Mata: Pogba's one of the best & he showed why against Chelsea

Juan Mata has praised Manchester United team-mate Paul Pogba, calling the midfielder "one of the best" in the wake of his impressive performance against Chelsea.

The French midfielder scored a goal and created another on Monday, helping guide the Red Devils to a 2-0 win over Chelsea in their FA Cup fifth-round clash.

Pogba's efforts helped United eliminate the defending champions and set-up a quarter-final tie with Wolves.

The midfielder has now provided nine goals and six assists in 12 appearances under Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, and Mata says his run of form only proves he's among the top players in the game.

“Yes, he assisted the cross for the first goal, scored the second one. Even in the second half, 80, 85 minutes he was still defending, going forwards," Mata said.

"He's very, very complete. He's got physique, he's got quality, he's got a pass, he can go box to box.

"He's one of the best. Today he showed why.”

The win over Chelsea came in the wake of a 2-0 loss to Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions League round of 16, putting the Red Devils' hopes of progression in danger.

Mata says the win over Chelsea was an ideal way to bounce back for a team that recently tasted defeat for the first time since Solskjaer took over.

“I think it was the perfect reaction to our defeat to Paris Saint-Germain," he said.

"It's never easy to come to Stamford Bridge, to win against Chelsea, to not concede any goals, to play some good football.

"I think it was a very good evening for us and gives us a lot of confidence for the next games.”

Next up for United is a meeting with Liverpool and Mata says securing a top-four finish is still the aim in the league, while they haven't given up on progressing in Europe either, despite the two-goal deficit.

“Obviously we had a difficult result against PSG, but we still believe we can come back," he said.

"In the Premier League, our main target is to get top four, after a very good run of results. One or two months ago it was pretty impossible to get where we are now, so we want to keep that position.

"And in the FA Cup, we're close to Wembley. So hopefully we can go to Wembley again with all our fans, because it's a very nice feeling.”