Ian Maatsen feels free. A bit-part player at Chelsea during the first half of the season, the left-back has found a new lease of life since joining Borussia Dortmund on loan in January. “The coach, the board, gave me a lot of confidence because they really wanted me,” Maatsen says. “They put trust in me and I put trust in them. I think that’s why it went so well.
“I had trust at Chelsea but with the pressure they are under it is sometimes difficult for a manager to let everyone play – especially young talents with potential. He has to make decisions for the team. You have to deal with it as a young player. Sometimes it’s not fair but maybe it’s the best decision for the club and other teammates. I appreciate that. But I want to play football.”
There was no chance of Maatsen, whose contract contains a £35m release clause, accepting a year on the sidelines. The 22-year-old was determined to establish himself at Chelsea last summer. He felt ready after returning from an outstanding loan spell at Burnley, whose romp to the Championship title owed much to the Dutchman’s electrifying performances on the left.
“My plan was to stay at Chelsea,” Maatsen says. He enjoyed pre-season and impressed his new manager, Mauricio Pochettino. He even stood firm when Chelsea accepted Burnley’s bid on the final day of the summer transfer window. “I’d done my loan spells,” he says. “I thought I was ready to compete for the big clubs. But sometimes football works like this. I didn’t get a lot of opportunities. It’s not the end of the world but you have to be ready. You always have to believe because football can go quickly.”
There is no bitterness towards Chelsea on Maatsen’s part. He is likely to leave on a permanent basis this summer but he does not have anything negative to say about his parent club. Staying put was not an option, though, in the winter. Maatsen did not hesitate when the offer from Dortmund arrived.
“That was the best solution for me,” he says. “It was a big club where young players can develop. They have had players like Bellingham, Hakimi, Dembélé. I am happy to be here. At Chelsea I trained at a high intensity. I kept believing that when my chance came I would take it. You want to play every game. It was just being patient. Don’t let your standards drop because if you do then you put yourself in a position where the coach says: ‘Maybe that is the reason why he doesn’t play.’”
Maatsen hit the ground running at Dortmund, who host PSV Eindhoven in the second leg of their Champions League last-16 tie on Wednesday night, level at 1-1. A warm welcome from Marco Reus, Dortmund’s long-serving captain, helped Maatsen adjust. He is enjoying life under Edin Terzic, who has given Maatsen a prolonged run at left-back. “Everyone knows my quality,” he says. “I have the chance to show it here.”
Maatsen, who hopes to be part of the Netherlands’ Euro 2024 squad, has grabbed the opportunity. He has used his speed well in his first nine appearances. He has two assists and scored a solo goal during a recent 2-0 win over Union Berlin. Despite that attacking mentality, though, Maatsen does not see himself playing in a more advanced role in the future.
“I see myself as a left-back,” he says. “First of all I have to make sure that I’m defensively strong. The bonus is I can go forward and play many positions. I feel free. The coach has allowed me to free but I think left-back is my best position. I play free and don’t think about anything. When I see space to go forward I take it.”
It was different at Chelsea. Pochettino was reluctant to try Maatsen at left-back. Maatsen played as a right-winger when he made his full Premier League debut during Chelsea’s win over Crystal Palace in December. Perhaps his versatility held him back. Maatsen, who has also had loans at Charlton and Coventry, was substituted in the 58th minute against Palace.
Yet he will have no regrets if that was his final game for Chelsea. Maatsen has never been afraid to test himself. He remembers being spurred on by Feyenoord deciding that he was too small and releasing him at the age of 11. “I was just playing football for fun,” he says. “But when you look back maybe it was a good decision. It changed my mindset. I can say now I’ve got more experience in football that maybe it’s good they released me. Maybe if they didn’t I wouldn’t be here.”
Maatsen’s belief in himself took him to Sparta Rotterdam and PSV before Chelsea signed him in 2018. He left home and moved to England on his own. “My parents still worked at that time,” he says. “It would have been a life change to quit their jobs and go with me. As a kid these conversations are difficult. You can’t tell your mum to quit her job!
“It was difficult but I respected them. I told them: ‘Now it’s my career, it’s my dream – if you’re not there I will grow up and learn.’ I put everything together to make it successful. I went to Chelsea and had good foster parents. I still speak to them.”
It was a positive environment. Chelsea had one of the best academies in the world and Maatsen was inspired by seeing Callum Hudson-Odoi and Ethan Ampadu breaking into the first-team squad. He smiles when he remembers Frank Lampard bringing him on for his debut in a Carabao Cup tie against Grimsby Town in 2019. “A dream come true,” Maatsen says. “Playing at a full stadium with the big boys, it was amazing. Even to this day when I see pictures back I say: ‘Wow.’”
A lot has happened since. “I’ve had a lot of challenges,” Maatsen says. “It’s part of life. The way you react is key.”
