Why I Believe Roberto Di Matteo Is Perfect For Chelsea

One of the most speculated things in the football world is who will be the next manager of Chelsea Football Club. From Jose Mourinho to Pep Guardiola and everyone in between has been rumored to be coming to Stamford Bridge but few have considered the fact that maybe, just maybe the Perfect Manager is already here.

Roberto Di Matteo is not a big name. He is not a Legend, maybe not even a legend in the making but he has many qualities that fit the unique requirements that Chelsea demand. For one he has experience in the Premier League. Granted, it’s not the best we’ve ever seen but everyone has to start somewhere and he did an ok job at West Brom before being fired and they weren’t relegated under his watch. But this isn’t the reason that he should be considered our permanent manager. Here are just SOME of the reasons that Di Matteo should be given a fair chance.

He’s a former player who deeply loves Chelsea. He has the chance to be our very own Pep. Folks tend to forget that Guardiola was a controversial choice because a lot of people at Barcelona wanted to choose Jose Mourinho who was at that time a far more established coach. Would history have been as kind to Barcelona if they took the “safe” route everyone demanded? I highly doubt it.

Another reason that Di Matteo should be considered is that he can manage our volatile dressing room which is no easy feat as the litter of dead bodies can testify too. Chelsea is well known for having head strong, some would say stubborn, players who love power and know how to use it ruthlessly. They will not hesitate to let both the manager and the media know when they feel something is not up to their high standards and  are not impressed with CV’s or resumes. THEY are the ones who are ultimately in control.  Di Matteo has so far shown the ability to allow the players to feel they still are in control but he still changes things how he sees fit. That is diplomacy at its finest.

A most crucial thing that MUST be considered is the reactions of and relations with the British Media. When it comes to Chelsea Football Club they are brutal. Any manager of Chelsea must be calm with the media and don’t get caught up with battling them.  Even if you win the battle with them, which is rare, you’ll never win the war. The media always sabotages Chelsea at every turn so you have to learn to let things roll off you back (something Villas Boas had trouble doing). So far, Roberto Di Matteo has shown not to let them get under his skin even when they try to bait him at every turn.

Lastly and the most important reason is that Di Matteo should get the job is that Chelsea can’t afford a high profile coach. With Financial Fair Play (FFP) already in effect and the club deeply in the hole it would be foolish to get into even more debt over a manager and not a quality player that we need to upgrade the squad. I’m not saying that managers don’t matter because clearly they do, but that shouldn’t be our main focus. No manager at Chelsea has full control over the team. Never have and they never will unless Roman Abramovich gets bored so we need someone who understands that and is ready to deal with those unique (some say impossibly stressful) circumstances.  You will get players you never asked for and don’t really want. Roman will pop up to ask random questions or just to watch. The Board is for the most part useless, dysfunctional and predatory. I could go on and on but you get the point. Unless all these things are ready to be changed not many top name managers will be knocking down our door any time soon. Chelsea need a manager and relatively quickly with the shortened offseason due to the Euro’s and we also need to upgrade our squad. Now is the time to cross one thing off our long list and give the job to the manager who is uniquely qualified to take on this huge responsibility and that man is Roberto Di Matteo

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Posted in: Opinions