Roberto Di Matteo (; born 29 May 1970) is an Italian professional
football
Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly ...
manager and former player.
During his playing career as a
midfielder
A midfielder is an outfield position in association football.
Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in that case known as defensive midfielders. As central midfielders often go across boundarie ...
, he played for Swiss clubs
Schaffhausen
Schaffhausen (; gsw, Schafuuse; french: Schaffhouse; it, Sciaffusa; rm, Schaffusa; en, Shaffhouse) is a town with historic roots, a municipality in northern Switzerland, and the capital of the canton of the same name; it has an estimate ...
,
Zürich
, neighboring_municipalities = Adliswil, Dübendorf, Fällanden, Kilchberg, Maur, Oberengstringen, Opfikon, Regensdorf, Rümlang, Schlieren, Stallikon, Uitikon, Urdorf, Wallisellen, Zollikon
, twintowns = Kunming, San Francisco
Z ...
and
Aarau
, neighboring_municipalities= Buchs, Suhr, Unterentfelden, Eppenberg-Wöschnau, Erlinsbach
, twintowns = Neuchâtel (Switzerland), Delft (Netherlands), Reutlingen (Germany)
Aarau (, ) is a town, a municipality, and the capital of the ...
before joining
Lazio
it, Laziale
, population_note =
, population_blank1_title =
, population_blank1 =
, demographics_type1 =
, demographics1_footnotes =
, demographics1_title1 =
, demographics1_info1 =
, demographics1_title2 ...
of Italy and
Chelsea of England. Born in Switzerland to Italian parents, he was
capped 34 times for
Italy
Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...
, scoring two goals, and played in
UEFA Euro 1996
The 1996 UEFA European Football Championship, commonly referred to as Euro 96, was the 10th UEFA European Championship, a quadrennial football tournament contested by European nations and organised by UEFA. It took place in England from 8 to 30 ...
and the
1998 FIFA World Cup
The 1998 FIFA World Cup was the 16th FIFA World Cup, the football world championship for men's national teams. The finals tournament was held in France from 10 June to 12 July 1998. The country was chosen as the host nation by FIFA for t ...
. He retired as a player in February 2002 at the age of 31 following injury problems.
Di Matteo began his managerial career with
Milton Keynes Dons, who he took to the League One playoffs in 2008–09 before leaving to return
West Bromwich Albion
West Bromwich Albion Football Club () is an English professional football club based in West Bromwich, West Midlands, England. They compete in the EFL Championship, the second tier of English football. The club was formed in 1878 and has pl ...
to the Premier League. As
caretaker manager
In association footballing terms, a caretaker manager or interim manager is somebody who takes temporary charge of the management of a football team, usually when the regular manager is dismissed or leaves for a different club. However, a care ...
of
Chelsea, he steered the club to double title success, winning both the
FA Cup
The Football Association Challenge Cup, more commonly known as the FA Cup, is an annual knockout football competition in men's domestic English football. First played during the 1871–72 season, it is the oldest national football compet ...
and the club's first
UEFA Champions League
The UEFA Champions League (abbreviated as UCL, or sometimes, UEFA CL) is an annual club football competition organised by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) and contested by top-division European clubs, deciding the competi ...
title in 2012, but was dismissed later that year. He then went on to coach
Schalke 04 until May 2015 when he departed after seven months in charge, and had four months as manager of
Aston Villa
Aston Villa Football Club is a professional football club based in Aston, Birmingham, England. The club competes in the , the top tier of the English football league system. Founded in 1874, they have played at their home ground, Villa Park, ...
in 2016.
Club career
Early career
Born in
Schaffhausen
Schaffhausen (; gsw, Schafuuse; french: Schaffhouse; it, Sciaffusa; rm, Schaffusa; en, Shaffhouse) is a town with historic roots, a municipality in northern Switzerland, and the capital of the canton of the same name; it has an estimate ...
, Switzerland
to Italian parents from
Abruzzo
, population_note =
, population_blank1_title =
, population_blank1 =
, demographics_type1 =
, demographics1_footnotes =
, demographics1_title1 =
, demographics1 ...
, Di Matteo began his career with Swiss club
Schaffhausen
Schaffhausen (; gsw, Schafuuse; french: Schaffhouse; it, Sciaffusa; rm, Schaffusa; en, Shaffhouse) is a town with historic roots, a municipality in northern Switzerland, and the capital of the canton of the same name; it has an estimate ...
