Midfielder Juan Mata seems to be the perfect player representative for Manchester United off-the-pitch. He does a great job of saying the right things in interviews and he’s among the elite when it comes to philanthropy. After all, it is Giving Tuesday, and Mata has given a lot via his charity project Common Goal.
In addition to his time and money, Juan Mata also gives his words, via his personal blog, which is commonly republished on the official Manchester United website.
In his latest blog, entitled “A double trip to London,” Mata discusses a multitude of topics, including United’s two Premier League fixtures this week, road contests at Watford and Arsenal. He also gave props to club captain Michael Carrick and club legend Eric Cantona.
Carrick remains out of action as he continues to recover from a heart condition, the details of which he just revealed this past Friday. Over the weekend, manager Jose Mourinho revealed that an assistant coaching position is waiting for the team captain once he decides he’s ready to retire.
Mata described Carrick as “a great team-mate who has gone through a few complicated weeks and now he’s ready to help the team again from the pitch. We are very happy for that. He’s a great professional and his behaviour is an example to us. I’m sure that his elegant football will help us a lot during the rest of the season.”
Sunday marked the 25th anniversary of the day that King Eric first arrived at United, and Mata wrote of the Old Trafford icon:
“He’s a true legend, and his personality makes him an idol to all the United fans even today. A different player, an artist. It would’ve been great to share the dressing room with him :-). I have a personal admiration for Eric.”
Paul M. Banks runs The Sports Bank.net and TheBank.News, which is partnered with News Now. Banks, a former writer for the Washington Times, NBC Chicago.com and Chicago Tribune.com, currently contributes regularly to WGN CLTV and the Tribune corporation blogging community Chicago Now.
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