Juan Mata to Manchester United: A transfer rich in symbolism

Juan Mata – Manchester United’s new record signing.

If you don’t like what is being said about you, just change the conversation. And at Old Trafford, Moyes changed it with aplomb. Manchester United executed a typical high-profile transfer that already seems to have lived up to its billing. And at the end of it all, everyone got a piece of the £37.1 million record transfer.

1. Journalists with their exclusives get more followers on social media.

2. Juan Mata is then rumoured to miss the training session.

3. He then tells his family and friends about the move.

4. A customary ride on a helicopter is completed to reach the new club.

5. Meanwhile, his new teammates follow him on twitter.

6. Tweet, delete and tweet again – The impromptu leaks before the announcement are now considered as a good omen before the deal.

7. And then, when the whole world is familiar to every minute detail of the move – the wages, jersey number, debut game, even his new postal address – a deal is ‘officially’ announced.

Fair assessment? It is fair to say that without all the fuss around a transfer saga in modern football, a player cannot be really called a marquee signing anymore. And Juan Mata to Manchester United is already transfer rich in symbolism.

With the amount of money in his kitty, David Moyes did not just buy a top creative talent, but also notched some time off from on-field miseries that were reinventing new lows, every other week. Out of nowhere, the talks of a horrid domestic season and Cup failures have been replaced by a signal of intent, promise and hope.

And isn’t it what Moyes was always talking about? That he will give the fans something to shout about? After being overwhelmed by the surrounding and the magnanimity of the task in the first half of the season, he does get this one trick right.

In Mata, apart from a barrage of punny one-liners, the fans could already see someone who has the ability to lift this United side. A player that is oozing with quality and more importantly, someone who desperately wants to play and deliver consistently.

Although, more than what Mata could offer to this United side in the near future, it’s baffling how a transfer between two rival clubs was handled in the smoothest of fashions. While Jose Mourinho saw the two-time club player of the year dispensable from the side, Moyes tracked an opportunity to register his biggest win as a Manchester United manager – albeit off the field.

It was probably a case of two managers with contrasting perspectives that somehow panned out well for the Spanish playmaker. Mourinho’s Chelsea had surplus creative ammunition that needed to be compromised for tactical discipline. Moyes’ Man United on the other hand, has been running out of plausible options in the attacking third.

Also, several experts have already pin-pointed the short-term benefits of Mata strengthening the Manchester side being the games against Chelsea’s fellow title contenders. Although on paper, the move for Chelsea primarily underlines their efforts going into the balancing of the financial figures for the FFP – a whopping £26 million profit – after signing Mohamed Salah, a like for like squad player that will take the Spaniard’s position on the bench.

Meanwhile in Manchester, David Moyes will look to use this transfer as a one of a kind power play in the transfer market. Unlike the Fellaini transfer, when the club kept the figure ‘undisclosed’, United have announced the exact value of their new record signing, reaffirming their authority in the transfer and stock markets, respectively. It surely is an indication of exciting times ahead at the Theatre of Dreams. However, for now, this move enables Moyes to steady the ship that in the past few months has been drifting away from the shore.

Although doubts still circle on the fact that Mata will struggle to land his favourite central playmaking role in the side, the move itself has a lot more riding on it. If one has to rate the viability of the transfer on pure footballing terms, then Salah at £11 million at Chelsea would rather make much more sense.

However, in terms of a much needed game-changing ploy, what this transfer could bring at United is only comparable to a Robin van Persie transfer in 2012 or Mesut Ozil’s introduction at the Emirates, earlier this season. The Dutch went on to decide the league title last year; the German is destined do the same this season. Of course, it’s unfair to expect a similar end result from the Spaniard in less than half a season to play, but his mere inclusion should improve the spirit of the United locker room.

At the moment, the Mata transfer cannot be rated in terms of trophies, performances or even statistics. What Manchester United has bought in Mata is pure happiness – on and off the field. It is a move that signals freedom from the looming fear of mediocrity at the club.

For Moyes, it is a welcome source of reassurance that prepares him for more testing times as a United manager. For us fans, it is a symbol of rejuvenation, change and the rest, for now, doesn’t really Mata.