, before joining
Aarau
, neighboring_municipalities= Buchs, Suhr, Unterentfelden, Eppenberg-Wöschnau, Erlinsbach
, twintowns = Neuchâtel (Switzerland), Delft (Netherlands), Reutlingen (Germany)
Aarau (, ) is a town, a municipality, and the capital of the ...
in 1991. He won the
Swiss Nationalliga A with Aarau in 1993.
Lazio
He signed for
Lazio
it, Laziale
, population_note =
, population_blank1_title =
, population_blank1 =
, demographics_type1 =
, demographics1_footnotes =
, demographics1_title1 =
, demographics1_info1 =
, demographics1_title2 ...
in the summer of 1993 on a free transfer. Di Matteo became a regular starting-11 member of the Lazio side in midfield under managers
Dino Zoff and later
Zdeněk Zeman
Zdeněk Zeman (; born 12 May 1947) is a Czech-Italian football coach.
Known for his exciting, offensive footballing tactics and use of the 4–3–3 formation, Zeman has managed numerous teams over the years, mostly in Italian football. He has ...
, and he made his debut for the
Italian national team during his three seasons with the Rome club.
Under Zeman, he was frequently deployed in the central midfield role, in which he was required to aid the team defensively – thanks to his formation as a sweeper during his youth –
as well as offensively and creatively.
During his time at the club, he developed into one of the top two-way
central midfielders in Italy.
Chelsea
Di Matteo scored the winner against
Middlesbrough
Middlesbrough ( ) is a town on the southern bank of the River Tees in North Yorkshire, England. It is near the North York Moors national park. It is the namesake and main town of its local borough council area.
Until the early 1800s, the ...
on his home debut for
Chelsea. His passing ability and accurate long-distance shooting saw him become one of the driving forces of Chelsea's resurgence in the late 1990s, along with several other Italian players.
He contributed nine goals in his first season, including long-range efforts against both
Tottenham Hotspur
Tottenham Hotspur Football Club, commonly referred to as Tottenham () or Spurs, is a professional association football, football club based in Tottenham, London, England. It competes in the Premier League, the top flight of English footba ...
and
Wimbledon. He helped the club finish sixth place in the league, their highest placing since
1989–90, and reach the
1997 FA Cup Final at
Wembley
Wembley () is a large suburbIn British English, "suburb" often refers to the secondary urban centres of a city. Wembley is not a suburb in the American sense, i.e. a single-family residential area outside of the city itself. in north-west Londo ...
. Within 42 seconds of the kick-off of the final against Middlesbrough, Di Matteo scored the opening goal from 30 yards and Chelsea won 2–0. Di Matteo's goal was the fastest in a Wembley FA Cup final until the record was broken by
Louis Saha for
Everton in
2009
File:2009 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The vertical stabilizer of Air France Flight 447 is pulled out from the Atlantic Ocean; Barack Obama becomes the first African American to become President of the United States; Protests ...
.
The following season Di Matteo again proved his worth to the team, contributing ten goals and numerous assists, as Chelsea went on to claim the
Football League Cup
The EFL Cup (referred to historically, and colloquially, as the League Cup), currently known as the Carabao Cup for sponsorship reasons, is an annual knockout competition and major trophy in men's domestic football in England. Organised by t ...
and the
Cup Winners' Cup
The UEFA Cup Winners' Cup was a European football club competition contested annually by the winners of domestic cup competitions. The cup was, chronologically, the second seasonal inter-European club competition organised by UEFA. The tournam ...
, their first European honour since 1971. In the
League Cup final, again against Middlesbrough, Di Matteo scored the second goal in a 2–0 win. Di Matteo played in midfield next to
Gustavo Poyet,
Dennis Wise and
Dan Petrescu in the
1998–99 season as Chelsea finished third. During the
1999–2000 season Di Matteo was sidelined by injury but returned late in the season to score a handful of crucial goals, including his third Cup-winning goal at Wembley, once again in the
FA Cup
The Football Association Challenge Cup, more commonly known as the FA Cup, is an annual knockout football competition in men's domestic English football. First played during the 1871–72 season, it is the oldest national football compet ...
