Juan Mata: We’ll try to count three points after three points

Manchester United’s positive start to the new Premier League season has seen them accumulate 13 points till now. They have won four and drawn one of their five league matches. The most recent result was a morale-boosting come-from-behind victory at West Ham United on Sunday. Despite the dramatic nature of the win, the team’s senior midfielder Juan Mata says Manchester United have already put Sunday’s success behind them. The Spaniard asserted that they are firmly focused on registering a second win over West Ham in the space of four days. Just over 72 hours after the thrilling 2-1 win against David Moyes’ side at the London Stadium in the league, the Red Devils will meet the Hammers once again. This time it will be in the third round of the Carabao Cup at Old Trafford.

On Sunday, David De Gea was the hero, keeping out Mark Noble’s last-gasp penalty to preserve the lead given by Jesse Lingard’s late strike moments beforehand. The goalkeeper was mobbed by his team-mates on the pitch after the final whistle. Juan Mata has shared his delight for his national compatriot and insisted that the entire squad have since shifted their attentions to the Carabao Cup meeting against West Ham.

Juan Mata: David De Gea deserved a day like that

“It was a great way of winning with that penalty at the end, with that save at the end. I was very, very happy for him [De Gea], he deserved a day like that,” Juan Mata told the club media. “But we are moving on, we are thinking already about the next game because as you know, we have many games now, so there’s no time for celebrating a lot. It’s time for feeling good but getting ready for the next one.

“They will probably make some changes, so maybe the personnel is a tiny [bit] different but they still have a very competitive squad, we know how difficult it is going to be to beat them but we play at home and hopefully we can have a great game.”

The clash on Wednesday will happen at Old Trafford and Juan Mata is looking forward to getting back to the Theatre of Dreams and playing in front of the home support. “It’s always fantastic to see Old Trafford full, so hopefully it’s going to be full, I know they [the fans] will be supporting us,” he added.

“We have been waiting for so long to have them back so it’s great to play in front of them and hopefully we can give them a good game. It’s [the support] key for us. Football without fans means nothing and especially our fans, both home and away, they give us so much.

“When we play in front of them, everyone feels one level higher in excitement and everything. So, hopefully we can have a great season for them because they have been waiting for so long to come back and support us.”

‘We will try to win every game’

Wednesday’s match for United will be the first of four games across three different competitions prior to the October international break.  

“We will try to win every game, now that we have four or five games until the next international break, and we know if you get into a good rhythm of results, it can be key, especially when you get to November and December which is the most important part of the season,” Juan Mata said.

“We’ll try to count three points after three points, qualify through the cup and let’s see how we arrive at the next international break.”