How It Happened?
There had been claims that Serie A champs Juventus had shown some serious interest in adding Nemanja Matic to their squad. Antonio Conte’s former club was keen on signing the Serb, after losing out on some of their other midfield targets. Despite their interest, Jose Mourinho’s team did not give up on their hopes of signing another midfielder, as they looked to strengthen the heart of their Europa League winning side.
The battle between the two European giants kept on going for a while, though it never seemed certain, as to who will sign the player eventually.
With that said and done, reports had confirmed that Juve were apparently out of the race for the signing of the Chelsea midfielder due to the high asking price, which would have given the Red Devils some joy.
It gave them a green light to secure the services of the Serbian international from their rival club, with the Blues willing to sell.
Nicknamed the spider, Matic had played an important part in Chelsea’s midfield in the past three years that he has spent at the club helping them lift the Premier League on two occasions and also winning the Capital One Cup.
However, he is set to leave the Blues to be re-united with former manager Jose Mourinho at Manchester United.
The Portuguese boss is a big fan of the defensive midfielder and has stressed out on the importance of his United squad requiring a midfielder for the coming season.
Matic is known for his intelligence on the field and reading of the game, he has been a consistent performer throughout his career and his combative style allows him to have a big advantage over his opponents as he sits deep at the base of the midfield to break down the oppositions play.
Last season his appearances were kept to a limit because of Ngolo Kante’s presence in the side and Chelsea manager preferred Fabregas in midfield due to the Spaniard’s effectiveness in the attacking third of the field.
Blues boss Antonio Conte has recruited Tiemoue Bakayoko from Monaco this season which could spell the exit for Matic at Stamford Bridge, as they will be pleased for him to leave.
Despite that, there were a number of clubs interested in the signature of the 28 year old across Europe, some of them were Juventus, Inter Milan and of course Manchester United.
And now, with Juventus having pulled out of the interest in Matic, Manchester United are the favorites to bring him to Old Trafford.
The fee for Matic was around £30m but as the Red Devils beat Chelsea to signing Romelu Lukaku from Everton, the champions will demand around £50m.
The efforts eventually paid off and the deal eventually happened, as the club from England triumphed over its Italian rivals.
Change Of Fortunes?
It is hard to say whether Matic will get a regular chance in the playing eleven with the options that Mourinho does have at present, though he will surely be one of the favourites to start, as he knows the tactics of the Portuguese manager quite well.
However, there is a high possibility that Mourinho might make him his preference, which could be the main reason why he brought him to Old Trafford in the first place.
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