Former Manchester United midfielder Juan Mata has revealed the reason behind spending a entire season at the club despite struggling to get time on the pitch.
Speaking to FourFourTwo, the Spaniard recalled how Cristiano Ronaldo’s return to Old Trafford boosted his hopes of lifting the title.
“I thought we could win the Premier League again. He [Ronaldo] had such high standards that he could drag the rest with him”, Mata said.
The midfielder added he did not want Manchester United to lift the title without him. Hence, he decided to spend another season at the club before finally moving to Galatasaray.
“After so many years at the club, it would have hurt me to leave if United then won the Premier League…I didn’t want to miss that moment. I dreamed of celebrating a league title at Old Trafford,” Mata added.
Mata also spoke about his faith in Ronaldo’s ability to deliver in the hour of need.
“I always thought that when it came to the 80th minute of a game, the ball had to go to him to win. He always appeared in decisive moments,” Mata said.
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Mata, however, acknowledged that there were some “circumstances” around the Portuguese superstar that did not allow him to perform at his best level.
“Circumstances around him [Ronaldo] prevented him from getting more quality minutes in his second season”, Mata explained. Mata also revealed that he had several chats with the legendary footballer. “I connected with Cristiano, during many conversations. He’s a much closer person than people can imagine”, the Spaniard concluded.
Manchester United finished second in the Premier League title race for the 2020-21 season. Mata did not get much game time that season, appearing nine times in the Premier League for Manchester United.
In those games, he managed a single goal and two assists.
Ronaldo’s arrival was announced in August 2021 and his return fuelled Mata’s belief of winning a Premier League crown.
But to Mata’s disappointment, the Red Devils finished in third place that season with. Ronaldo did the heavy lifting by scoring 18 goals and assisting thrice for the English side in 30 Premier League fixtures.
After a heartbreaking campaign, Mata joined Galatasaray in 2022. As for Ronaldo, the Portuguese legend left Manchester United and joined Saudi Arabian side Al Nassr a couple of weeks after the 2022 Qatar World Cup.
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