. In a dour match, Di Matteo capitalised on an error by
Aston Villa
Aston Villa Football Club is a professional football club based in Aston, Birmingham, England. The club competes in the , the top tier of the English football league system. Founded in 1874, they have played at their home ground, Villa Park, ...
goalkeeper
David James Dewi, Dai, Dafydd or David James may refer to:
Performers
*David James (actor, born 1839) (1839–1893), English stage comic and a founder of London's Vaudeville Theatre
*David James (actor, born 1967) (born 1967), Australian presenter of ABC's ''P ...
to score the winner in the 72nd minute, handing Chelsea their fourth major trophy in three years. This led Di Matteo to comment on the old Wembley Stadium saying "It's a shame they're tearing the old place down it has been a very lucky ground for me".
Early into the
2000–01 season, Di Matteo sustained a triple leg fracture in a
UEFA Cup
A cup is an open-top used to hold hot or cold liquids for pouring or drinking; while mainly used for drinking, it also can be used to store solids for pouring (e.g., sugar, flour, grains, salt). Cups may be made of glass, metal, china, clay ...
tie against Swiss side
St. Gallen and did not play for the next eighteen months.
He gave up on hopes of returning from this injury in February 2002 and retired at the age of 31.
In his six years at Chelsea, Di Matteo made 175 appearances and scored 26 goals.
Chelsea statistics
Club
International career
Di Matteo made his
Italy
Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...
debut under
Arrigo Sacchi
Arrigo Sacchi (born 1 April 1946) is an Italian former professional football coach. He has twice managed AC Milan (1987–1991, 1996–1997), with great success. He won the Serie A title in his 1987–88 debut season and then dominated European ...
on 16 November 1994 in the
Stadio La Favorita in
Palermo
Palermo ( , ; scn, Palermu , locally also or ) is a city in southern Italy, the capital of both the autonomous region of Sicily and the Metropolitan City of Palermo, the city's surrounding metropolitan province. The city is noted for its ...
. He came on as a 55th-minute substitute for
Demetrio Albertini as Italy lost 2–1 to
Croatia
, image_flag = Flag of Croatia.svg
, image_coat = Coat of arms of Croatia.svg
, anthem = " Lijepa naša domovino"("Our Beautiful Homeland")
, image_map =
, map_caption =
, capi ...
in qualification for
UEFA Euro 1996
The 1996 UEFA European Football Championship, commonly referred to as Euro 96, was the 10th UEFA European Championship, a quadrennial football tournament contested by European nations and organised by UEFA. It took place in England from 8 to 30 ...
. He made his first start in his second cap, a friendly 3–1 victory over
Turkey
Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with a small portion on the Balkan Peninsula ...
on 21 December 1994 in the
Stadio Adriatico in
Pescara. Di Matteo played two of Italy's group matches in UEFA Euro 1996, against
Russia
Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-ei ...
and
Germany
Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwee ...
. His first goal was scored on his 23rd cap, in qualification for the
1998 FIFA World Cup
The 1998 FIFA World Cup was the 16th FIFA World Cup, the football world championship for men's national teams. The finals tournament was held in France from 10 June to 12 July 1998. The country was chosen as the host nation by FIFA for t ...
, on 30 April 1997 in a 3–0 win against
Poland
Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populou ...
in
Naples
Naples (; it, Napoli ; nap, Napule ), from grc, Νεάπολις, Neápolis, lit=new city. is the regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 909,048 within the city's adm ...
. Di Matteo only scored one more goal for Italy, in a friendly win over
Slovakia
Slovakia (; sk, Slovensko ), officially the Slovak Republic ( sk, Slovenská republika, links=no ), is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east, Hungary to the south, Austria to the ...
on 28 January 1998. He was a member of Italy's FIFA World Cup team in 1998 and played two of their group games, against Chile and Cameroon. The match against Cameroon in
Montpellier
Montpellier (, , ; oc, Montpelhièr ) is a city in southern France near the Mediterranean Sea. One of the largest urban centres in the region of Occitania, Montpellier is the prefecture of the department of Hérault. In 2018, 290,053 people l ...
was his last game for Italy; in total he made 34 caps for Italy between 1994 and 1998, scoring 2 goals.
