Why Juan Mata Has Been Chelsea's Player of the Year

It was made official on Thursday evening that Juan Mata was indeed Chelsea's Player of the Year after being crowned at the club's annual ceremony.

In truth, we all knew that long before, didn't we?

The Spaniard has been a revelation since joining the Blues from Valencia in August 2011 for a reported £24 million, winning the club's coveted end-of-season award in each of his two seasons at Stamford Bridge.

He's scored vital goals, provided the ammunition for his teammates to find the back of the net themselves and has carried the team at vital stages of the campaign.

Mata is a player with grace. Harking back to a bygone age, he very much lets his ability on the field do the talking, avoiding the limelight in an era where WAG culture often snares football's elite.

Sure, that alone doesn't make him the player Chelsea fans worship, yet it completes the package. Right or wrong, some factions of the Blues dressing room have come in for criticism away from the game in their careers, but not Mata—nor will he.

Chelsea endured a difficult 2012-13, where their talented squad should have perhaps achieved more than the Europa League trophy they lifted.

Where the team struggled, though, Mata has continued to excel. Bleacher Report highlights just why he has topped his teammates this year.

1. Goals—and Plenty of Them

Juan Mata's 19 goals this season would be respectable enough for a striker, let alone an attacking midfielder.

What's perhaps even more impressive is those goals have come from across 17 matches, outlining his consistency to perform on a regular basis this term.

For instance, of Gareth Bale's 25 goals for Tottenham Hotspur this season, 19 of them have come since Boxing Day. The Welshman has been mesmerizing, sure, but he's done it over six months—Mata has been outstanding from the moment the season kicked off.

Goals for Mata against Manchester United, Arsenal and Spurs have claimed the Blues points against their rivals. It's shown that he's the man for the big occasion and when Chelsea have needed him, he's come up with the goods.

2. Assists

It's not just goals that Juan Mata brings to this Chelsea team—it's what he provides his teammates.

He tops the assist chart in all competitions for his club with 28, but outside of Stamford Bridge, no other player can match him in the Premier League either.

Mata has 12 assists on domestic soil this term, topping the achievements of Santi Cazorla, Theo Walcott, Wayne Rooney and teammate Eden Hazard.

Those assists mean—coupled with his 11 Premier League strikes—he has been directly involved in an impressive 32 per cent of Chelsea's 73 goals in the league this term, which cannot be matched by another player in the Stamford Bridge dressing room.

We often hear that football is about more than just stats, but there's no arguing what they outline where Mata is concerned.

3. Mata's Been Worth 14 Points to Chelsea This Season

Chelsea currently sit third in the Premier League table ahead of the last round of games. They've qualified for the Champions League for a 10th straight season, and after a year of ups and downs, all seems fine at Stamford Bridge as the club looks forward to 2013-14.

Without Juan Mata, that wouldn't be the case.

Ignore his assists for a moment. The Spaniard's goals alone this season have been worth 10 points to Rafa Benitez's side.

He scored the decisive goals in victories away to Arsenal and Tottenham Hotspur this season, turning potential draws into wins. Meanwhile, his solitary strike against Norwich City at Carrow Road on Boxing Day and Manchester United at Old Trafford in early May have also seen the Blues return to West London with victories.

On that basis, without Mata, Chelsea would be sixth in the Premier League table on 62 points, one behind Everton.

Bring his assists into the equation and Chelsea would be joint seventh with Liverpool on 58 points.

Mata's assist for Ashley Cole against Stoke in September gave the Blues a 1-0 win, while his corner to tee up John Terry against Liverpool also helped secure a 1-1 draw.

This Chelsea team is about far more than their Spanish maestro, but Mata is certainly the man that makes them tick.