Arsenal FC and Liverpool FC Target Blaise Matuidi: A Closer Look

The rampant pace of transfer rumors sometimes leaves little time to truly grasp what is really going on.

Speculation always continues to run rampant as we gear up for the hot summer months. As speculation mounts, it becomes hard to keep up with players and what they may bring to a club.

One player who has been at the center of recent speculation is Saint Etienne’s 24 year old Blaise Matuidi. The defensive midfielder has been linked with a move to a larger club the last few seasons, but what is it about him that is supposedly attracting so much interest.

Matuidi is a French International who spent time at the famed Clairefontaine academy in his youth. He started his professional career at Troyes before moving to Saint Etienne.

Matuidi is only 5’9”, but uses his lower center of gravity as an advantage in tackling. Matuidi has a reputation as a fierce ball winner, the type of player who makes tremendous tackles to break up opponents attacks. He is also regarded as a touchline to touchline player, a midfielder who is able to pursue the width of the field to make a play.

His tremendous stamina is key in this regard, as he seems to cover ground as well in the 90^th minute as he does in the fifth.

Outside of his defensive abilities, Matuidi is used as a deep lying playmaker in ASSE’s attack. Once he wins the ball, Matuidi has the skill set to restart his team’s attack with above average passing and ball skills. Matuidi is not a goal scorer as his three goals in 132 appearances for Les Verts shows, nor is he a high assist guy (only three this past season).

This can be viewed as a weakness, but with the likes of Payet and Riviere in the squad, Matuidi is typically not in the box for scoring opportunities. His skill set lies in winning the ball and starting the attack, and providing an outlet to the attacking mids, wingers and forwards.

Arsenal are known to be keen on him, as rumors of Wenger looking to add Matuidi to his squad date back two to three years, but Arsene Wenger has company in his interest.

Liverpool are also thought to be interested in Matuidi as part of their squad makeover. Other Premier League teams rumored to be keeping tabs on him are Newcastle and Tottenham. Interest for the midfielder is also coming from Italy as Roma have made inquiries about Matuidi.

Due to the interest level, and ASSE’s desire to keep their young star, Saint Etienne has tried to warn off suitors with a valuation of £13.2 as a starting point. ASSE management has stated they will not listen to any offers below that amount.

While this fee is within budget for the aforementioned teams, the biggest player in the fight for his services may be PSG.

The Paris outfit has deep pockets from Qatar investments, and hold a few other advantages over the other teams. Matuidi was raised in the Parisian suburb of Fontenay-sous-Bois. It was there he grew up rooting for PSG and emulating PSG’s Jay-Jay Okocha.

The opportunity to play for his childhood favorite may be too much to overcome in the race for his signature.

If he makes a move this summer, Matuidi will bring his standard bulldog mentality to the pitch of where ever he goes. This mentality along with the skill set he possesses will be a welcome addition to the squads interested in his services.

Every team needs a ball winner in their midfield, and Matuidi is one of Europe’s best when it comes to that.