Style of play
Under his Lazio managers Zeman and
Dino Zoff, Di Matteo was frequently deployed in the central
holding midfield role in the team's 4–3–3 formation, in which he was required to aid the team defensively, owing to his formation both as a
sweeper
Sweepers are small, tropical marine (occasionally brackish) perciform fish of the family Pempheridae. Found in the western Atlantic Ocean and Indo-Pacific region, the family contains about 26 species in two genera. One species (''Pempheris xanth ...
and as a
centre-back
In the sport of association football, a defender is an outfield position whose primary role is to stop attacks during the game and prevent the opposition from scoring.
Centre-backs are usually positioned in pairs, with one full-back on either s ...
in a zonal defence during his youth in Switzerland.
He was also important in helping his team offensively and creatively, functioning as a
deep-lying playmaker
In association football, a playmaker is a player who controls the flow of the team's play, and is often involved in offensively and defensively playing passing moves which lead to goals, through their vision, technique, ball control, creativi ...
for Lazio under Zeman, and helping to set the tempo of his team's play and create chances through his precise passing range, technique, control, finesse, composure, and vision; as such his role was often likened to that of a ''
metodista'' ("centre-half," in Italian football jargon), due to his ability to dictate play in midfield as well as assist his team defensively.
During his stint in Rome, he was regarded as one of the best
two-way central midfielders in Italy,
and was also later considered to be one of the top midfielders in the Premier League during his time in England, becoming a key player for Chelsea in the late 90s. Di Matteo was also capable of playing in a more
offensive midfield roles, due to his ability to make forward surging runs, as well as his accurate long–range shot.
Managerial career
Milton Keynes Dons
On 2 July 2008, Di Matteo succeeded former England midfielder
Paul Ince
Paul Emerson Carlyle Ince (; born 21 October 1967) is an English professional football manager and former player who is the current manager of EFL Championship side Reading. A former midfielder, Ince played professionally from 1982 to 2007, sta ...
as manager of
Milton Keynes Dons on a one-year contract, after Ince took the manager's job at
Premier League
The Premier League (legal name: The Football Association Premier League Limited) is the highest level of the men's English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Fo ...
club
Blackburn Rovers
Blackburn Rovers Football Club is a professional football club, based in Blackburn, Lancashire, England, which competes in the , the second tier of the English football league system. They have played home matches at Ewood Park since 1890. Th ...
.
A club statement by the Dons said that both Di Matteo and the club were "young, ambitious and hungry to succeed". On 26 November that year, Di Matteo took former Chelsea teammate and Norwegian international striker
Tore André Flo
Tore André Flo (born 15 June 1973) is a Norwegian former professional football striker and coach who is the manager of 1. divisjon club Sogndal.
He was capped 76 times, scoring 23 goals for Norway, and represented his country in 1998 FIFA Worl ...
out of retirement by signing him on a contract until the end of the season. In his only season at
stadium mk
Stadium MK is a football ground in the Denbigh district of Bletchley in Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire, England. Designed by Populous and opened in 2007, it is the home ground of EFL League One side Milton Keynes Dons F.C., Milton Keynes Dons ...
, Di Matteo led his team to third place in
League One behind
Leicester City and
Peterborough United.
They then lost a play-off semi-final on penalties to
Scunthorpe United
Scunthorpe United Football Club is a professional association football club based in the town of Scunthorpe, Lincolnshire, England. The side currently competes in the National League, the fifth tier of the English football league system. The te ...
, with Flo missing the decisive penalty in sudden death.
West Bromwich Albion
Di Matteo was appointed manager of
West Bromwich Albion
West Bromwich Albion Football Club () is an English professional football club based in West Bromwich, West Midlands, England. They compete in the EFL Championship, the second tier of English football. The club was formed in 1878 and has pl ...
on 30 June 2009, shortly after their relegation from the Premier League and the exit of former manager
Tony Mowbray to
Celtic
Celtic, Celtics or Keltic may refer to:
Language and ethnicity
*pertaining to Celts, a collection of Indo-European peoples in Europe and Anatolia
**Celts (modern)
*Celtic languages
**Proto-Celtic language
*Celtic music
*Celtic nations
Sports Foo ...
. His selection was unanimous among the club's board.
In his
first season, the team finished second in the
Championship
In sport, a championship is a competition in which the aim is to decide which individual or team is the champion.
Championship systems
Various forms of competition can be referred to by the term championship.
