Lyon’s Nemanja Matić had two different spells at Chelsea earlier in his career.
Chelsea signed the midfielder from Slovakian side FC VSS Košice in 2009 and he struggled to find a place at the west London club.
They sold Matić to Benfica in 2011 and his performances for the Eagles convinced Chelsea to bring him back in January 2014.
Chelsea then let him join Manchester United in 2017 and the 36-year-old will face the Red Devils in the Europa League quarter-final on Thursday. Ahead of this tie, Lyon’s official website had a chat with the player to review his career so far.
José Mourinho returned to Chelsea in the summer of 2013 and was key in bringing Matić back to Stamford Bridge.
The Serbian now claims he was expected to leave Benfica in January 2014 and was in negotiations with two clubs. He rejected them after the Premier League club made a late attempt to secure his services for the second time.
“To be honest, I had the opportunity to join two other clubs,” he said.
“Chelsea weren’t in my plans, because I’d had no contact with them, I’d spent two and a half years there before leaving for Benfica. We were already in discussions with two other clubs when, at the last minute, Chelsea called with José Mourinho.”
“I decided to join them again because I knew the club well. I told myself that I wouldn’t need any time to adapt: I knew the place and the people. Looking back, I think I made the best possible choice.”
Matić made 151 appearances in his second spell for Chelsea and was vital in helping them win the Priemer League twice and the EFL Cup once in 2015.
