Louis Van Gaal's first season as Manchester United boss has taken some time to get going.

Having struggled to work out his most effective formation - using 32 players in that experimentation process - it looks as if the Dutchman has finally found a formula that works.

There have been times throughout the season when Juan Mata's Old Trafford future didn't look too promising. But the last few weeks have given the Spaniard some hope, as well as the Old Trafford faithful who have been wondering whether their £37.1million man would ever be given the real chance to prove his worth.

But the Guardian have recently published the stats to prove Juan Mata does indeed deserve a more regular slot in Van Gaal's starting XI. In fact, his stats are so impressive they really do need to be shown to the Dutch boss if he hasn't already seen them.

For Mata boasts the sixth best passing accuracy in the Premier League this season (89.65%). It's not the best, of course, but when you consider passing accuracy also ranks defenders and defensive midfielders who often pass sideways and under limited pressure, the inclusion of an attacking midfielder like Mata really does stand out.

To put that in to more context, of the top ten players with the highest pass accuracy, seven are defensively minded, while you'd argue Manchester United's Antonio Valencia could also be put in the bracket given his role as a wing back for much of the season.

So that leaves United's Mata and Manchester City's Samir Nasri as the most effective attacking midfielders in the Premier League - by a country mile, too.

Furthermore, Mata's shot conversion rate is 38.89% (joint best in the league with Stoke's Jonathan Walters), which further backs up the suggestion that Mata has been one of United's best performers so far this term.

So Van Gaal really should use the former Chelsea star to his advantage and squeeze more of his creative juices out of him on the pitch, particularly if they are to continue their late surge for a top four finish...

Juan Mata

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