Title match system
In this system ...
, behind
Newcastle United
Newcastle United Football Club is an English professional football club, based in Newcastle upon Tyne, that plays in the Premier League – the top flight of English football. The club was founded in 1892 by the merger of Newcastle East En ...
, and won automatic promotion to the Premier League on 10 April with three games remaining after defeating
Doncaster Rovers 3–2.
On the opening day of the
2010–11 Premier League
The 2010–11 Premier League (known as the Barclays Premier League for sponsorship reasons) was the 19th season of the Premier League since its establishment in 1992. The 2010–11 fixtures were released on 17 June 2010 at 09:00 BST. The season ...
season on 14 August 2010, Di Matteo paid a return visit to
Stamford Bridge as head coach of West Bromwich Albion. He was well received by the home fans, but saw his side lose 6–0 to Chelsea. Better results in following matches led to the best start in a Premier League season by the club, and Di Matteo was also named
Premier League Manager of the Month for
September 2010. During December 2010 and January 2011, the club had a period of poor form, winning only two of ten matches. After a 0–3 defeat to
Manchester City
Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The t ...
on 5 February 2011, he was relieved of his duties with immediate effect, and first-team coach
Michael Appleton was appointed
caretaker manager
In association footballing terms, a caretaker manager or interim manager is somebody who takes temporary charge of the management of a football team, usually when the regular manager is dismissed or leaves for a different club. However, a care ...
.
West Bromwich Albion finished the season in eleventh position.
Chelsea
2011–12
Di Matteo was appointed assistant to
André Villas-Boas, the new manager of
Chelsea, on 29 June 2011.
On 4 March 2012, following the dismissal of Villas-Boas, Di Matteo became
caretaker manager
In association footballing terms, a caretaker manager or interim manager is somebody who takes temporary charge of the management of a football team, usually when the regular manager is dismissed or leaves for a different club. However, a care ...
of Chelsea until the
end of the season.
Shortly after his appointment, Di Matteo brought in former Chelsea teammate
Eddie Newton to work as his assistant. Di Matteo started his stewardship of Chelsea in winning form, with victories over Birmingham City, in a fifth round FA Cup match;
Stoke City
Stoke City Football Club is a professional football club based in Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire, England, which competes in the . Founded as Stoke Ramblers in 1863, it changed its name to Stoke in 1878 and then to Stoke City in 1925 after Stoke ...
in a Premier League fixture; and
Napoli in the last 16 second leg match in the
UEFA Champions League
The UEFA Champions League (abbreviated as UCL, or sometimes, UEFA CL) is an annual club football competition organised by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) and contested by top-division European clubs, deciding the competi ...
, winning 4–1 to overturn the deficit in the first leg which Villas-Boas' Chelsea had lost 3–1.
Di Matteo continued his form with Chelsea, by beating
Tottenham Hotspur
Tottenham Hotspur Football Club, commonly referred to as Tottenham () or Spurs, is a professional association football, football club based in Tottenham, London, England. It competes in the Premier League, the top flight of English footba ...
in the
FA Cup semi-final
The FA Cup semi-finals are played to determine which teams will contest the FA Cup Final. They are the penultimate phase of the FA Cup, the oldest football tournament in the world.
Location
The semi-finals have always been contested at neutra ...
5–1 at Wembley and
Benfica in the Champions League
quarter-finals. On 24 April 2012, Di Matteo led Chelsea to a 3–2 aggregate win over holders
Barcelona
Barcelona ( , , ) is a city on the coast of northeastern Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within c ...
in the UEFA Champions League semi-final, winning 1–0 in the first leg at Stamford Bridge, and following this with a 2–2 draw in the second leg at the
Camp Nou
Camp Nou (, meaning ''new field'', often referred to in English as the Nou Camp), officially branded as Spotify Camp Nou for sponsorship and financial reasons, is a football stadium in Barcelona, Spain. It has been the home stadium of FC Bar ...
despite having captain
John Terry
John George Terry (born 7 December 1980) is an English professional football coach and former player who played as a centre-back. He was previously captain of Chelsea, the England national team and Aston Villa. He was most recently the assi ...
sent off in the first half. On 5 May, Chelsea won 2–1 against
Liverpool
Liverpool is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the List of English districts by population, 10th largest English district by population and its E ...
in the
2012 FA Cup Final at Wembley Stadium, to win their first trophy in the
2011–12 season.
