Name: Roberto Di Matteo

Nationality: Italy

Date of birth: 29 May 1970

Position: Midfielder (central / defensive)

Club career (selected):

• Schaffhausen (Switzerland) — early career
• FC Zürich (Switzerland) — developed as a professional
• Schalke 04 (Germany) — played in late 1980s/early 1990s, established himself in Europe
• Lazio (Italy) — joined in 1993 and was a key midfielder through the mid-1990s
• Chelsea (England) — moved in 1996, spent the rest of his playing career there until injuries forced retirement in 2002

International career:

• Italy national team — earned caps in the mid-1990s; member of Italy’s squad at UEFA Euro 1996

Notable achievements:

• Key contributor to Lazio during his time there (helped the club compete in Serie A and domestic cups)
• At Chelsea as a player, remembered for energetic box-to-box midfield play; career cut short by a serious leg injury in 1996 while at Chelsea
• Later became a manager with a prominent stint at Chelsea (2012), winning the UEFA Champions League as manager that year

Playing style: Industrious central midfielder with defensive awareness, good passing range and the ability to arrive late in the box to score.

Legacy: Remembered both for his solid playing career—particularly in Italy and England—and for his managerial highlight of winning the Champions League with Chelsea in 2012.