Does this skilful Spaniard have a Manchester United future under Jose Mourinho?

Following the inevitable announcement of Jose Mourinho as Manchester United manager last week, just days after the sacking of his Dutch predecessor Louis Van Gaal, Juan Mata’s future at Old Trafford has been cast into serious doubt.

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Despite handing the Red Devils a lifeline in their recent FA Cup final against Alan Pardew’s Crystal Palace – which led to a 2-1 victory in extra-time thanks to a sweetly-struck Jesse Lingard volley – many are fearful that the new man at the helm will force the fan-favourite out of Manchester.

The 28-year-old Spaniard was allowed to leave his former club Chelsea in 2014 during Mourinho’s second spell at Stamford Bridge, after falling out of favour in the Blues’ squad as a second option to their Brazilian number eight Oscar.

Since joining Manchester United during the David Moyes era, the attacking midfielder has scored 26 goals in 104 appearances throughout all competitions, but it has been his creativity and crucial assists that have cemented his position at United over the past two and a half seasons.

With ten assists and 53 chances created during the 2015/16 campaign alone, he became an effective starting player in Louis Van Gaal’s predominant 4-2-3-1 system alongside the likes of Wayne Rooney, Anthony Martial and Jesse Lingard, who would sit behind the Reds’ chosen centre-forward.

His magnificent passing accuracy of 89%; with over half of those completed played forward, further fitted into the Dutchman’s possession-based playing style. Famously, of course, this did not go down particularly well with the Manchester United fans during his two-year reign at the Theatre of Dreams.

It is the footballing style of United’s new appointment that could determine the future of Juan Mata. Mourinho; or the ‘Special One’ as otherwise known, has always implemented a defensively organised mantra, with every squad player expected to carry out their defensive duties.

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We have seen talented forwards such as Kevin De Bruyne and Eden Hazard dropped from their starting positions under the Portuguese mastermind at Chelsea, and even caused tensions with Manchester United’s former number seven Cristiano Ronaldo. It was proposed that this was simply due to their attitude towards forcing high pressing defensive tactics on the opposition.

For Juan Mata, he will feel that his position as a Manchester United player is under scrutiny. The Spaniard’s turbulent past with Mourinho; which saw him depart from Chelsea despite winning their Player of the Season award in two successive regimes, has planted seeds of doubt surrounding Mata’s future for many of the Red Devils’ supporters.

Although he has become a fan favourite at Old Trafford and expresses his love for the club as well as the city of Manchester via a weekly blog, the lack of game-time he may receive following the new managerial decision could sway him to depart from the club in order to further his professional career.

Barcelona have recently been rumoured to hold a strong interest in bringing the Spaniard back to the native country where he spent four years with Valencia, as they try to bolster their attacking prowess behind Luis Suarez, Lionel Messi and Neymar. This follows on from a disappointing move for Arda Turan from title rivals Atlético Madrid.

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Although Chief Executive Ed Woodward is likely to generate a loss on the £37.1 million David Moyes signing, he is fully aware of Jose Mourinho’s pulling power on world-class talents that could see United back in contention for the Premier League title. Given that kind of sum of money, it would be expected that the Portuguese could easily recruit a player of equal talent that he would feel more comfortable working with.

However, it might not be all over for Juan Mata at Old Trafford, as it is not yet beyond his grasp to prove his worth as an attacking midfield option to the former Chelsea boss. Despite his European Championship setback in not being selected for Spain’s preliminary squad, the proven number 10 is prepared to use the summer to train hard and relish the new challenge as the 2016/17 Premier League season edges closer.