On 19 May 2012, Di Matteo guided Chelsea to victory in the
2012 UEFA Champions League Final, defeating
Bayern Munich
Fußball-Club Bayern München e. V. (FCB, ), also known as FC Bayern (), Bayern Munich, or simply Bayern, is a German professional sports club based in Munich, Bavaria. It is best known for its professional men's football team, which pla ...
at the
Allianz Arena
Allianz Arena (; known as Fußball Arena München for UEFA competitions) is a football stadium in Munich, Bavaria, Germany with a 70,000 seating capacity for international matches and 75,000 for domestic matches. Widely known for its exterio ...
. The match had ended 1–1 after extra time with Chelsea coming out victorious in the penalty shootout. This was Chelsea's first Champions League title, and qualified them for the
2012–13 Champions League, in place of
London rivals Tottenham Hotspur. With this win Chelsea also became the first London club to win the Champions League.
2012–13
On 13 June 2012, Chelsea announced that Di Matteo had been appointed manager and first-team coach on a permanent basis signing a two-year contract with the club. Chief executive Ron Gourlay said: 'Although he (Di Matteo) has set the bar very high in the short time he has been in charge, we know that Roberto is the right man to lead Chelsea onto further success.' Gourlay added: 'We are already looking forward to the
2012–13 season which kicks off when Roberto, his staff and players return for pre-season.' Chelsea lost in the
2012 FA Community Shield
The 2012 FA Community Shield (also known as The FA Community Shield sponsored by McDonald's for sponsorship reasons) was the 90th FA Community Shield, a football match played on 12 August 2012 between the winners of the previous season's Premier ...
to Manchester City 2–3. His team started the
2012–13 Premier League well, with victories against
Wigan Athletic
Wigan Athletic Football Club () is an English professional association football club based in Wigan, Greater Manchester, England. The team competes in the Championship, the second tier of the English football league system.
Founded in 1932, ...
,
Reading
Reading is the process of taking in the sense or meaning of letters, symbols, etc., especially by sight or touch.
For educators and researchers, reading is a multifaceted process involving such areas as word recognition, orthography (spell ...
, and
Newcastle United
Newcastle United Football Club is an English professional football club, based in Newcastle upon Tyne, that plays in the Premier League – the top flight of English football. The club was founded in 1892 by the merger of Newcastle East En ...
. They lost the
2012 UEFA Super Cup 4–1 to
Atlético Madrid
Club Atlético de Madrid, S.A.D. (; meaning "Athletic Club of Madrid"), known simply as Atleti in the Spanish-speaking world and commonly referred to at international level as Atlético Madrid, is a Spanish professional football club based i ...
in Monaco on 1 September. The good early season form continued with four successive Premier League wins against
Stoke City
Stoke City Football Club is a professional football club based in Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire, England, which competes in the . Founded as Stoke Ramblers in 1863, it changed its name to Stoke in 1878 and then to Stoke City in 1925 after Stoke ...
,
Arsenal
An arsenal is a place where arms and ammunition are made, maintained and repaired, stored, or issued, in any combination, whether privately or publicly owned. Arsenal and armoury (British English) or armory (American English) are mostl ...
,
Norwich City and Tottenham Hotspur.
In the
2012–13 UEFA Champions League, Chelsea drew 2–2 with
Juventus
Juventus Football Club (from la, iuventūs, 'youth'; ), colloquially known as Juve (), is a professional football club based in Turin, Piedmont, Italy, that competes in the Serie A, the top tier of the Italian football league system. Founded in ...
and beat Danish club
Nordsjælland
North Zealand, also North Sealand ( da, Nordsjælland), refers to the northern part of the Danish island of Zealand which is not clearly defined but generally covers the area north of Copenhagen. The Danish tourist authorities have recently in ...
4–0 away. Their form declined after this, however, losing to
Shakhtar Donetsk in the Champions League and to Manchester United at home in the Premier League. Chelsea's chances of advancing through their Champions League group were raised with a 3–2 home victory against leaders Shakhtar, but on 21 November 2012, Di Matteo was sacked following their 3–0 away loss to Juventus in the Champions League, which all but eliminated them from the competition.
