Roberto Di Matteo

[Reddish-Blue 2,348]

This is ridiculous, when he was sacked from West Brom they were well above the relegation zone. They finished 11th in the season he was sacked (unjustifiably, a lot of WBA fans were still behind him).

For us, he obviously wasn't the man but he didn't do so badly. Winning an FA Cup and CL and starting the following season off pretty well. Obviously CFC is too big for him though.

Schalke's apparent dismissal was pretty unfair as well considering he took over when they were 11th and steered them to 5th.

You've got it all wrong when it comes to the WBA and Schalke stuff. He did okay with them. Like I said, have some respect. He isn't a championship standard coach. He has flaws, but he's definitely a top division manager.

Just to clarify, RDM steered them to 6th as FC Ausburg won on the final day and took 5th place

He should of been given a bit more time with Schalke..

[Bosnian Blue 2,471]

Schalke are a very poor team with high expectations. When Robbie took over they were in a huge mess, still remember one of his first games was against us and those players were atrocious, they weren't even physically good enough for the Champions League, let alone tactics. Probably the easiest win we've had in the whole season. No manager in the world could have done much better with that squad. And I'm not even mentioning all the injuries to key players during the campaign..

Resignation is a smart move, they probably have those unrealistic expectations and he can't get the freedom to rebuild the squad.

[The Skipper 20,593]

Rumoured to go to either WHU or Newcastle.

[robdog 2,084]

Rumoured to go to either WHU or Newcastle.

I was hoping RDM could take over Napoli - then again maybe Zola might in the mix for that job

[Captain Ahmed 528]

Roberto Di Matteo in frame for Aston Villa as Chinese takeover nears completion of relegated club

Quote

Former Chelsea manager Roberto Di Matteo is favourite to take over the Aston Villa managerial vacancy as the relegated club nears a takeover from a Chinese consortium.The Midlands club's owner, Randy Lerner, is close to finding a buyer, having put the club up for sale in 2014. Chairman Steve Hollis is believed to be in China seeking to finalise the move, having worked on the deal for the past few weeks.Four buyers had expressed interest in the club but talks with the Chinese consortium have reached an advanced stage.The side, relegated from the top flight this season after 28 years in the top division, are reportedly being lined up by a Chinese businessman offering £60million - similar to the amount Lerner paid for the outfit in 2006. The prospective new owners are seeking to appoint former Chelsea coach Di Matteo as manager should a deal be completed.Representatives of the former MK Dons, West Bromwich and Chelsea coach have already been contacted about their client succeeding Remi Garde at Villa Park, while former Leicester manager Nigel Pearson has also been mentioned. Garde himself lasted less than a season at Villa Park, having only replaced Tim Sherwood in November.He resigned after seven months as Schalke manager last May.

independent.co.uk

 

[Vesper 28,880]

Chelsea’s greatest goals: Di Matteo’s 43-second thunderbolt sparked trophy haul

https://theathletic.com/1697076/2020/03/30/di-matteo-chelsea-fa-cup-middlesbrough-greatest-goal/

The Athletic’s reporters have chosen their top three goals scored by the clubs they cover and over the next three weeks, will be writing a piece on each of them.

When they have finished, you can vote for which you think is your club’s best and discuss what we got right/wrong.

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Scott Minto doesn’t hesitate for a second. When it comes to naming the most important Chelsea goal in modern times, one stands out from all the rest.

“This goal is iconic,” Minto insists. “Not only is it a thing of beauty — it is the start of everything for Chelsea in the modern day. The club had gone so many years without winning anything. Since then, they have won consistently.”

Chelsea’s former left-back is talking about Roberto Di Matteo’s remarkable strike after just 43 seconds of the 1997 FA Cup Final against Middlesbrough.

While Eddie Newton provided a late second to ensure the game was won, it is Di Matteo’s contribution which is most remembered and revered. On a poll conducted by the BBC in 2015, the Italian’s effort was voted by viewers and readers of the website as the third-greatest to ever be scored in an FA Cup Final.

Winning silverware has become a common occurrence in the Roman Abramovich era — the club have collected 16 major trophies since the multi-billionaire arrived at Stamford Bridge in 2003.

Such a return was unthinkable during a drought which started after lifting the European Cup Winners’ Cup in 1971 and was finally brought to an end on the day Di Matteo used his right foot to devastating effect.

Chelsea went into the game as strong favourites. They were a team renowned for a silky playing style under head coach Ruud Gullit and their opponents had just been relegated from the Premier League.

