Manchester United

Juan Mata: 'Manchester United players must ignore critics'

By Daniel Lewis, Senior Reporter | 25 September 2016

Manchester United midfielder Juan Mata insists that handling criticism is something that he and his teammates have to "deal with" if they are to succeed at Old Trafford.

Juan Mata has insisted that recent criticism directed at Manchester United's players is something that he has learned to ignore since joining the club.

The Red Devils lost three games on the bounce in all competitions to leave their campaign on the brink of derailing, before recovering to pick up back-to-back wins in the space of three days.

United thrashed champions Leicester City at Old Trafford on Saturday, fresh on the back of a 3-1 win at Northampton Town in the EFL Cup, to respond in the best manner possible to their growing list of critics.

Mata claims that remaining focused is key to achieving success at United this season, with the domestic and European games continuing to come thick and fast.

"I feel there are always a lot of people talking about Manchester United, obviously one of the biggest clubs in the world," he told MUTV. "There are a lot of repercussion when we do well and not do that well.

"Obviously, there were a lot of people waiting for Manchester United defeats and we got it and have to face it and deal with it. Me, as a professional footballer, and all my teammates, we don't focus on that. We don't focus too much on what people say or journalists write and all those things.

"If you start thinking about every single comment, you'd go crazy and can't play football. You have to focus on what you have to do on the pitch, train well, get ready for the game and then deliver your best level."

Mata scored his second goal of the season in the straightforward win over Leicester, with the other coming in the opening-game triumph over Bournemouth on the south coast.