Date of birth 28 March 1993 (age 21)
Place of birth Valjevo, FR Yugoslavia
Height 1.87 m (6 ft 2 in)
Weight 79 kg
Playing position Centre back
Matija Nastasić (Serbian Cyrillic: Матија Настасић; born 28 March 1993) is a Serbian professional footballer who plays for English club Manchester City and the Serbia national team as a centre back.
Club career
Partizan
Matija Nastasić is a product of Partizan youth academy. Unable to find space in the Partizan first team setup, he was sent out on loan to Serbian second division side FK Teleoptik from Zemun. There, the young, left footed centre back made 21 appearances and caught the eye of former Fiorentina sporting director Pantaleo Corvino, who signed him in a deal worth approximately €2.5 million.
Fiorentina
Nastasić spent some time in the Fiorentina youth side but, due to a lack of quality centre backs in the squad and suspensions and injuries, he trained with the first team on many occasions. Fellow Serbian and Fiorentina manager Siniša Mihajlović handed him his Serie A debut on 11 September 2011 in a 2–0 win against Bologna. He went on to make a further 25 appearances that season but one stood out more than any and it was during this performance that he announced himself to Italian and World football. It was a match between La Viola and Milan at the Stadio Artemio Franchi. Nastasić showed many of his qualities - tackling, comfort on the ball, tactical astuteness. It was these qualities that led to a deadline day transfer to English Premier League side Manchester City in a move worth €15 million, excluding the value of Stefan Savić who was given to Fiorentina as part of the exchange.
Manchester City
Nastasić signed a five-year contract with new club Manchester City, ending on 30 June 2017. He was part of an exchange deal with Stefan Savić. He made his debut for the club on 18 September 2012, starting in a Champions League away fixture against Real Madrid at the Santiago Bernabéu Stadium. He made his Premier League debut on 29 September in a 2–1 win against Fulham. He cemented his place in the starting XI and his great form won him the club's Player of the Month Award for November. Quickly becoming a fan favourite, the youngster pushed 30-year-old Joleon Lescott out of the starting lineup in centre-back position. In May 2013, he was named Manchester City's Young Player of the Season.
Nastasić had a less successful season in 2013–14, missing the majority of the campaign through injury. He made 13 league appearances and Manchester City won the Premier League title.
International career
Having already represented Serbia's youth sides, Nastasić made his debut for the Serbian national team on 29 February 2012, in a match against Cyprus.
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