The return of the season means the return of Juan Mata’s blog ‘One Hour Behind’ and as usual he had some interesting things to say about United’s start to the season.
‘…we have had a good start, which is always important,’ he wrote. ‘The pre-season was marked by the US tour -and by the way the treatment from the organization and the fans was fantastic, as always. Then, last Saturday we faced our first rival in the Premier League 2015/2016: Tottenham, a tough one. Last season we had a bad experience when we lost the first game at home against Swansea, and this time the team was really focused to have a different start. And so we did. As you could see, it was not a brilliant game, but you can understand that, being the first one, there’s still a lack of rhythm. It wasn’t easy for any of the teams, and the pressure from the opponent made it hard to play a fluid game, but we managed to score in the first half and that goal was enough to get the three points. There were a few positive things apart from the score. Old Trafford saw the debut of many new players, and personally I think all of them had a good performance. It’s exciting to see how quickly they get settled and the warm welcome they got from our supporters!’
‘As I said, the most important thing was the victory. Not only to start in a different way than last season, but also because the weekend showed how tough it is to get a positive result in the first game.
‘From this Monday our minds are focused on the next game against Aston Villa. They have started at a good level after beating Bournemouth away. Then we will face one of the key dates in our calendar: the first leg of the Champions League play-off round against Club Brugge. But let’s go step by step. Right now we must think about the Premier League and try to add up three more points.’
Mata’s blog can be read here in its entirety.