Whether it was unpicking opposition defences at Stamford Bridge, collecting one of his many awards in a sharp suit, or blending in with locals in the back streets of a city, Juan Mata has always appeared comfortable in his surroundings.

And as we sit down to reflect upon the Spaniard's time at Chelsea – in his perfect English – it is clear little has changed. Looking impeccable in a dark turtleneck and suit jacket, Juan joins us in a café with a bustling street scene visible through the windows.

The fact the street is located on the other side of the world, he joined Japanese side Vissel Kobe this year, seems almost irrelevant. Like everywhere Mata has lived during his career, it is home now.

‘It’s a great lifestyle, a great country, and a great culture,’ smiles Mata when asked how he has found Japan, the next stop in his storied career.

It was in 2011 that Mata left his homeland to come to Chelsea. In the years since, he has taken in further spells at Manchester United, Galatasaray, and now Vissel Kobe.

He has established himself as a fan favourite at every club, in part for his performances, personality and creative style of play, but also because he has embraced the life and culture of each club's respective city.

The regular blog he wrote during his time at Chelsea was devoted equally to updating on his football career and his travels exploring London, full of his own photography (some of which you can see below) and recommendations for places to visit.

Yes, he was a great player for the Blues. But more than that, he became one of us, an adopted Londoner who felt the pulse of the club and the city.

‘I like that and I’m trying to do the same now in Japan,’ he explains. ‘I did the same in Turkey, in Istanbul, which is an incredible city. I find it important to get to know my surroundings, the culture and the history around the city where I live.

‘I feel very privileged to have had the opportunity to live in London, in Manchester, in Istanbul, now in Japan. I’m getting to know different cultures, different vibes of cities, and I’ve tried to embrace it as much as I can.’

There’s no question Mata has achieved a rare balance in his life. You only have to look at the success and longevity of his career, still playing top-flight football at the age of 35, to know he is a dedicated professional. But he is also aware there is more to life and happiness than football.

Of course, that doesn’t mean the sport he loves isn’t a great source of pride and pleasure for him. How could it not be for someone who has had so many career highs, prime among them his time at Stamford Bridge.

His first season with Chelsea was one that has gone down in history. In 2012, Mata couldn’t stop winning.

He made more appearances than any other outfield Chelsea player as the trophies began to arrive in quick succession in 2011/12 – and Mata was at the heart of things.

He netted in the 5-1 thrashing of rivals Tottenham in the FA Cup semi-final, a competition we would win. He scored the crucial away goal in the Champions League Round of 16 against Napoli that made our famous comeback at Stamford Bridge possible. And he provided the perfect assist for Didier Drogba to equalise in the final as we became the first London club to be crowned European champions.

Like Fernando Torres, Mata wasn’t finished there; both of Chelsea’s representatives in the Spanish national team found the net to help their country beat Italy 4-0 in the 2012 European Championship final.

‘Fernando was in the same situation as me,’ Juan reflects thoughtfully. ‘The good thing is that when you win and enjoy it so much, there is a point it seems like winning is all there is. That is the problem. When you don’t win any more you realise how difficult that is.

‘But it was an incredible time and we feel so lucky in 2012 to have been able to win the FA Cup, then the Champions League, then the Euros with Spain, both of us scoring in the final. It was an incredible two or three months, probably the best summer in my life.

‘With time you get to realise how difficult that is in a playing career. To win one of those trophies is a lot, but having the chance to win those trophies together, it’s like a dream. We were riding a wave of positivity, of good football, and especially good results. It was incredible.’

Ever modest, Juan says ‘it was incredible’. For the Chelsea supporters in the stands, it was more often ‘he is incredible’.

They said as much when they voted Mata the club’s Player of the Year for 2011/12, and again the following season, when it was joined on his mantelpiece by the Players’ Player of the Year award.

Despite it being Mata's first time living abroad, there were no problems settling in England, on and off the pitch. According to Juan, that is because one goes hand in hand with the other.

‘I loved it,’ he replies emphatically when asked how he found living in a different country for the first time. ‘As soon as I arrived in London I felt a great energy. It was positive from when I first arrived.

‘Of course, London is a great city. I loved my life in London, getting to know a different country, different culture, different language. A city with a lot of opportunities.

‘On the pitch it worked perfectly from the first minute; I remember scoring on my debut. So it was a big change in my life, leaving Spain, leaving Valencia where I was living for four years. But I felt it was the right time and I’m so happy that I did.

‘My team-mates were great; we had a great dressing room. For example, in my case, Fernando Torres, and the captain and leaders: John Terry, Petr Cech, Frank Lampard.

'They were very helpful in the beginning and offered their help for anything I might have needed. With their help, and also with my willingness to discover London and settle in, it was a fairly quick adaptation.’

