Juan Mata has reason to fear for his place at Manchester United. Given a chance to prove he's worthy of his spot thanks to Wayne Rooney's suspension, he hasn't taken it. Not yet, anyway.
The Spaniard should have been optimistic in the summer. He found in Louis van Gaal a manager who was willing to adapt his system to get the best out of him.
Throughout pre-season, Mata played at the head of a midfield three behind the strikers, the position in which he was so successful atChelsea.
At the end of the last season he found himself, more often than not, played out wide by David Moyes—a role Jose Mourinho had decided he wasn't suited to at Stamford Bridge.
But after returning from the tour of the United States, Mata has seen Angel Di Maria and Radamel Falcao arrive at Old Trafford.
It's given United and Van Gaal attacking options to make even the biggest clubs envious. But it leaves six players—Mata, Di Maria, Falcao, Rooney, Robin van Persie and Adnan Januzaj—fighting it out for, at most, four places in the team.
Januzaj made only his first start of the season at West Brom. Falcao found himself on the bench for games against QPR and West Brom. Mata was left out against Leicester and West Ham.
Rooney's suspension following his red card against West Ham handed Mata an unexpected chance to show that he shouldn't be the one to miss out.
But he's struggled to have enough influence against Everton and West Brom. At the Hawthorns on Monday, he was replaced after 72 minutes as United chased an equaliser.
There's a lot of responsibility on him in Van Gaal's system to be the creator-in-chief. But he hasn't seen enough of the ball, or done enough with it when he has got hold of it.
The player who usually buzzes around the penalty area, looking for ways to unlock a stubborn defence, has been missing.
Mata might get one more chance with Rooney serving the final match of his three-game ban when Chelsea visit Old Trafford on Sunday. But such has been his dip in form, not even an appearance against his former club is guaranteed.
Mata, at his best, is worth his place in United's team, even with competition from some of the best players in the world. But he was anonymous against West Brom, barely noticeable until his number went up in the second half.
He may well keep his place against Chelsea by virtue of Rooney's continued absence. But it might be the last chance he gets for a while.
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