6 Reasons Why the Kagawa, Januzaj and Mata Axis Is so Exciting for United

The potency of the axis formed by playing Shinji Kagawa, Juan Mata and Adnan Januzaj together had Manchester United fans excited and optimistic after the 4-0 victory over Newcastle United on 5 April 2014.

So, beyond the potential for a wide variety of three syllable contractions of their names, ("Jatawa?" "Magazaj?" "Kanuta?") what is it about this trio which evokes such positive feelings?

Here are six reasons to be excited.

Interplay

Scott Heppell

The defining characteristic of United's attacking play in the Newcastle game was the interplay of the three attacking midfielders. Ably abetted by Javier Hernandez's excellent movement ahead of them, the trio took Newcastle apart with a stunning range of short passing and quick, decisive movement.

The Januzaj goal was the height of this in action, with Mata providing a stunning back-heeled assist.

Individual Styles and Skill

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All three players are capable of moments of genuine magic on their own. Whilst their skills are undoubtedly complementary, they are not carbon copies of each other.

Januzaj provides astonishing pace, incision and crossing ability.

Mata's range and weight of passing is second to very few, and his finishing is top notch.

Kagawa's ability to find breathing space in a crowd of players, and his eye for the unexpected mark him out.

Combined, this adds up to a deadly unit.

Ability to Provide for Each Other and All of United's Strikers

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Against Newcastle, Mata scored two, Januzaj one and the other went to Hernandez. At least two of the three were involved in each goal. Although Hernandez is in many ways the perfect foil for the threesome, they would also work behind United's other strikers.

Wayne Rooney's physicality and presence, Robin van Persie's top drawer finishing and Danny Welbeck's ability to lead the line and join in with one-touch highly technical passing, are all qualities which make it easy to visualise each of these options working well.

They Add Goals of Their Own

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As well as providing for others, they are all goalscorers. Whilst Kagawa has not set scoring charts on fire since his arrival in Manchester, there have been glimpses of his abilities as a finisher—notably his magnificent hat-trick against Norwich last season.

Mata's scoring ability is well documented. The free-kick and ice-cool dribble and finish against Newcastle showed some of the range of goals he is capable of.

Januzaj has four goals this season, not an enormous number, but it is certainly proof of promise.

Whilst United's other attacking midfielders do have goals in them, it seems unlikely that Ashley Young and Antonio Valencia would match the trio's goal output assuming a similar number of games played.

They Make United Play Better as a Whole

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David Moyes has received a good deal of well deserved criticism about United's style of play this season. United have been more direct and more reliant on fairly basic wide play under Moyes. This changes entirely when Kagawa, Januzaj and Mata play together.

United may still play quite directly to get the ball to them, but once the ball is in the final third, the play has a good deal more nuance to it.

Besides any personal preference for the aesthetic qualities of this kind of football, it also seems likely to be United's best chance of getting results. The increased directness has certainly not led to any improvements on the pitch.

The occasions on which United have been allowed to really express themselves have been the high-points to watch as a fan, and they have mostly coincided with United's best results.

They Are Potentially the Envy of the World

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In terms of raw potential, it seems to me that it is a trio that could succeed at the very highest level in world football. In order to do so, there will need to be changes in personnel elsewhere in the team, particularly in the centre of midfield.

Should the right players be acquired for those positions, it is hard to imagine many defenses, even the very best, being pleased to line up against players of the quality of Kagawa, Mata and Januzaj.

In amongst all the doom and gloom this season, they remind us that Manchester United still have the potential to compete at the highest level. With the right person at the helm, their axis could form the nucleus of a team which is as successful as it is good to watch.