Mata: We Must Get Better

Every Monday, Reds midfielder Juan Mata takes time out to write a personal blog, expressing his feelings and sharing his thoughts with Manchester United supporters. Here is an extract of the Spaniard’s latest offering…

To tell the truth, it’s not easy to write here this week after a really frustrating draw.

Honestly, I think football is being cruel with us. We did everything to get the three points, but in the end this is about goals and Fulham scored in the last minute… It seems impossible if you look at the stats, but we couldn’t win and it would have been a very important victory. It hurts even more because in the second half we managed to come back after Fulham’s early goal, and the game seemed to be under control with Carrick’s goal. But when the score is so tight you may suffer at the very end, as it happened this time.

It was the same a week ago against Stoke City, with two players injured and one goal after a deflection. It seems that luck is not on our side, but you know that I don’t like to give excuses. We have to get better and improve our shooting accuracy, because we got many times to the box and could have scored more than two goals. I’m sure we will make it, but there are less and less games to play so the sooner the better... There is something we can always count on: the team’s passion and sacrifice. We did fight until the end, and that’s what I felt on the pitch, but once again we can’t give excuses. The way to carry on is to stick together, the team and the fans, learn from mistakes and be positive, and we will show the character this team has always had.

Despite this draw, I don’t want to forget the minute’s silence at Old Trafford, which was touching. It’s very impressive to see how the club remembers the victims of that terrible accident in Munich, and it says a lot about the club’s respect for the legends of the past. The way this club has overcome the difficulties since then is an example to all of us.

The week at the training ground was really good. I know my team mates better and I feel a great atmosphere in the dressing room. I hope we can show that next Wednesday against Arsenal. It’s a very tough game, but I have good memories from my last visit to the Emirates a few months ago and I hope I can enjoy a good game as well.