Is Nemanja Matic Chelsea's Most Important Player?

It has been almost a full year since Nemanja Matic rejoined Chelsea and the Serbian has become a key player in Jose Mourinho's team and their title bid. The current high standard of his performances—provided he can maintain them—may even be enough to warrant him a nod for the Premier League Player of the Year come the end of the season.

Quality holding midfielders are a rare breed in England these days. Some teams, take Arsenal as an example, are desperately lacking that type of player. There is a sense that the Gunners would improve massively if they only had a proper, modern holder who primarily provides a physical presence in the middle of the park but can also contribute on the other end if need be.

On the other hand, teams that do have them—like Southampton in Morgan Schneiderlin and West Ham in Alex Song—tend to punch above their weight more often than not.

Most people would probably agree, however, that Nemanja Matic is a notch above them all at the moment. A master of his domain.

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You won’t see him strutting his stuff across the pitch and trying to do fancy things with the ball, but he’s the ultimate team player, who helps the creative types flourish. Not that he’s unable to provide creativity himself—Matic is technically gifted as well, he excels in a wide range of elements of the game, but his key feature is one of those traditionally cherished in British football.

He knows how to get stuck in and never hesitates to do it.

Stats only tell a part of the story. Matic makes 3.8 tackles per game (third in the league) and 2.1 interceptions; he makes 67.1 passes per game with 88.1 per cent success, while providing 3.6 long balls and 1.6 dribbles on average. According to WhoScored.com, he’s currently the ninth statistically best rated player in the Premier League and no one who is primarily playing in defensive midfielder position is above him.

But all that says little about his value to the team and his influence. That is probably best illustrated by the fact that Chelsea have only lost one game so far this season, an away match against Newcastle United earlier this month. It was also their only game without Matic in the squad, as he was serving a yellow cards suspension.

So while headlines are usually reserved for Eden Hazard, Cesc Fabregas, Diego Costa or (most often) Mourinho, one should never underestimate the importance of the man in the shadows, who is the glue that holds the team together. Absolutely key in regaining possession and starting the attacking transition, it is often his menacing 6'4" physical presence alone that is putting out opponents from trying any funny stuff through the middle.

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And once he gets the ball, he always knows what to do with it. If there are no immediate passing options, he can play a long ball or dribble his way out of trouble. There are very few midfielders in the world, if any, who are as complete as Matic.

In January, more than a few eyebrows were raised when Chelsea paid €25 million for a player, previously a serial reject, who they offloaded to Benfica—that was 15 times more than the club spent to bring him to Stamford Bridge the first time, back in 2009. And although Matic may never get the wide recognition he deserves, he was clearly worth it.

Stats courtesy of WhoScored.com.

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