‘A Star in the Making’ – Chelsea’s Nemanja Matic

This summer Chelsea beat the likes of Tottenham Hotspur and Middlesbrough in a race for the signature of young Serbian sensation Nemanja Matic. Upon arriving at Chelsea, the youngster was sidelined for several months following a metatarsal injury sustained in the Under 21 European Championships, and consequently, little is known about the player.

Matic began his career at the young age of 16 in the Serbian national league. He is a left-footed central midfielder and stands at 6ft 4”. It is therefore no surprise that his attributes consist of his strength and power, however the youngster also describes himself as being technically gifted, making a combination that is likely to benefit any player.

Matic impressed as a youngster in Serbia and earned himself a move to Slovakian club MSK Kosice, whom he made 67 appearances for, scoring 4 goals in the process. His excellent performances for the club led them to 4^th spot in the league as victory in the Slovak Cup Final. It was at this point in his career that the youngster began to attract interest from around Europe and it was only a matter of time before Matic moved on, with the likes of Chelsea and Tottenham keeping tabs on the player.

The Serbian midfielder finally signed for Chelsea on August 18^th 2009 for a fee of £1.5 million, a steal considering the potential that the youngster is rumoured to have. Matic had to wait until the 4-0 home victory over Wolves to make his Chelsea debut, coming on in the 69^th minute for Florent Malouda and providing fans with an impressive cameo appearance. Matic himself has spoken of his excitement of playing for Carlo Ancelotti’s men, saying “I know a lot about Chelsea, I have been following them. I play together with Branislav (Ivanovic) in the national team and have spoken to him about Chelsea. The first time when I met him to play in the national team I asked a couple of questions.”

Matic is actually of dual nationality and was able to play for either Serbia or Slovakia. The midfielder appears to have chosen Serbia and has already broken into their national side, which at 21, is an impressive feat. After just 3 appearances for the Under 21 side, in which he scored two goals, Matic was promoted to the full national team and has since made two appearances for the side who will feature in the first ‘group of death’ in this summer’s World Cup.

Still a relative unknown, Chelsea fans will be looking forward to catching further glimpses of the young Serb. If the youngster fulfils even half of the potential and promise that has been spoken of him then Chelsea will consider it one of the best £1.5 million they have ever spent. Matic is another member of Frank Arnesen’s youth academy and along with Gael Kakuta and Fabio Borini is another shining light in Chelsea’s future. The midfielder is only likely to benefit from being around such midfield greats as Frank Lampard, Michael Ballack and Michael Essien.