Analysis: Why would Jose Mourinho sell Juan Mata to big rivals Manchester United?

VIDEO: Scratching your head over why Mourinho's letting Mata go to Man U? We look at past big moves to make sense of it.

JOSE Mourinho would have loved Chelsea's win over Manchester United, highlighting the winning qualities that he brings to championship contenders.

Those very same qualities Manchester United could have had if they appointed him as Sir Alex Ferguson's successor.

Then straight after knocking David Moyes down yet another peg, Mourinho has gone and sold United Chelsea's favourite player for the past two seasons. Extraordinary.

What's he doing? Squashing the debilitating morale at Old Trafford, or giving it a perfect turbo charge?

News_Rich_Media: Jose Mourinho has confirmed Juan Mata is headed to Manchester United, the Chelsea boss hitting out at criticism of the move from rival managers.

DEAL DONE: MATA TO MAN UTD
WENGER: MATA DEAL NOT FAIR
CHELSEA SIGN SALAH AS MATA EXITS

He's shouting 'we don't rate you as a title rival anymore' from the Stamford Bridge roof top.

It's the golden rule not to sell key assets to your direct rivals, unless you have to.

Arsene Wenger was bossed into a corner when the likes of Robin van Persie and Samir Nasri had Manchester in their eyes, but here, Mourinho has provided an open door for Mata to Old Trafford.

"United was not a club I wanted to sell Van Persie to, I wanted to sell him to Juventus," Wenger said of van Persie's move last year. "But he had decided to go to Manchester United and at the end of the day you need the agreement of the three parties."

Mourinho's only been back for half a season but there's been no shortage of mischievous behaviour in the transfer market.

News_Rich_Media: Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger has hit out at Chelsea's sale of Juan Mata to Manchester United, saying the current transfer window isn't setup fairly.

First, he revelled in snatching the likes of Willian and Mohamed Salah from Tottenham then Liverpool's grasp.

But why let Mata go to United? He was Chelsea's talisman and match winner. What happens if Oscar or Eden Hazard gets injured, or if United roll into contention on the back of some Spanish flamboyance?

"When Mourinho returned to the club in July, he believed everything revolved around the man with the magic left boot," wrote Neil Ashton in the Daily Mail. "He wanted to change that, to promote a team ethic as he began to restructure the club."

News_Rich_Media: Fox Sports European correspondent Daniel Garb says the sale of Juan Mata to Manchester United by Chelsea may be a move to purposely strengthen United now that they are out of the EPL title race.

And one thing Chelsea fans do is trust Mourinho's judgement. Imagine if Rafa Benitez had frozen Mata out!

Over to the Special One, to explain: "We are prioritising the evolution of the team, the future of the team," he said.

"The most important thing is we build the right squad, choose the right player, try to complete the puzzle in the next summer or two transfer windows. We don't want to complete the puzzle in five windows, in December 2018."

But why United?

It truly is a bizarre outcome - what if there is a United recovery, even if it is next year, with the Spaniard a key catalyst playing behind Robin van Persie, Wayne Rooney and Adnan Januzaj?

"We are convinced he is going to do well. We wish that," Mourinho said. "Nobody here is jumping because Juan is leaving."

So why let him go, Jose?

He might say he's letting Mata fulfil World Cup ambitions, while extracting a handsome sum from a desperate club for a player he knows does not feature in his plans.

Wenger is telling us not to be so naive, noting that Chelsea don't have to play United again this term, while Manchester United will have Mata up its sleeve to face Arsenal, Manchester City, Liverpool and Everton.

Jose, what say you?

"We analyse everything in every perspective. From an economic point of view, it was a fantastic offer. From a scouting point of view, we could immediately identify two or three who could replace him - not direct replacement because Juan is Juan, a champion.

"Purely as a football decision, I prefer to keep Juan because he can help us achieve important objectives. But we shared our opinions and I'm comfortable with that. We cannot sell for Pound50m and buy for Pound48m. We have to sell for Pound20m and buy for Pound5m.

"This is the kind of situation discussed by a group with different philosophies but a common interest: what is the best for Chelsea?"

It's the latest blockbuster Premier League move between two of the 'big' clubs - here's a few other recent moves between the EPL's big guns that rankled plenty of supporters, not quite like Mata's, where for the most part, he has played it out with good grace and class.

ROBIN VAN PERSIE
Arsenal's talisman simply wanted to go, and shook Arsenal by leaving with one year left on his contract to sign a four year deal at Manchester United, which essentially won Sir Alex Ferguson his final EPL title. RVP cited he had a different vision to what was happening at Arsenal, and that the boy inside of him needed to pay at Old Trafford. He cost Pound22.5m, with a further Pound1.5m one-off payment for United winning the title.

News_Image_File: Robin van Persie was Sir Alex Ferguson's last major signing.

FERNANDO TORRES
After scoring 81 goals in 142 games for Liverpool, Chelsea broke the British transfer record by paying Pound50m for the Spanish striker in January 2011 as Torres sought Champions League football and then Chelsea manager Carlo Ancelotti looked to create a formidable force along with Didier Drogba. It hasn't been quite the smooth ride expected, and one of Liverpool's replacements that deadline day, Luis Suarez, has arguably soared to greater heights.

CARLOS TEVEZ
This was a cheeky, shocking move by the pugnacious Argentine. On 14 July 2009, he made the move from Manchester United to cross town rivals Manchester City on a five year deal. He was much adored by the Old Trafford faithful, but after he celebrated title success, he claimed he was not treated with respect by club officialdom when it came to brokering a new deal. Once his name was plastered on a billboard 'Welcome to Manchester' after his City deal, there was no turning back.

News_Image_File: Manchester City's Carlos Tevez against his former club.

ASHLEY COLE
Jose Mourinho landed a coup before the 2006 season, landing the competition's best left-back in a five-year deal from Arsenal, in exchange for William Gallas. It was and acrimonious end to his time at Arsenal. He'd been caught being 'tapped up' by Chelsea in 2005 before a dummy spit with Arsenal over his weekly wages in his contract extension. The deal to move cross town was sealed at the final moments on deadline day.

SAMIR NASRI
The procession out of Emirates Stadium continued in 2011 when Samir Nasri took his talents to Manchester City, attracted by the bright lights of the revolution at Etihad Stadium in aPound25m move. It was another protracted move - Nasri even took to the field for Arsenal at the start of the season. Upon signing, he declared: "Arsenal have good fans but not that passionate since they moved from Highbury.

"City fans are really passionate."