Di Matteo had lasted just eight months as manager of Chelsea despite winning two major trophies, causing the decision to be controversial with many pundits and club fans.
Later that day,
Rafael Benítez was brought in as Chelsea's interim manager until the end of the season.
In November 2013, it was reported that Di Matteo was still being paid £130,000-a-week by Chelsea because the two parties had never agreed on a pay-off settlement and that he would continue to be paid in full until June 2014 unless he took another job before then.
Schalke 04
On 7 October 2014, Di Matteo was hired as the successor to
Jens Keller at
Schalke 04.
At that point, Schalke sat 11th in the
Bundesliga
The Bundesliga (; ), sometimes referred to as the Fußball-Bundesliga () or 1. Bundesliga (), is a professional association football league in Germany. At the top of the German football league system, the Bundesliga is Germany's primary footb ...
and had already been eliminated from the
DFB-Pokal
The DFB-Pokal ( is a German knockout football cup competition held annually by the German Football Association (DFB). Sixty-four teams participate in the competition, including all clubs from the Bundesliga and the 2. Bundesliga. It is considered ...
. Di Matteo was the third Italian head coach, after
Giovanni Trapattoni and
Nevio Scala
Nevio Scala (; born 22 November 1947) is an Italian football sporting director, coach and former player.
Throughout his footballing career, he played as a midfielder for several Italian clubs, and won several titles during his time with A.C. Mi ...
, in Bundesliga history.
He won his first match 2–0 against
Hertha Berlin on 18 October, with goals from
Klaas-Jan Huntelaar and
Julian Draxler
Julian Draxler (born 20 September 1993) is a German professional footballer who plays as an attacking midfielder for Primeira Liga club Benfica, on loan from Ligue 1 club Paris Saint-Germain, and the Germany national team. Draxler is known for ...
. Schalke advanced from their Champions League group, with
Max Meyer scoring the only goal in their final group match away to
NK Maribor
NK may refer to:
Businesses
*Imerys (Euronext ticker code NK)
* Nordiska Kompaniet, a department store in Stockholm, Sweden
* Northrup-King Seed Company
* Spirit Airlines (IATA code NK)
*NK.pl, a Polish school-based social networking service
Plac ...
on 10 December. On 10 March 2015, Schalke defeated
Real Madrid
Real Madrid Club de Fútbol (, meaning ''Royal Madrid Football Club''), commonly referred to as Real Madrid, is a Spanish professional football club based in Madrid.
Founded in 1902 as Madrid Football Club, the club has traditionally wor ...
4–3 in
Madrid
Madrid ( , ) is the capital and most populous city of Spain. The city has almost 3.4 million inhabitants and a metropolitan area population of approximately 6.7 million. It is the second-largest city in the European Union (EU), and ...
.
However, Schalke lost 2–0 in the first leg
on 18 February and 5–4 on aggregate.
He resigned on 26 May 2015 after the team qualified for the
UEFA Europa League
The UEFA Europa League (abbreviated as UEL, or sometimes, UEFA EL), formerly the UEFA Cup, is an annual football club competition organised since 1971 by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) for eligible European football clubs. ...
by finishing sixth, following a run of two wins in ten matches which cost them a place in the Champions League.
Aston Villa
On 2 June 2016, Di Matteo was appointed the manager of newly relegated Championship club
Aston Villa
Aston Villa Football Club is a professional football club based in Aston, Birmingham, England. The club competes in the , the top tier of the English football league system. Founded in 1874, they have played at their home ground, Villa Park, ...
, working under the new chairman Tony Xia. Di Matteo's former Chelsea teammate
Steve Clarke was appointed as his assistant on the same day. On 3 October 2016, Di Matteo was sacked as manager
after a string of poor results culminating in a 2–0 defeat at
Preston North End
Preston North End Football Club, commonly referred to as Preston, North End or PNE, is a professional football club in Preston, Lancashire, England, who currently play in the EFL Championship, the second tier of the English football league syste ...
.
Personal life
Di Matteo is married, the name of his wife is Zoe, and they have three children.
In 2005, he appeared on the
MTV
MTV (Originally an initialism of Music Television) is an American cable channel that launched on August 1, 1981. Based in New York City, it serves as the flagship property of the MTV Entertainment Group, part of Paramount Media Networks, a di ...
show, Footballer's Cribs, where he spoke about his injury and subsequent physiotherapy.
Career statistics
International
International goals
Managerial statistics
Honours
Player
Aarau
*
Nationalliga A:
1992–93
Year 199 ( CXCIX) was a common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was sometimes known as year 952 '' Ab urbe condita''. The denomination 199 for this year has been used since t ...
Chelsea
[
*]FA Cup
The Football Association Challenge Cup, more commonly known as the FA Cup, is an annual knockout football competition in men's domestic English football. First played during the 1871–72 season, it is the oldest national football compet ...
: 1996–97, 1999–2000
*Football League Cup
The EFL Cup (referred to historically, and colloquially, as the League Cup), currently known as the Carabao Cup for sponsorship reasons, is an annual knockout competition and major trophy in men's domestic football in England. Organised by t ...
: 1997–98
*FA Charity Shield
The Football Association Community Shield (formerly the Charity Shield) is English football's annual match contested at Wembley Stadium between the champions of the previous Premier League season and the holders of the FA Cup. If the Premier L ...
: 2000
File:2000 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Protests against Bush v. Gore after the 2000 United States presidential election; Heads of state meet for the Millennium Summit; The International Space Station in its infant form as seen from S ...
*UEFA Cup Winners' Cup
The UEFA Cup Winners' Cup was a European football club competition contested annually by the winners of domestic cup competitions. The cup was, chronologically, the second seasonal inter-European club competition organised by UEFA. The tourn ...
: 1997–98
*UEFA Super Cup
The UEFA Super Cup is an annual super cup football match organised by UEFA and contested by the winners of the two main European club competitions; the UEFA Champions League and UEFA Europa League. The competition's official name was original ...
: 1998
1998 was designated as the ''International Year of the Ocean''.
Events January
* January 6 – The ''Lunar Prospector'' spacecraft is launched into orbit around the Moon, and later finds evidence for frozen water, in soil in permanently s ...
Manager
West Bromwich Albion
*Football League Championship
The English Football League Championship (often referred to as the Championship for short or the Sky Bet Championship for sponsorship purposes) is the highest division of the English Football League (EFL) and second-highest overall in the E ...
runner-up: 2009–10
Chelsea
*FA Cup
The Football Association Challenge Cup, more commonly known as the FA Cup, is an annual knockout football competition in men's domestic English football. First played during the 1871–72 season, it is the oldest national football compet ...
: 2011–12
*UEFA Champions League
The UEFA Champions League (abbreviated as UCL, or sometimes, UEFA CL) is an annual club football competition organised by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) and contested by top-division European clubs, deciding the competi ...
: 2011–12
Individual
* Premier League Manager of the Month: September 2010
*Swiss Sports Awards Coach of the Year: 2012
File:2012 Events Collage V3.png, From left, clockwise: The passenger cruise ship Costa Concordia lies capsized after the Costa Concordia disaster; Damage to Casino Pier in Seaside Heights, New Jersey as a result of Hurricane Sandy; People gat ...
* LMA FA Cup Manager of the Year: 2012
* League One Manager of the Month: November 2008
See also
* List of Italy international footballers born outside Italy
* List of UEFA Champions League winning managers
Notes
References
External links
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Di Matteo, Roberto
1970 births
Living people
People from Schaffhausen
Sportspeople from the canton of Schaffhausen
Italian footballers
Italian football managers
Italy international footballers
Swiss footballers
Swiss football managers
Swiss people of Italian descent
Association football midfielders
FC Schaffhausen players
FC Zürich players
FC Aarau players
S.S. Lazio players
Chelsea F.C. players
Swiss Super League players
Serie A players
Premier League players
UEFA Euro 1996 players
1998 FIFA World Cup players
Italian expatriate footballers
Italian expatriate sportspeople in England
Expatriate footballers in England
Milton Keynes Dons F.C. managers
West Bromwich Albion F.C. managers
Chelsea F.C. non-playing staff
Chelsea F.C. managers
FC Schalke 04 managers
Aston Villa F.C. managers
English Football League managers
Premier League managers
Bundesliga managers
UEFA Champions League winning managers
FA Cup winning managers
Italian expatriate football managers
Italian expatriate sportspeople in Germany
Expatriate football managers in England
Expatriate football managers in Germany
FA Cup Final players