Mourinho explains Mata slight: I subbed the smallest player

Jose Mourinho says his decision to substitute Juan Mata toward the end of Sunday's 2-1 Community Shield defeat of Leicester City was because the midfielder's lack of height left Manchester United vulnerable to long balls.

Related: Zlatan delivers as Mourinho era begins with Community Shield victory

Mata was introduced from the bench under 30 minutes earlier, sparking speculation that, like when Mourinho assumed control of Chelsea in 2013, the Spaniard will be unceremoniously phased out of first-team duties.

And considering the accusations of bullying in the wake of Bastian Schweinsteiger's reported demotion to the team's reserves, Mourinho will inevitably face a fresh wave of questioning over his conduct.

"I think he played very well. He gave me exactly what I needed," the abrasive Portuguese manager said postmatch.

The images from when Mata was hauled off would suggest the 28-year-old wasn't visibly displeased with the decision, and while replacement Henrikh Mkhitaryan is an average 5-foot-10, the Armenian won 0.8 headers per league game last season compared to Mata's 0.1.

"The rules allow six changes, I had made five and I wanted to stop the game," Mourinho continued. "I need to take off the smallest player because we are expecting a lot of long balls. He is the smallest one.

"We want to win. Everyone is happy in the end."

Zlatan Ibrahimovic rose above Wes Morgan to nod United's winner on 83 minutes at Wembley. It marks a promising end to preseason for Mourinho's new outfit before Aug. 14's Premier League campaign opener at Bournemouth.