Nemanja Matic arrived at Manchester United from Chelsea in 2017 and since then the Serbian has been a key player in midfield for the club.
Under former manager Jose Mourinho, Nemanja Matic was more or less a guaranteed starter and he was the one entrusted with the responsibility of protecting the defensive line.
But under new manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, the 31-year-old seems to have a fallen down the pecking order as he is yet to start a game this season for Man United.
Up until now, he has made only a single appearance from the bench and that in that match too he was able to feature for only 22 minutes.
And this reduction of gametime has led many to believe that there has been a falling out between Nemanja Matic and his manager.
Now though, the midfielder has come out to say that the is no problem between them and he is fighting hard to win his manager’s trust back.
Matic said(as quoted by The Mirror): “In the first two or three games he (Solskjaer) determined the team without me.
“I work as hard as I can, we respect the decision, it is mine to show him that he was wrong and to bring me back to where I belong.
“There is no problem. I told him I disagreed with him, but that he had to decide the team.
“I have been in football for a long time, I have played almost all the games for all the clubs in the last 10 years,
“In order for me to play, one had to sit on the bench and accept that fact, and so do I now. The coach must opt for the team that will fight for the title, and if he does not win, he bears the responsibility.”
VERDICT:
Nemanja Matic has been deemed as a player who is slow and lethargic and this is perhaps one of the big reasons why Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has dropped him to the bench.
Speaking before the start of the season, the manager made it clear that he wanted his player to be fit and ready to hound down the opposition.
And sadly, Matic is not one of the players who fits this brief properly which is why Ole has relied upon the midfield pairing of Scott McTominay and Nemanja Matic for the first three matches this season.
Also, another big reason why the manager is trying not to use Nemanja Matic is that he is now 31 years old which become a very massive disadvantage if you want to play a high pressing game.
