"I was going to leave Manchester United but Cristiano Ronaldo convinced me to stay and win the Premier League"

Juan Mata claims he chose to stay an extra year with Manchester United because he believed they could win the Premier League with Cristiano Ronaldo in the side.

The Spanish great could have left United in the summer of 2021 in order to gain more playing time, but decided to take a hit on his own opportunities because he didn't want to miss out on their potential title celebrations.

Ronaldo arrived at Old Trafford amid great fanfare but his goal scoring heroics were unable to inspire United beyond a sixth-place finish as manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer was sacked just months into the campaign.

Mata would eventually leave United for Galatasaray at the end of the poor season, while Ronaldo left midway through his second season after his contract was terminated following his explosive interview with Piers Morgan.

It felt like United would have been serious title challengers with Ronaldo in their side and Mata was one of those who truly thought they could end their title drought.

"After so many years at the club, it would have hurt me to leave if United then won the Premier League. I didn't want to miss that moment. I dreamed of celebrating a league title at Old Trafford," Mata told FourFourTwo. “I thought we could win the Premier League again. He had such high standards that he could drag the rest with him.

“I always thought that when it came to the 80th minute of a game, the ball had to go to him to win. He always appeared in decisive moments. However, circumstances around him prevented him from getting more quality minutes in his second season. I connected with Cristiano, during many conversations. He’s a much closer person than people imagine.”