Can Mata Convince Jose Mourinho?

Jose Mourinho took charge of his first game as Manchester United manager on Saturday, as his side secured a 2-0 preseason friendly win away against Wigan Athletic. Will Keane and impressive Andreas Pereira scored the goals that eased United to victory against the Championship club.

Here are five things we learned from the match.

1. Jose Mourinho’s style is emerging

We would be remiss to form set judgments based on the team’s first preseason friendly, but there are already signs that Manchester United’s style is going to be very different under Mourinho. There was plenty of possession football on display in a 4-2-3-1 formation — similar to the Louis van Gaal days — but the difference was that it was controlled at a higher tempo. There was also more freedom, with the team taking a more direct approach when needed, and specific players, like midfielder Ander Herrera, were encouraged to show energy.

Mourinho himself said after the game that he could already see the players putting his training messages into practise, and he was even rewarded when he gave youth a chance.

2. Henrikh Mkhitaryan can be a classy No. 10

A lot of attention was on the playmaker who recently made the move to Manchester from Borussia Dortmund on a four-year contract, and aside from one poor miss, he lived up to the hype and looked like a creative orchestrator.

Mkhitaryan was used in the No. 10 role and he shone, perhaps a worrying development for substitute Juan Mata and Wayne Rooney, who is still on a break after Euro 2016. He threatened from wide areas as well. The Armenian was the leading assist-maker in the Bundesliga during 2015-16 and he could have had one in this match too, had Jesse Lingard and Memphis Depay in particular been less profligate.

3. Luke Shaw has impressed his new boss

Coming back from 10 months out after a double leg fracture was a tough task, and Shaw’s return to the field was enough to celebrate. The left-back, though, went beyond expectations by looking to get forward and showing no obvious signs of fear.

There was even better news for the 21-year-old after the game when Mourinho spoke so warmly of him, explaining that he had been impressed by Shaw’s decision not to go on holiday in order to work on his fitness. The United manager also pointed out that the Englishman was in better shape than he expected him to be.

4. Eric Bailly is raw but confident

There were moments when United’s new signing from Villarreal looked unconvincing, especially in the early stages. There was the odd time that he was caught out but escaped serious punishment. But the Ivory Coast centre-back did not shy away and grew in confidence as the match went on, even displaying some showboating skills shortly before half-time. There were also signs of assertiveness in his personality, as he communicated vocally with his teammates despite his relative rookie status and lack of fluency in the English language.

5. Juan Mata was an impact substitute

The starting lineup against Wigan was far stronger than the changed lineup that took the field in the second half, and Mata was part of the latter. That he was left out of Mourinho’s starting XI sent a message, but — rather than being deflated — the Spaniard responded with admirable professionalism when he did get his chance. It did not take long for him to set up the opening goal, as he supplied Keane after a blunder from goalkeeper Jussi Jaaskelainen. The former Chelsea midfielder went on to play a key role in much of United’s subsequent build-up play.