Among those team-mates he had support readily available in the form of what soon became a close community of Spanish players.

There was the more experienced Fernando Torres, who had signed for Chelsea from Liverpool the previous January, Oriol Romeu arrived from Barcelona a few weeks before Juan in August 2011, and Cesar Azpilicueta would join them the following summer.

‘It was super important. First to have Fernando, he was actually for me very important in the decision to go to Chelsea. He called me before when the interest was there and he told me how life was there, how the club wanted me and the coach.

'It made my decision easier. I had so much respect, admiration, and love for Fernando as a player and a person. He was a great help.

‘Oriol arrived at the same time, and he is one of the best humans I’ve met in my whole life, not only in football. It was fantastic to be there with him, to get to know such an amazing personality. We speak a lot still.

'It was definitely one of my positives at Chelsea to get to know better Fernando and get to know Oriol, and Azpi who arrived later.

‘We were more than team-mates, we were friends. Of course, my relationship with Fernando already began before with the national team, but because of our time together at Chelsea we became close friends.

'I consider him one of my best friends in my career. He was older and he was more experienced. He was a very important player, he was always giving me advice and the others. He was very important for all of us and I learned so much from him.

‘I also already knew Azpi from the national team and the Under-21s and the younger generations, but again we made a strong relationship.

‘With Oriol, we were living in the same building in Battersea, so we were going to training and back in the same car together most of the time. I got to know his amazing family, he got to know mine.

'We used to watch football together, on Champions League nights. We used to have dinner together. On days off we would make plans together in London. We were friends and we spent so much time together. And I can tell you, with a guy like Ori, he is someone you want to spend time with because your day will improve if you are around him!

‘We found Spanish restaurants. The famous Cambio de Tercio on Old Brompton Road we used to go to a lot. Oriol also had friends who worked in restaurants in the east part of the city and doing Spanish guided tours.

'There are a lot of nationalities in London and a lot of Spanish people, plus we had a lot of visitors to watch games and things. So we were never bored!

‘The four of us are very good friends and I’m very grateful we spent so much time together, but we also integrated ourselves very good in the dressing room with all of the personalities and other cultures and nationalities.

'I think that was the key with winning the Champions League, the FA Cup and the Europa League, to have a great energy in the dressing room.’

Mata and Azpilicueta were relatively early in their careers when they joined Chelsea. What the latter went on to achieve, becoming Chelsea captain and winning every piece of silverware going at Stamford Bridge, was yet to be written.

However, Mata confirms the attributes which made Azpi such a success were already apparent when he signed from Marseille in 2012.

‘He already some experience in football, mainly in the Spanish and French leagues, but you could see already his determination. I think Azpi is a guy who has achieved what he has achieved because of his professionalism and his mind-set and his determination.

'On top of his qualities as a player, for me his key feature is his mind, and you could already see it in the beginning.

‘He had some trouble, having not as much game time as he wanted in the beginning, but he was very determined waiting for his chance and he got what he deserved.

'He had an incredible career at Chelsea, winning so many trophies, being the captain for some time. He’s a legend at the club and he got the recognition that he deserved because he committed 100 per cent to his profession.’

There is no mistaking the close bond forged by the four Spaniards at Chelsea during that period, and it is one that has continued long after they have gone their separate ways professionally, with the other three all returning to Spain recently.

‘I saw Cesar this summer. He signed for Atletico Madrid and I spent some time in Madrid so we met. It was nice to catch up with him.

‘I’m in permanent contact with Ori. I text him when he signed for Barcelona, which was very nice to see. He has got the reward he deserves, playing for his dream club, doing well,, feeling like an important player after a great season at Girona.

‘And Fernando too, he is a coach at the Atletico Madrid academy. It’s been some time since I’ve seen him personally, but also we keep in touch. He is one of the most important players in my career as a team-mate and as a friend. I will always be grateful to him.’

It was not just with his fellow players that Mata had a great relationship with at Chelsea. There is no mistaking the high regard he and the Blues supporters held each other in – and that bond has continued long after his own departure in January 2014.

‘I still get that feeling from Chelsea fans. I’m so grateful for the love they gave me. I understand it was a great time to be a Chelsea fan, winning the Champions League, winning the FA Cup and the Europe League.

'I was also just so lucky to be there at that time. It was a very important part of my life.

‘In your career you need talent, you need professionalism, you need consistency, but you also need luck to be in the right place at a certain time. I feel that I was at that time at Chelsea.

'I felt very good on the pitch, I felt very confident and I felt very grateful, because I could feel the support of the fans.

‘I felt that ever since I arrived. That pushed me to try to get better and better. Thankfully we could give them the reward that they deserved: trophies, goals., and good football.’