequence of con ...
as Spain defeated
Italy
Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...
4–0 to retain their title as champions of Europe.
Mata was included in Spain's squad for the
2012 Olympic football tournament as one of their three designated overage players. Spain, however, failed to score in any of their opening three matches and were eliminated at the group stage.
Style of play
In addition to his favoured
playmaking role through the
centre
Center or centre may refer to:
Mathematics
*Center (geometry), the middle of an object
* Center (algebra), used in various contexts
** Center (group theory)
** Center (ring theory)
* Graph center, the set of all vertices of minimum eccentricity ...
of the pitch behind the forwards, Mata is also comfortable playing on either
wing; he has also been used as a
second striker on occasion. He makes up for a lack of pace with his control, technique, passing, creativity, and vision, which allows him to link-up with teammates and register many
assists, in addition to scoring goals. A diminutive player, standing at , he lacks significant physical strength, heading ability, or aerial prowess, but is quick, agile, and nimble in his movements. Predominantly left footed, he is also a well-known free kick specialist. However, he has drawn criticism at times in the media over his limited defensive skills and work-rate.
Business interests
In November 2012, along with fellow Premier League players
Santi Cazorla and
Michu
Miguel Pérez Cuesta (born 21 March 1986), known as Michu (), is a Spanish former professional footballer who played as a striker or attacking midfielder.
He started playing for Real Oviedo, subsequently representing Celta and Rayo Vallecano, ...
, Mata bought shares in former club Real Oviedo, who were struggling to raise €2 million to stay afloat in the Spanish third division.
Mata and his father Juan Manuel Mata were part-owners of Tapeo and Wine, a Spanish restaurant on
Deansgate in
Manchester city centre, which opened in 2016 and closed in 2020
as a result of COVID-19.
Mata and his father felt that authentic Spanish food options in Manchester were insufficient and so wanted to create their own restaurant.
At the time, both Manchester managers,
Pep Guardiola and
José Mourinho were regular patrons.
In August 2017, Mata announced in an article for ''
The Players' Tribune'' that he was pledging one percent of his salary to a pledge-based charitable movement named
Common Goal, and called for other football players to do the same.
Career statistics
Club
International
:''As of match played 15 November 2016. Spain score listed first, score column indicates score after each Mata goal.''
[
]
Honours
Valencia
*Copa del Rey
The Campeonato de España–Copa de Su Majestad el Rey, commonly known as Copa del Rey or simply La Copa and formerly known as Copa del Presidente de la República (1932–36) and Copa del Generalísimo (1939–76), is an annual knockout footb ...
: 2007–08
Chelsea
*FA Cup
The Football Association Challenge Cup, more commonly known as the FA Cup, is an annual knockout football competition in men's domestic English football. First played during the 1871–72 season, it is the oldest national football compet ...
: 2011–12
* UEFA Champions League: 2011–12
* UEFA Europa League: 2012–13
* FIFA Club World Cup runner-up: 2012
Manchester United
*FA Cup: 2015–16
* EFL Cup: 2016–17
*FA Community Shield: 2016
*UEFA Europa League: 2016–17; runner-up: 2020–21
The dash is a punctuation mark consisting of a long horizontal line. It is similar in appearance to the hyphen but is longer and sometimes higher from the baseline. The most common versions are the endash , generally longer than the hyphen b ...
Spain U19
* UEFA European Under-19 Championship: 2006
Spain U21
* UEFA European Under-21 Championship: 2011
Spain
*FIFA World Cup
The FIFA World Cup, often simply called the World Cup, is an international association football competition contested by the senior men's national teams of the members of the ' ( FIFA), the sport's global governing body. The tournament has ...
: 2010
*UEFA European Championship
The UEFA European Football Championship, less formally the European Championship and informally the Euro, is the primary association football tournament organised by the Union of European Football Associations ( UEFA). The competition is conte ...
: 2012
* FIFA Confederations Cup runner-up: 2013
File:2013 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: Edward Snowden becomes internationally famous for leaking classified NSA wiretapping information; Typhoon Haiyan kills over 6,000 in the Philippines and Southeast Asia; The Dhaka garment fa ...
; third place: 2009
Individual
* UEFA European Under-21 Championship Golden Player: 2011
*UEFA European Under-21 Championship Team of the Tournament: 2011
*Chelsea Player of the Year
Chelsea Football Club is an English professional football club based in Fulham, West London. Founded in 1905, they play their home games at Stamford Bridge. The club competes in the Premier League, the top division of English football. ...
: 2011–12, 2012–13
*Chelsea Players' Player of the Year: 2012–13
* Premier League Player of the Month: October 2012
* PFA Team of the Year: 2012–13 Premier League
References
External links
*
*
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mata, Juan
1988 births
Living people
Sportspeople from Burgos
Footballers from Oviedo
Spanish footballers
Footballers from Castile and León
Association football wingers
Association football forwards
Real Madrid Castilla footballers
Valencia CF players
Chelsea F.C. players
Manchester United F.C. players
Galatasaray S.K. footballers
Segunda División players
La Liga players
Premier League players
Süper Lig players
UEFA Champions League winning players
UEFA Europa League winning players
Spain youth international footballers
Spain under-21 international footballers
Spain under-23 international footballers
Olympic footballers of Spain
Spain international footballers
2009 FIFA Confederations Cup players
2010 FIFA World Cup players
UEFA Euro 2012 players
Footballers at the 2012 Summer Olympics
2013 FIFA Confederations Cup players
2014 FIFA World Cup players
FIFA World Cup-winning players
UEFA European Championship-winning players
Spanish expatriate footballers
Spanish expatriate sportspeople in England
Spanish expatriate sportspeople in Turkey
Expatriate footballers in England
FA Cup Final players