Why Di Matteo Has Never Completed Two Full Seasons as a Manager

‘Di Matteo hasn’t completed two full seasons as a manager with any club’

Back in May 26th last year, as Aston Villa switched their attention from Nigel Pearson to Roberto Di Matteo to be their new manager due to a new owner coming in, MOMS wrote this article about Pearson going to Derby and Di Matteo’s incoming.

According to all reports and MOMS intel, Di Matteo again has failed to be a manager for the long-term. For the record, below is the bit about Di Matteo, which seems to have ultimately played out to be true.

Di Matteo can seemingly play the ‘inheritor’ of a decent team and guide a team in the short-term, but his track record shows, along with his time at Villa, that when it comes to adding his own identity to the team, that’s where things tend to fall down.

What MOMS said last year…

Di Matteo’s Double Question Mark

Inheritor

One thing that is noticeable about Di Matteo’s previous managerial history is he has always tended to inherit decent teams relative to their league. MK Dons, previously managed by Paul Ince, were promoted and won the FA Trophy in the season before Di Matteo took over. He lead them to a losing play-off.

He took over a relegated but talented West Bromwich team who were strongly favoured for a instant return, even before Di Matteo walked through the door. He guided them up, but then became unstuck in the Premier League and was sacked in February, after a poor run of form.

Di Matteo only lasted just one season at Schalke too, who had a decent team and were already in the Champions League. He did lift them from a mid-table to finish sixth and qualify for the Europa League. He then resigned, citing differences between the club and his ambition.

At Chelsea, he inherited a powerful team, but was successful in lifting spirits and galvanising the team to win the FA Cup and follow in Tony Barton ‘caretaker’ shoes to win the European Cup aka Champions League. Yet, he wasn’t fancied to be Chelsea boss full-time for the following season.

‘What is a Di Matteo team? Remains a question, without a proven answer.’

Application

MOMS has spoken to a journalist who was close to WBA and he questioned Di Matteo’s application as Baggies boss in his second season, essentially saying, he wasn’t one for doing over-time and rolling his sleeves up.

So, far Di Matteo hasn’t completed two full seasons as a manager with any club and has never been around long enough to build his own team. What is a Di Matteo team? Remains a question, without a proven answer.

Can he build a team from the roots up and get promotion within a year? That’s certainly what’s on Xia’s bucket list for next season.

Roberto Bounce

The main reason for cynicism is mainly due to the high stakes involved in being the next Villa boss. This is a team that managed only three wins in a season and needs a complete rebuild, yet Villa need to get promoted sharpish and preferably at the first time of calling.

To his credit, teams seem to respond well to Di Matteo, at least in the short-term, as his time at Chelsea and WBA, especially suggests. Having been a player of some standing in his past, no doubt helps garner respect from players too.

In the final analysis, MOMS would probably take Di Matteo over Tim Sherwood, Paul Lambert, Alex McLeish and Remi Garde, but the nagging doubt is, is he the right man for the specific job ahead next season?

UTV

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