Tottenham Hotspur reportedly missed out on Manchester United’s Juan Mata.
According to the Manchester Evening News, Manchester United snubbed Tottenham Hotspur’s approach for Juan Mata this summer – but Mauricio Pochettino should keep him on the radar.
United were pursuing Tottenham defender Toby Alderweireld over the summer, and it’s believed that Spurs asked about United talents Anthony Martial and Juan Mata, receiving a ‘no’ from the Red Devils.
It’s no great surprise that United rebuffed a direct top four rival for two of their stars, and whilst Martial is seemingly impossible to prise away from Old Trafford, that may not be the case with Mata.
The Spaniard, 30, has never really been a Jose Mourinho favourite even from their days at Chelsea, but he has at least managed to make it to almost five years as a United player following a January 2014 move.
Whilst he started the season in Mourinho’s United side, he was dropped from the side entirely following a 3-2 defeat at Brighton and Hove Albion, failing to even be selected for games against Spurs and Burnley.
This is crucial for Mata because his contract expires at the end of the season, and if he continues to be left out by Mourinho, then Spurs should be eyeing up him as a potential 2019 bargain.
If Spurs return in January, they may be able to secure themselves a cut-price deal if United don’t want to lose the playmaker for free, or Spurs can wait it out until his contract ends and get him for nothing.
Mata is undoubtedly still talented and would give Spurs another creative talent to compete with Christian Eriksen, and whilst their summer move was snubbed, they could still land their man in a bargain move next year.
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