The Golden Boy: Roberto Di Matteo

It’s been roughly 5 months since the departure of our player/manager hero, Robbie Di Matteo. A lot has happened in that time, and it’s getting to that time of the season where we start to assess player and managers’ futures.

Never was it a great idea appointing Robbie if Roman and the board were after short term success. He’s a self-made man, starting from the bottom and working his way to the absolute top within a short space of time.

Blessed with a set of skills that no manager, from Mourinho to AVB, possessed during their time at Chelsea, Robbie took it on his own shoulders to deliver the the trophy Roman craved. Of course, none of this would’ve been possible without Eddie Newton, Steve Holland and the rest of the staff, as well as the lions in the dressing room, but the managers before Robbie had more than enough resources to do so.

He got us playing some great football at the start of the season, but everything that goes up, must come down at some stage. This was no beginner’s luck, he accomplished a lot at West Brom, and it’s fair to say there will be no shortage of options for the Champions League winning ‘interim’ (oddly) manager.

Firstly, I don’t expect Robbie to coach till the summer, plain and simple. Robbie, like AVB, has a clause in his Chelsea contract which states he’ll be compensated for every penny agreed with the board IF he manages to stay out of a job till next season.

Secondly, I only see him managing in England or Italy, and possibly Germany. Yes, the most obvious ones. However, it’s the style of football he likes playing which will interest clubs from these countries.

So here’s a list of the jobs I feel will be offered to him:

England: Aston Villa, Norwich.

Italy: Juventus (if Conte leaves), AS Roma, Lazio and Udinese.

Germany: Schalke, Bayer Leverkusen, Hamburg, Wolfsburg, Werder Bremen, Stuttgart.

Spain is still a slight possibility, so for that reason, I feel he’d be a perfect fit for Villareal, Valencia or Atletico Madrid.

As you can see, there will be no shortage of options for Robbie who has accomplished more than most coaches have in their careers. At 42, Robbie is still learning, and moving to one of the clubs listed above, would see him accomplish a lot more. His style, what he showed at the start of the season at Chelsea, is a modern day method, i.e. playing it on the floor, quick passing  and maximising presence across a stretched pitch. He speaks English, Swiss, French, Italian and a bit of German, which does make a difference, contrary to what may be said.

So as far as I see it, he has a long career ahead of him, and I genuinely hope he succeeds, staying loyal to his beliefs and carrying himself in the self-respecting manner he always has done. Anyone that knows my manner of thinking knows that I hate to see young managers being treated in a certain way, and it’s ridiculous that we’ve been responsible for the sacking of 2 young coaches in the past year. Good luck to Robbie!

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