After being forced to retire due to injury a decade ago, Roberto Di Matteo wanted one thing - to get as far away from the sport as possible.
However, when you are a former player, the calling almost never leaves, and after a brief life of business and finance outside the game, the Italian has worked his way up to holding one of the most demanding jobs in the club game -- Chelsea manager.
"When you're a football man you are hooked, it's like an addiction," Di Matteo told the club's official website. "You can live without it for a little while but the addiction is always there, and I just felt at some point that I wanted to live those moments during the week where you are tense, you feel the adrenalin and the emotions that you don't get in another job.
"I've had it all my life and I can live without it for a little while but it's always there, I had the fire in my belly again and wanted to do something in football.
"I still had a great time doing other things. There is a time in life for everything, and it was the right time for me after my injury to finish that chapter in my life, get away from it and then begin a new one.
"I think it helped me, it gave me some balance, but I didn't see coming back into football as unfinished business. I was very happy with my career.
"Some people finish their career with age, some others with injury and others with their own decision, everybody is different but I never felt like it was unfinished business."
Di Matteo had his first job as a manager at League one side MK Dons in 2008, before taking over the reins at West Bromwich Albion. Andre Villas-Boas asked him to be his number two when the Portuguese took over at Stamford Bridge at the beginning of last year, and less than 12 months later, Champions League and FA Cup medals were hanging around his neck.
Di Matteo believes managers he has played for, including the great Arigo Sacchi and Ruud Gullit, influenced him. "Arrigo Sacchi in many ways, Dino Zoff was my first manager at Lazio, I had a Swiss coach, Rolf Fringer, who became national team coach, and Ruud Gullit here in England," he added.
To be a great manager, a good support staff is essential, and Di Matteo's first move after being named Chelsea manager was to bring in Eddie Newton, a coach he is extremely comfortable working with, and who along with Steve Holand, has brought in a sense of harmony to the new-look Blues side filled with younger and hungrier stars.
"They are very supportive and both have good knowledge of the game. We've developed a strong trustworthy group, and we have (conditioning coach) Chris Jones and (goalkeeping coach) Christophe Lollichon with us as well, so I'm happy with the management staff.
"This last week has been quite quiet for us -- we've basically trained and coached the Under-21 team. We've had the groups together because we had only six players, last international break it was three, so it's good for us to take a look at the younger players and good for them to be involved with us."
Chelsea will look to continue their near-perfect start to the season, when they visit White Hart Lane for a London Derby against Tottenham Hotspur in Saturday's early kickoff, a match that will have an extra bite to it with Villas-Boas now the manager of Spurs.
