Juan Mata welcomes 'great coach' Rafael Benitez
Benitez's appointment has been seen by some as owner Roman Abramovich's latest attempt to get £50million flop Fernando Torres scoring
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Juan Mata has hailed Rafael Benitez as “a great coach” following his fellow Spaniard's appointment as Chelsea manager.
Mata yesterday became the first Blues player to react publicly to the sacking of Roberto Di Matteo and he has now led the way in responding to the controversial decision to hand former Liverpool boss Benitez the reins until the end of the season.
He told the Daily Mail: "Rafa Benitez is a great coach.
"He's got lots of experience and won a lot of trophies with Liverpool, taking them to a very high level. He knows the Premier League too."
Benitez's appointment has been seen by some as owner Roman Abramovich's latest attempt to get £50million flop Fernando Torres scoring.
Torres has never recaptured the form he showed under Benitez at Anfield but Mata said: "I have total faith in Fernando Torres. He will score goals. He is a great striker and a great professional."
Di Matteo was sacked yesterday after Chelsea's 3-0 Champions League defeat at Juventus, in which he dropped Torres for the first time.
Mata added: "Di Matteo's sacking means things haven't been going well but we can't just blame it all on the Juventus game.
"We can't just focus on what happened recently.
"It was a really tough blow losing to Juventus. It was a sad night for all the players. We thought we could at least draw, if not win the game."
Mata took to social media yesterday to wish his Di Matteo well after Abramovich ruthlessly dispensed with the Italian only hours after the defeat in Turin.
He posted on Facebook: "would like to thank him for all this time with us and wish him the best of luck for the future.
"As a player, he has been a legend for the 'Blues'.
"With him as a manager, we won our first Champions League. He will always be remembered. Good luck Robbie!"
PA
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments