Matteo Guendouzi

Matteo Elias Kenzo Guendouzi Olié (French pronunciation: [mateo ɡɛnduzi] ⓘ; born 14 April 1999) is a French professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for Serie A club Lazio, on loan from Ligue 1 club Marseille, and for the France national team.

Matteo Guendouzi
Guendouzi playing for Arsenal in 2019
Personal information
Full name Matteo Elias Kenzo Guendouzi Olié[1]
Date of birth (1999-04-14) 14 April 1999[2]
Place of birth Poissy, France[3]
Height 1.85 m (6 ft 1 in)[3]
Position(s) Midfielder
Team information
Current team
 Lazio (on loan from Marseille)
Number 8
Youth career
2005–2014 Paris Saint-Germain
2014–2016 Lorient
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2016–2017 Lorient II 24 (0)
2016–2018 Lorient 26 (0)
2018–2022 Arsenal 57 (0)
2020–2021 → Hertha BSC (loan) 24 (2)
2021–2022 → Marseille (loan) 38 (4)
2022– Marseille 35 (2)
2023– → Lazio (loan) 3 (0)
International career‡
2016–2017 France U18 7 (0)
2017 France U19 2 (1)
2017–2018 France U20 3 (1)
2018–2021 France U21 20 (1)
2021– France 7 (1)
Medal record
Men's football
Representing  France
FIFA World Cup
Runner-up2022 Qatar
UEFA Nations League
Winner2021 Italy
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 16:50, 24 September 2023 (UTC)
‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 18:03, 30 November 2022 (UTC)

Club career

Early career

Guendouzi started his career at the academy of Paris Saint-Germain at the age of 6. He left Paris to join Lorient's academy in 2014. After representing the Lorient reserve team, he was promoted to the first team in 2016.

Lorient

Guendouzi made his debut for Lorient on 15 October 2016, in the Ligue 1 match against Nantes in a 1–2 defeat. He played nine times in all competitions,[4] during his debut season of 2016–17 as Lorient were relegated to the second tier at the end of the season.[5][6]

In the 2017–18 season, Guendouzi featured 21 times for Lorient as they missed out on promotion, finishing seventh in Ligue 2.[7]

Arsenal
Guendouzi playing for Arsenal in 2018

On 11 July 2018, during the summer transfer window, it was announced that Guendouzi had joined Premier League club Arsenal for an undisclosed fee, believed to be in the region of £7 million, plus bonuses.[8] Head coach Unai Emery said: "He is a talented young player and a lot of clubs were interested in him. He has big potential and gained good first-team experience last season with Lorient. He wants to learn and improve and will be an important part of our first-team squad".[9] On 12 August 2018, Guendouzi made his Premier League debut in Arsenal's opening fixture of the season against defending Champions Manchester City where he made 72 touches, the most for his team. They lost the match 0–2.[10] Guendouzi scored the first professional goal of his career on 4 October 2018, rounding off the scoring in Arsenal's 3–0 away win over Qarabağ, a low drive from just inside the penalty area, after an assist from Alexandre Lacazette.[11] On 29 May 2019, Guendouzi came off the bench in the Europa League final against Chelsea, which Arsenal lost 4–1.[12]

On 20 June 2020, following a post-match altercation with Brighton player Neal Maupay, Guendouzi was excluded from Arsenal training and left out of the club's match-day squads due to a history of issues with his "attitude and general conduct."[13]

Loan to Hertha BSC

On 5 October 2020, Arsenal announced that Guendouzi would be loaned out to Hertha BSC for the duration of the 2020–21 season.[14] On 1 November 2020, Guendouzi made his debut in a 1–1 draw against VfL Wolfsburg in the Bundesliga.[15] On 12 December 2020, he scored his first goal for the club and in the Bundesliga against Borussia Mönchengladbach, the game ended in a 1–1 draw.[16]

Marseille

On 6 July 2021, it was announced that Guendouzi was being loaned out to Ligue 1 club Marseille for the 2021–22 Ligue 1 season. The deal included an option-to-buy depending on certain conditions being met.[17] He enjoyed a good start to his Marseille career, quickly gaining the appreciation of fans through both his play,[18] and his personality in standing up for the team - including during a match against Nice, when he protected team-mate Dimitri Payet from fans who rushed onto the pitch, gaining strangle marks on his neck in the process.

