Nemanja Matic is the perfect Manchester United signing and his transfer strengthens us at Chelsea’s expense
Hopefully the Blues' decision to sell to us will come back and bite them when he sets up Juan Mata to score the winner at Stamford Bridge this season
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JOSE MOURINHO picked Nemanja Matic out of the army of defensive midfielders linked with Manchester United this summer.
Monaco’s Fabinho, Tottenham's Eric Dier, Anderlecht’s Leander Dendoncker, Roma’s Radja Nainggolan - the list goes on.
Mourinho instead decided to sign Matic for the second time in his career having brought him back to Chelsea in 2014 from Benfica.
It’s an outstanding signing and one which now means Man United have the spine of a squad which is capable of challenging for the Premier League title.
When Mourinho signed Matic back in 2014, all United fans were jealous.
At that time, United’s midfield was lacklustre to say the least and Matic went on to become one of the best midfielders in the Premier League that season as Mourinho’s Chelsea side cruised to the title.
Matic’s role as the key defensive midfielder alongside Cesc Fabregas and Ramires saw him deservedly named in the 2014-15 Premier League Team of the Year.
Lots of United fans - myself included - felt signing Fabinho from Monaco would have suited our needs more.
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The Brazilian is a more mobile defensive midfielder, somebody who can get about far quicker and far more than Matic, so his tenacious style would have brought more energy to the role.
But if Mourinho trusts Matic enough to sign him twice in his career, I think we should all trust the judgement of our manager.
After all, no Premier League midfielder has completed more tackles than the Serbian since the start of the 2014-15 campaign.
Mourinho knows exactly what he is getting in both Matic and Romelu Lukaku, two Premier League proven and experienced professionals who fix two key weaknesses in our squad, and I can’t wait to see how United play with Matic in the team.
Our starting midfield is now complete. Matic will slot in perfectly in the same role he played in 2014-15 but he’ll have Ander Herrera and Paul Pogba in front of him.
That is the best midfield we have had in a long time and one which is capable of challenging on all fronts.
Matic might not be as sexy a signing as Fabinho or Nainggolan but Mourinho has never done sexy.
He’s a practical manager and if he believes Matic is capable of becoming that defensive powerhouse we need, then I believe it too.
Another major reason why Matic’s arrival is so important is because of the freedom it will give to Pogba.
Just like Fabregas in 2014-15 when he nearly broke the assists record before January in a stunning start to the campaign, Pogba will be afforded the freedom to concentrate solely on attacking.
He didn’t have that in his debut campaign and his influence was limited because of it.
Now he can become the best central midfielder in the world — and we all know he is capable of that.
Matic isn’t a blockbuster signing like Lukaku but he is arguably the most important acquisition of the summer for United.
We needed a new defensive midfielder just as much as we needed a new goalscorer and Mourinho has brought in two powerhouses to fill those roles. I mean, look at the size of our team now - Pogba, Matic, Lindelof, Lukaku, Bailly - we’re like the alien team from Space Jam!
On a final point, the fact United managed to sign Matic from Chelsea after we swooped to sign Lukaku is very impressive.
Chelsea have willingly strengthened a direct rival and here's hoping that comes back to haunt them when Matic sets up Juan Mata to score the winner at Stamford Bridge this season.
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