Juan Mata has opened up about the phone call he received from his grandad after Jose Mourinho was appointed manager of Manchester United
Manager Jose Mourinho of Manchester United with Juan Mata of Manchester United during the Premier League match between Manchester United and Leicester City at Old Trafford on September 24th, 2016 in Manchester, United Kingdom.
Jose Mourinho reunited with Juan Mata at Manchester United - much to his family's initial dismay
Former Manchester United player Juan Mata has revealed that his family encouraged him to leave the club after Jose Mourinho was appointed manager.
The Spanish midfielder transferred from Chelsea to United in January 2014 for a then-record fee of £37.1million, following two successful seasons at Stamford Bridge. At Chelsea, Mata had won the Champions League, FA Cup and Europa League before leaving for Old Trafford.
However, he fell out of favour under Mourinho's management at Chelsea and moved to United with the aim of more game time. Despite quickly becoming a fan favourite at Old Trafford under David Moyes, Mata saw the manager who brought him to the club sacked just months later.
During his seven-and-a-half years with the Red Devils, he played under several managers, including Dutchman Louis Van Gaal and club legend Ole Gunnar Solskjaer.
Manchester United's Portuguese manager Jose Mourinho (R) congratulates Manchester United's Spanish midfielder Juan Mata as he is substituted off during the English Premier League football match between Manchester United and Arsenal at Old Trafford in Manchester, north west England, on November 19, 2016.
Manchester United's Portuguese manager Jose Mourinho (R) congratulates Manchester United's Spanish midfielder Juan Mata as he is substituted off during the English Premier League football match between Manchester United and Arsenal at Old Trafford in Manchester, north west England, on November 19, 2016.
However, it was the arrival of Mourinho, Mata's former boss at Chelsea, in May 2016 that caused concern for his family. He has now revealed how his grandfather urged him to leave United, fearing that the Portuguese coach would sideline him once again.
Despite this advice, Mata chose to stay and fight for his place on the team. He made 285 appearances for the club and told ex-United goalkeeper Ben Foster that he feels a sense of pride for sticking to his decision after Mourinho's arrival.
Speaking on the Fozcast podcast, he said: "The first call that I received was from my family and from my granddad saying, 'You have to leave. What's going to happen?'
Juan Mata of Manchester United speaks to Jose Mourinho, Manager of Manchester United as he is subtituted during the EFL Cup Semi-Final First Leg match between Manchester United and Hull City at Old Trafford on January 10, 2017 in Manchester, England.
The midfielder made almost 300 appearances for United
"And I said, 'No, I'm going to see how it goes. I don't have any problem with him, and he doesn't have any problems with me.' It is one of the things that I'm most proud of in my career is to have remained, to be calm and say, 'No, I'm going to try to show that I can play in his style.' And I did so. Our relationship was very natural. Actually, we have a good relationship.
"I played games and we won things together. I played in all the finals, so I felt like an important player in his squad. My family told me, 'Okay, you were right,' but they were panicking a little bit."
Marcus Rashford, Juan Mata and Mason Greenwood of Manchester United celebrate a goal during a pre-season friendly match between Manchester United and Leeds United at Optus Stadium on July 17, 2019 in Perth, Australia.
The midfielder is regarded as a recent hero of Old Trafford(Image: Paul Kane/Getty Images)
After departing United in June 2022, Mata had brief stints with Galatasaray and Vissel Kobe before signing with Western Sydney Wanderers in September. Reflecting positively on his current chapter, he added: "It's amazing and the lifestyle is incredible.
"The city has everything. It's like being in five different cities in one, because you have the CBD (central business district), and all the big buildings. Then you have a nice beach five minutes away.
"The league is growing, and football, or soccer as they call it, is coming back to where it used to be a couple of years ago. They suffered a lot with Covid in the sport, but they're coming back, and it's a great place to be."