On 1 July 2022, it was confirmed that Marseille had activated the option-to-buy clause for a reported £9 million.[19][20] On 15 August 2023, Guendouzi came off the bench in the 68th minute during the second leg match against Panathinaikos in the Champions League third qualifying round with his team had a 2–0 lead; however, he gave away a penalty in the stoppage time which equaled the tie 2–2, before missing the first penalty in the shootouts which ended in a 3–5 defeat and elimination from the competition.[21]

Lazio

On 31 August 2023, the deadline day of the summer transfer window, Guendouzi joined Serie A club Lazio on a season-long loan,[22][23] with the deal including a reported €15 million option-to-buy, plus €3 million in add-ons, which could be turned into a mandatory purchase depending on certain conditions being met.[23]

International career

Guendouzi was born in a suburb of Paris, France. He has represented France at levels up to France U20s.[7] With partial Moroccan heritage, Guendouzi was approached by Morocco manager Hervé Renard in 2017 to change allegiances to play for the Morocco national team. However, after Guendouzi's father met Renard in March 2017, Guendouzi decided to remain and pledge allegiance to France.[24]

On 2 September 2019, Guendouzi was called up to the French senior side for the first time to replace the injured Paul Pogba for UEFA Euro 2020 qualifiers against Albania and Andorra.[25] However, he was an unused substitute in both matches. Guendouzi was recalled to the France side on 1 September 2021, to replace the injured Corentin Tolisso for World Cup Qualification matches against Bosnia, Ukraine and Finland.[26] He made his debut on 16 November 2021 in a World Cup qualifier against Finland.[27] On 29 March 2022, he scored his first goal for France in a 5–0 friendly win over South Africa.[28]

Personal life

Guendouzi has a Moroccan father and French mother. He has a brother called Milan, who is also a footballer.[29]

Guendouzi is married to Mae and their first child, a daughter, was born in May 2021.[30]

Career statistics

Club
As of match played 23 September 2023[31]
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League National cup[lower-alpha 1] League cup[lower-alpha 2] Europe Total
DivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
Lorient II 2015–16 CFA 60———60
2016–17 CFA 170———170
2017–18 Championnat National 2 10———10
Total 240———240
Lorient 2016–17 Ligue 1 801000—90
2017–18 Ligue 2 1801020—210
Total 2602020—300
Arsenal 2018–19 Premier League 330103011[lower-alpha 3]1481
2019–20 Premier League 24030106[lower-alpha 3]0340
Total 5704040171821
Hertha BSC (loan) 2020–21 Bundesliga 24200——242
Marseille (loan) 2021–22 Ligue 1 38440—14[lower-alpha 4]1565
Marseille 2022–23 Ligue 1 33241—6[lower-alpha 5]2435
2023–24 Ligue 1 2000—2[lower-alpha 5]040
Total 73681—22310310
Lazio (loan) 2023–24 Serie A 3000—1[lower-alpha 5]040
Career total 20781416040426713
  1. Includes Coupe de France, FA Cup
  2. Includes Coupe de la Ligue, EFL Cup
  3. Appearances in UEFA Europa League
  4. Six appearances in UEFA Europa League, eight appearances and one goal in UEFA Europa Conference League
  5. Appearance(s) in UEFA Champions League

International
As of match played 30 November 2022[32]
Appearances and goals by national team and year
National teamYearAppsGoals
France 202110
202261
Total71
As of match played 30 November 2022
France score listed first, score column indicates score after each Guendouzi goal[32]
List of international goals scored by Matteo Guendouzi
No. Date Venue Cap Opponent Score Result Competition
129 March 2022Stade Pierre-Mauroy, Villeneuve-d'Ascq, France3 South Africa5–05–0Friendly

Honours

Arsenal

France

References
  1. "List of Players under Written Contract Registered Between 01/07/2018 and 31/07/2018". The Football Association. p. 15. Archived from the original on 24 October 2019. Retrieved 26 August 2019.
    "Matteo Guendouzi". L'Équipe (in French). Paris. Retrieved 2 February 2019.
  2. "Matteo Guendouzi" (in French). Ligue de Football Professionnel. Retrieved 2 February 2019.
  3. "Matteo Guendouzi". Olympique de Marseille. Retrieved 2 July 2022.
  4. "Matteo Guendouzi in 2016/2017". Soccerbase. 9 July 2018. Retrieved 9 July 2018.
  5. "Troyes promoted to Ligue 1". beIN SPORTS Australia. 28 May 2017. Retrieved 25 July 2018.
  6. "French Football League – FC LORIENT". Ligue1.com. Archived from the original on 9 July 2018. Retrieved 25 July 2018.
  7. "Arsenal in talks with France U20 midfielder Matteo Guendouzi". Sky Sports. 9 July 2018. Retrieved 9 July 2018.
  8. Wheatley, Chris (11 July 2018). "Who is Matteo Guendouzi? The French teenage wonderkids who has joined Arsenal". Goal. Retrieved 25 July 2018.
  9. "Matteo Guendouzi joins the club". Arsenal F.C. 11 July 2018. Retrieved 25 July 2018.
  10. "Arsenal 0–2 Man City: Unai Emery's opener is a reality check for Arsenal". BBC Sport. 12 August 2018. Retrieved 13 August 2018.
  11. Henry, Matthew (4 October 2018). "Qarabag 0–3 Arsenal: Emile Smith Rowe scores first goal in Europa League win". BBC Sport. Retrieved 19 December 2018.
  12. "Chelsea beat Arsenal to win Europa League". BBC Sport. Retrieved 11 February 2021.
  13. Ornstein, David. "Guendouzi hasn't trained with Arsenal first team for two...". The Athletic. Retrieved 18 July 2020.
  14. "Matteo Guendouzi joins Hertha Berlin on loan". Arsenal F.C. 5 October 2020. Retrieved 5 October 2020.
  15. "Hertha Berlin rue missed chances in draw with unbeaten Wolfsburg". bundesliga.com - the official Bundesliga website. Retrieved 11 February 2021.
  16. "Breel Embolo earns Gladbach a point after Matteo Guendouzi opens Hertha Berlin account". bundesliga.com - the official Bundesliga website. Retrieved 11 February 2021.
  17. "Matteo Guendouzi: Marseille complete loan signing of midfielder from Arsenal". Sky Sports. Retrieved 7 July 2021.
  18. Law, Joshua (31 August 2021). "Arsenal fans look away, Guendouzi and Saliba are shining at Marseille". Planet Football. Retrieved 1 September 2021.
  19. "Matteo Guendouzi joins Olympique Marseille". www.arsenal.com. 1 July 2022. Retrieved 1 July 2022.
  20. "Arsenal midfielder Matteo Guendouzi joins Marseille in permanent deal". BBC Sport. 1 July 2022. Retrieved 1 July 2022.
  21. "Matteo Guendouzi cancels out ex-Arsenal captain Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang's heroics with two blunders to cost Marseille Champions League". talkSPORT. 16 August 2023.
  22. "Matteo Guendouzi è un nuovo calciatore biancoceleste". S.S. Lazio (in Italian). 31 August 2023. Retrieved 31 August 2023.
  23. Torrisi, Antonio (31 August 2023). "Guendouzi alla Lazio: è ufficiale, arriva in prestito dal Marsiglia". Goal.com (in Italian). Retrieved 31 August 2023.
  24. Scoulino (1 March 2017). "Maroc : Renard tourne la page de Guendouzi" [Morocco: Renard turns the page of Guendouzi]. Orange Football Club (in French). Retrieved 18 February 2020.
  25. "Bleus : Mattéo Guendouzi appelé à la place de Paul Pogba, forfait". L'Équipe. 2 September 2019. Retrieved 2 September 2019.
  26. "Injured Kante and Tolisso to miss France World Cup qualifiers". Reuters. 1 September 2021. Retrieved 1 September 2021.
  27. "Finland v France game report". FIFA. 16 November 2021. Retrieved 30 November 2021.
  28. "France vs. South Africa". ESPN. Retrieved 29 March 2022.
  29. Hurley, Lee (18 August 2019). "Meet Matteo Guendouzi's little brother Milan". Daily Cannon. Retrieved 10 February 2021.
  30. "Matteo Guendouzi Wife - Mae Rfsk". ohmyfootball.com. 3 January 2021. Retrieved 11 February 2021.
  31. "M. Guendouzi: Summary". Soccerway. Perform Group. Retrieved 24 September 2023.
  32. "Matteo Guendouzi". National Football Teams. Benjamin Strack-Zimmermann. Retrieved 20 December 2022.
  33. Bevan, Chris (29 May 2019). "Chelsea 4–1 Arsenal". BBC Sport. Retrieved 29 May 2019.
  34. "France beat Spain to win Nations League". UEFA. 10 October 2021. Retrieved 10 October 2021.
  35. McNulty, Phil (18 December 2022). "Argentina 3–3 France". BBC Sport. Retrieved 18 December 2022.
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