Manchester United emerged victorious against Sam Allardyce’s West Ham on Saturday despite club captain Wayne Rooney being sent off. Rooney, who replaced Spaniard Juan Mata as the attacking midfielder, was sent off in the 59th minute after putting in a good performance that vindicated Louis Van Gaal’s selection.
The decision of playing Rooney in the attacking role meant that Radamel Falcao started alongside Robin van Persie. This demoted former Chelsea playmaker Juan Mata to the bench.
The Dutch manager revealed, “We have played well but I feel we can improve.
“I was not so satisfied with the performance of Rooney as a striker and Mata as a midfielder. And that is why I am changing it.
“Rooney did well but he was not spectacular and he is a multi-functional player. Falcao is a striker and I expect he can do it better.”
Rooney’s straight red means that he’ll miss the next three games which will surely restore Mata back into the main team. The 26-year old had a decent start to the new season but it was his mistake against Leicester that led to Jamie Vardy’s goal. Mata though, apologized for the mistake on his personal blog later that week.
Mata was never really deployed in his natural position by former manager David Moyes which led to some below par performances last season. The same continued this season as well when Van Gaal went with the 3-5-2 formation that needed Mata to play a more dynamic role that he could never really cope up with. With Falcao and Van Persie in front of him, Di Maria and Herrera along side him, the 4-1-3-2 formation might just be what Mata needs.
Van Gaal’s side will face Everton in their next game and will want to put in some momentum on their side as they are yet to win back-to-back games this season. Roberto Martinez’s side did the double over United last season and the Spaniard will want more of the same in the upcoming game.