Nemanja Matić (35), who only joined Stade Rennais in the summer in a €2.5m move from AS Roma, may make a swift exit from the club in January, according to L’Équipe, Ouest-France and RMC Sport.
Matić left Roma in the summer to involve himself in a battle for the podium in Ligue1, however, that has not come to pass. Les Rennais are 10th in Ligue 1, 14 points away from the podium and just five points above the relegation play-off spot. “The diagnosis is clear and we have to face the reality, which is that we are fighting with teams like Toulouse and Clermont,” said new manager Julien Stéphan earlier this week. The sporting project sold to Matić when he decided to make the switch has therefore not lived up to the reality.
Matić contends with personal issues since Rennes transfer
It wasn’t Stéphan who convinced Matić to come to Rennes, but Bruno Genesio and Florian Maurice. The former has since left the club and the latter almost left earlier this season. “I like the ambition of the people that work here, of the coach in particular,” said Matić of Genesio in August.
Beyond the sporting shortcomings, Matić has also struggled to integrate in Rennes, according to Ouest-France. The Serbian arrived at the club under the assumption that he could enrol his children at an international school in Rennes, however, one does not exist. His three children therefore go to a school in Rennes, but none of his children are French speakers.
Whilst Le Parisien report that Matić has not asked for a transfer, a January departure certainly cannot be ruled out in early 2024.