Confidence was oozing throughout the squad. Minto, who was appearing in his first, and only, final of his professional career, says: “All of us were relaxed. Gullit treated it as just your typical game in terms of our preparation.

“We didn’t stay in a hotel for three, four nights like many teams for the Cup final did back then — it was just the one. We trained as normal the day before. That was Ruud using all his experience as a big-game player. It was a very good idea. It kept the pressure off. He just knew how to keep everybody calm. We just had fun.

“Getting to Wembley was a culmination of a good season. We’d been inconsistent in the league (finished sixth) but we just felt our name was on the cup. We had quality players with Mark Hughes and Gianfranco Zola up front, Frank Leboeuf at the back and Dennis Wise as captain. Plus Robbie in midfield, of course. He was as cool as ever in the build-up to that day.”

Chelsea signed Di Matteo from Lazio for £4.9 million the summer before. His arrival was outshone by that of legendary Italy international Gianluca Vialli from Juventus, as well as suffering a back injury in pre-season.

But on his home debut in England’s top division in August 1996, the elegant midfielder made his mark, stroking the ball from 25 yards out to provide Chelsea’s first win over Middlesbrough that season. This moment sparked a celebration which made many of the back pages as five team-mates (Wise, Leboeuf, Jody Morris, Dan Petrescu and Erland Johnsen) posed with him for the cameras.

“That was the game which helped him settle in, feel part of everything,” Minto recalls. “It was a real introduction to the Chelsea scene, the Chelsea fans. He kicked on from there. Robbie had a dry sense of humour. He could be very quiet but once you had his trust, were part of his inner circle, he showed just what a funny guy he is.

“Technically, he was a very good player — his touch was good and he could score these long-range goals. He was doing what Frank Lampard would go on to do for Chelsea first.”

By the time the two sides met to fight it out for the oldest domestic cup competition in the world, Di Matteo had a respectable eight goals to his name. His reputation had been growing steadily, but what happened next changed his life for good.

Middlesbrough played a part in their own downfall. They pressed so high up the pitch after Minto had headed out for a throw-in, there was little cover when Wise won possession back.

A simple pass found Di Matteo unmarked on the edge of the centre circle and he set off on a 40-yard run with no-one making much of an effort to stop him. Other Chelsea players were pushing forward too, including right-back Frank Sinclair.

“I just saw a huge space in front of me and raced down the right wing,” Sinclair recalls. “I was just saying, ‘pass it to me’ and I was preparing myself to cross it into the area. But he took a shot instead and I was thinking, ‘What are you doing taking a shot from there?'”

Sinclair soon knew. With Hughes having made a clever run to take Middlesbrough centre-half Gianluca Festa back toward his own area, Di Matteo had a clear view of the net.

Despite being more than 30 yards out, he let fly. The ball flew at a perfect trajectory over goalkeeper Ben Roberts before dropping sharply to go in off the crossbar.

“I still feel for Roberts,” Minto admits. “He took a bit of criticism because the shot went over him in the middle of the goal. If it had gone in the top corner, no-one would have said a word. But the way the ball dipped, made the shot unstoppable. He jumped as high as he could and didn’t get near it.

“I have never seen Di Matteo celebrate a goal like that. He went pretty crazy. He knew how huge this game was, that people around the world were watching it.

“I was one of the only players that was able to catch up with him. There are some really good pictures of it. Fans sent them into me to sign and send back. One of them is me with my hand around his neck.”

Sinclair had a bit more ground to cover but he got there eventually — although it would come at some cost. He adds: “I just went chasing him all round the pitch. I went from the right-hand side all the way to the dugout on the other side so by the time we were finished celebrating, I was proper breathing!”

Another one joining in up in the stands was Di Matteo’s blind sister Concetta. The drama caused by her brother was described to her in great detail by those around her and she couldn’t have been more proud.

History had been made too for it was the fastest-ever goal in the final, a stat which was beaten 12 years later against Chelsea, funnily enough, when Louis Saha converted with his left foot after only 25 seconds.

“We were all a bit gutted about that,” Minto adds. “It was satisfying to know that we were in the team which had the record. Not that Robbie changed. He was exactly the same afterwards; a really cool, chilled guy. He wasn’t in the middle of all the celebrations — just to the side, chipping in.”

Di Matteo would continue to chip in as far as helping Chelsea win trophies as concerned. He scored in the Carabao Cup Final and FA Cup victories in 1998 and 2000 respectively. And as manager, he led the club to the ultimate dream of the Champions League and another FA Cup eight years ago.

But as a moment of high drama, importance and skill, 1997 will always be hard to beat.