How Eriksen and Mata's contrasting fortunes reflect Tottenham and Man United's transfer strategies

They are the No. 10s who rarely play as a No. 10. Come Saturday, when the FA Cup semi-final between Tottenham and Manchester United kicks off, the probability is only one will play. Christian Eriksen may be found on the left or the right. Juan Mata is more likely to be seen on the bench.

It indicates the shift in fortunes between two creators. It also highlights the differing attitudes their managers have adopted towards them. Mata has won over Jose Mourinho to a degree but is United’s resident small-game player, a man invariably omitted on the bigger occasions. Eriksen is both Tottenham’s man for every occasion and a proven big-game performer, a scorer this season against Real Madrid, Juventus, United, Chelsea and, twice, Manchester City.

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Mata can only wonder if he would have exerted a similar impact. Instead, his achievements include longevity. He has taken on the role of Old Trafford’s great survivor. Tipped to leave the moment Mourinho was appointed, he was the substitute who was substituted in the Portuguese’s first game in charge, the Community Shield. He now instead seems one of the few players his manager does not dislike.

Yet the fact remains that, of United’s 12 biggest tests of the season – the nine thus far against the Premier League’s top six, the European Super Cup final and the two in the Champions League knockout stages – Mata has started just two: the 2-1 win over Liverpool and 0-0 away draw against Sevilla. He didn’t even finish either of those, being removed in defensive gambits. Nor is his omission the consequence of injuries: he has begun on the bench for nine of the other 10. Sometimes he has been squeezed out because Mourinho wanted a third central midfielder. At others, it simply seems a preference for faster players, particularly to work off the ball.

The contrast with Eriksen is clear: the Dane has begun 40 of Tottenham’s 49 games this season and every big match. He was sidelined once in the league (in his absence, Spurs were mediocre at Southampton) and has otherwise only missed Carabao Cup games, a Champions League dead rubber and FA Cup encounters with lower-division opponents.

He has been the understated indispensable, sometimes overshadowed by Harry Kane and Dele Alli but offering an appeal to the purists and with the statistics to show he brings both style and substance. Similar sentiments could have been voiced about the Chelsea Mata; it is not all they have in common.

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They bring an eloquence in English, a nice-guy persona and an ability to slow the game down while team-mates want to speed it up. They can wander deep into midfield to release faster players. They are the technicians who tend to be surrounded by more physical players. They have the skill-sets of a central creator but have had to adopt to life operating ostensibly on the flanks. Both have done so uncomplainingly.

Yet they have been treated differently. Eriksen has been installed as a pivotal player, Mata rotated in and out of the side. The Spaniard has suffered because of United’s regular big-name signings. Mauricio Pochettino has appreciated that the Dane gives Spurs another dimension with his craft. His willingness to commit to a creator is a reason Tottenham are more progressive and cohesive than United. Eriksen is invariably present to knit them together. He dovetails with the athletes and the finishers. He is their supply line, providing their goals even when there is a doubt if Kane touched the winner at Stoke.

A consequence of that is that Eriksen ranks fifth for assists in the Premier League. He also stands third for through balls and chances created, fourth for crosses and 12th for passes. He is in the select group of midfielders to reach 10 goals. Mata’s bit-part role has deprived him of the chance to assemble similar numbers, though he topped the table for assists and ranked third for chances created in his final full season at Chelsea.

It explains other high numbers. They joined their current clubs within the space of a few months. Eriksen signed for Tottenham for £11 million in August 2013, Come January 2014 and Mata was on his way to United for £37.1 million. He cost more than three times as much. Now Eriksen may be worth three times more than the Spaniard, and not merely because he is four years younger. Mata began his career at Real Madrid, but Barcelona are reported to be admirers of Eriksen.

They have become emblematic figures. Eriksen’s exploits show how Tottenham have made comparatively little money go a long way in the Pochettino years: of the finest attacking midfielders in the Premier League, he and Alli, together with Riyad Mahrez, are the cheapest.

Mata highlights how United have spent heavily, sometimes without an idea of where the new signings will slot into the side. He joined when Wayne Rooney operated as the No. 10, just as Alexis Sanchez arrived when Anthony Martial and Marcus Rashford were doing well on the left. It is inarguable that Mata peaked at Chelsea, just as too many of his team-mates’ finest form came in the colours of other clubs.

Now Chelsea’s double Player of the Year is likely to be among the United reserves. Tottenham’s double Player of the Year will be charged with creating a passage to a first FA Cup final in 27 years. They may be similar talents, but only one is really granted the licence to show his on such stages.