Juan Mata was unable to stay on the pitch for the full 90 minutes against Hull City, but it has been a remarkable transformation for the Spaniard under José Mourinho.

Back at Chelsea, the two did not get along well with each other. Mourinho frequently substitutedMata whenever he was chasing the game and the Spaniard often found himself on the bench towards the latter end of his Chelsea career. It has not been the case in the opening three games of the Premier league at Manchester United. Mata has played a starring role in the opening two victories, but he was substituted for youngster Marcus Rashford against Hull.

United were fervently chasing the elusive goal that would give them three points, but it looked like Hull were going to resist any attempts to so. Managed by caretaker boss Mike Phelan, who has a long history with United after serving as the club’s assistant manager for more than a decade, they put in a spirited performance. However, one lapse of concentration by the defenders in injury time allowed United to capitalise with youngster Rashford scoring the only goal of the game. The teenager also became the youngest scorer in a team managed by Mourinho in the Premier League.

Mata says that the team will be looking to win games earlier. “Last Saturday we suffered a lot to beat Hull, but Marcus Rashford’s late winner did justice to our performance. We tried everything during the 90 minutes and it was very exciting to celebrate the victory at the end with the team-mates and the fans who were there supporting us.Winning in the added time always leaves a special taste; however, next time we will try to close the game earlier,” said the midfielder reflecting on the game with Hull City.