Blessed with speed and precise finishing Mateja Kezman came to Chelsea as the man to lead the revolution. His goal scoring record in Holland was brilliant and prompted Chelsea to pay just over £5 million for him. However his time at Chelsea was unspectacular unlike his fall from grace which was spectacular.
In his first season at Partizan Belgrade was uneventful his second one was the complete contrast. He scored 35 goals in 41 matches and earned a move to Dutch giants PSV Eindhoven. In the next four season he cemented himself as one of the best strikers in the Dutch league and formed a lethal partnership with future Chelsea and hair transplant advocate Arjen Robben, and together they were given the nickname “Batman and Robben”. In those four seasons he scored 129 goals in 176 games and moved to England with an Impressive goal scoring record.
His one season in Chelsea was to be fair, unsuccessful. His lack of strength hindered his effectiveness in games as did the forms of Eidur Gudjohnsen and a certain Didier Dorgba as Mourinho introduced his 4-3-3 formation. He scored the winning goal in the League Cup final in 2005 which proved to be his best moment at the club. In 2011 he told Sky Sports that the move to Chelsea was the best moment of his career even though he thought he could have done more to make it successful. Overall Kezman looked like a fish out of water in the hustle and bustle of the English Premier League and left a year after he joined for the same price he was signed for.
His next destination was Atletico Madrid, a slightly better season followed in Spain followed as he scored 10 goals in 33 games but still found himself sold to Fenerbahce at the end of the season.
His first season in Turkey was OK but his second season was just what the Serbian needed to get himself back on to the biggest stage in Europe. He scored 19 goals in 36 matches and earned at first a loan and then permanent move to Paris Saint-Germain.
But the move to France didn’t work out for him and after a disappointing loan spell with Zenit Saint Petersburg he returned to the French capital only to have his contract terminated.
Three months after he left PSG he turned up in the Hong Kong League, signing for South China on a four month contract. A spectacular fall from grace for the former Dutch Footballer of the year. His 4 months in Hong Kong were once again uneventful and he joined BATE Borisov in Belarus. He played 11 games and scored no goals.
He returned to Hong Kong for two games for South China in the Asian Challenge Cup. He missed the final penalty in a shoot-out in the competition. It proved to be his last competitive kick of a football for the 33-year-old who then retired.
It was such a shame to see a player like Kezman fall from grace. His industry and eye for a goal was always appreciated in England and despite his age could probably still do a job for most European sides.
>He was probably let go from both Chelsea and Atletico Madrid too early, after one season. And as he proved with Partizan, PSV and Fenerbache after his first seasons he got steadily better. So who knows if given the time would he have been Chelsea’s Ruud Van Nistlerooy instead of their Afonso Alves. No fulfilment of the potential shown.
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