Manchester United fans don't deserve recent poor form, says Juan Mata
Sunday 7 October 2018 14:51, UK
Juan Mata has admitted Manchester United fans do not deserve the poor form and uncertainty which has recently swept the club.
Mata was responsible for kick-starting the comeback at Old Trafford on Saturday, as United turned around a two-goal deficit to beat visitors Newcastle 3-2, following their defeat at West Ham in the league.
The Spaniard's pinpoint free-kick, along with goals from Anthony Martial and Alexis Sanchez earned a much-needed three points for Jose Mourinho's side, with the manager's position at the club having been under intense scrutiny.
Speaking to the club's official website after the win, Mata said the fanbase do not "deserve everything that is going on".
"We couldn't afford another defeat, we couldn't afford another disappointment, especially for the fans," said Mata.
"I think they saw today we tried everything, and we came back and from the mental point of view it's a very important three points.
"Even though it felt very difficult we did it. We created more chances to score more goals and that's a very positive sign.
"I will say that today the victory is a pride victory. I felt that on the pitch, I did not want to feel another sadness feeling, another disappointment feeling."
The victory marked an end of a four-game winless run, and reminded Mata of a United of old.
"We felt that if we scored it was not impossible, especially at Old Trafford," he added.
"If you score once you can score a few goals in some minutes; I've seen Manchester United doing that a lot of times over the years and today we did it."
United will return to action following the international break against Mourinho's former club Chelsea on October 20, live from Stamford Bridge on Sky Sports.
