Jay Matete

Jay Matete
Matete warming up for Sunderland in 2022
Personal information
Full name Jay Matete[1]
Date of birth (2001-02-11) 11 February 2001[2]
Place of birth Lambeth, England
Height 1.76 m (5 ft 9 in)
Position Defensive midfielder
Team information
Current team
 Milton Keynes Dons
Number 28
Youth career
–2018 Reading
2018–2019 Fleetwood Town
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2019–2022 Fleetwood Town 27 (1)
2021 → Grimsby Town (loan) 20 (3)
2022–2026 Sunderland 22 (0)
2023 → Plymouth Argyle (loan) 19 (1)
2024 → Oxford United (loan) 6 (0)
2024–2025 → Bolton Wanderers (loan) 35 (3)
2026– Milton Keynes Dons 6 (0)
* Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 22:30, 17 February 2026 (UTC)

Jay Matete (born 11 February 2001) is an English professional footballer who plays as a defensive midfielder for EFL League One club Milton Keynes Dons

Matete was part of the youth academy at Reading before joining Fleetwood Town. He went on to have a loan spell with Grimsby Town before joining Sunderland in 2022. He was also part of the Plymouth Argyle squad that won the EFL League One title in 2023 following a successful loan spell.

Career

Fleetwood Town

In May 2018, Matete signed for Fleetwood Town's academy, following a spell at Reading.[3] During the 2019–20 EFL Trophy, he made two appearances for Fleetwood Town, once against Liverpool U21 and once against Oldham Athletic.[4]

Grimsby Town (loan)

On 21 January 2021, Matete signed for Grimsby Town on loan until the end of the 2020–21 season.[5] During his loan spell, Matete made 20 appearances for The Mariners, scoring his first goal for the club just 32 seconds into a EFL League Two match against Bolton Wanderers which Grimsby Town won 2–1.[6][7]

He scored the winner in a 2–1 win at Oldham Athletic, with a brilliant solo strike having run from the halfway line before hitting a shot into the top corner.[8] A few days later, he scored again away at Exeter City to give The Mariners a 2–1 lead, but was later sent off as Grimsby eventually lost 3–2 confirming relegation from the Football League.[9][10] The club appealed his red card but this was turned down effectively ending his season.[11]

Sunderland

On 31 January 2022, Matete signed for fellow EFL League One side Sunderland on a four-year contract for an undisclosed fee.

On 6 January 2023, Matete signed for Plymouth Argyle on loan until the end of the 2022–23 season.[12][13]

On 8 August 2024, Matete signed for Bolton Wanderers on loan until the end of the 2024–25 season.[14]

Milton Keynes Dons

On 9 January 2026, Matete joined EFL League Two club Milton Keynes Dons for an undisclosed fee, ending his four-year association with Sunderland.[15] He made his league debut for the club on 17 January 2026, coming on as a 76th-minute substitute in a 2–0 away win over Accrington Stanley.[16]

On 17 February 2026, Matete suffered a hamstring injury during a 0–0 home draw with Crawley Town, which ruled him out for the remainder of the 2025–26 season.[17] Despite missing much of the second half of the season, Matete achieved the third promotion of his career as the club finished second-place and returned to League One.[18]

Career statistics

As of 8 August 2026
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League FA Cup EFL Cup Other Total
DivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
Fleetwood Town 2019–20[19] League One 0000003[a]030
2020–21[20] League One 7000204[a]0130
2021–22[21] League One 20110103[a]1252
Total 2711030101412
Grimsby Town (loan) 2020–21[20] League Two 203———203
Sunderland 2021–22[21] League One 140——2[b]0160
2022–23[22] Championship 8000100090
Total 220001000250
Plymouth Argyle (loan) 2022–23[22] League One 19100003[a]0221
Oxford United (loan) 2023–24[23] League One 6000000060
Bolton Wanderers (loan) 2024–25[24] League One 353103060453
Milton Keynes Dons 2025–26[25] League Two 6010——70
2026–27[26] League One 0000100010
Total 6010100080
Career total 135830802111679
  1. 1 2 3 4 Appearances in Football League Trophy
  2. ↑ Appearances in EFL League One play-offs

Honours

Sunderland

Plymouth Argyle

References

  1. ↑ "Notification of shirt numbers: Fleetwood Town" (PDF). English Football League. p. 27. Retrieved 15 December 2019.
  2. ↑ Jay Matete at the English National Football Archive (subscription required)
  3. ↑ "11 youngsters awarded scholarships within club's academy". Fleetwood Town F.C. 11 May 2018. Retrieved 15 December 2019.
  4. ↑ Jay Matete at Soccerway
  5. ↑ "Matete Arrives at Blundell Park On Loan". Grimsby Town F.C. 21 January 2021. Retrieved 21 January 2021.
  6. ↑ "Grimsby Town 2-1 Bolton Wanderers". BBC Sport.
  7. ↑ "Report: Grimsby Town 2-1 Bolton Wanderers".
  8. ↑ "Oldham 1-2 Grimsby: Mariners boost survival hopes through Jay Matete winner". Sky Sports.
  9. ↑ "Grimsby relegated to National League". BBC Sport.
  10. ↑ "Exeter 3-2 Grimsby: Paul Hurst's Mariners relegated from Sky Bet League Two".
  11. ↑ "Jay Matete's Grimsby Town loan comes to an end after unsuccessful appeal". Grimsbylive. 30 April 2021.
  12. ↑ "Sunderland unveil Jay Matete on long term deal in early hours of Tuesday". February 2022.
  13. ↑ "Sunderland confirm late deadline day signing of Jay Matete from Fleetwood Town". February 2022.
  14. ↑ "Wanderers Seal Matete Loan Deal". 8 August 2024.
  15. ↑ "Jay Matete: Sunderland midfielder signs for MK Dons". BBC. 9 January 2026. Retrieved 9 January 2026.
  16. ↑ "Accrington 0-2 MK Dons - Wiles scores first goal for Dons". BBC. 17 January 2026. Retrieved 18 January 2026.
  17. ↑ "Matete adds to Don's injury woes with hamstring fear". Milton Keynes Citizen. 18 February 2026. Retrieved 14 April 2026.
  18. ↑ "Milton Keynes Dons 3-0 Tranmere Rovers: Hosts promoted to League One". BBC. 25 April 2026. Retrieved 10 May 2026.
  19. ↑ "Games played by Jay Matete in 2019/2020". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 22 December 2020.
  20. 1 2 "Games played by Jay Matete in 2020/2021". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 22 December 2020.
  21. 1 2 "Games played by Jay Matete in 2021/2022". Soccerbase. Centurycomm.
  22. 1 2 "Games played by Jay Matete in 2022/2023". Soccerbase. Centurycomm.
  23. ↑ "Games played by Jay Matete in 2023/2024". Soccerbase. Centurycomm.
  24. ↑ "Games played by Jay Matete in 2024/2025". Soccerbase. Centurycomm.
  25. ↑ "Games played by Jay Matete in 2025/2026". Soccerbase. Centurycomm.
  26. ↑ "Games played by Jay Matete in 2026/2027". Soccerbase. Centurycomm.
  27. ↑ Paddy, Chris (21 May 2022). "Sunderland 2–0 Wycombe". BBC Sport. Retrieved 21 May 2022.
  28. ↑ "Plymouth beat Port Vale to win League One title". BBC Sport. 7 May 2023. Retrieved 4 August 2023.
  29. ↑ Pilnick, Brent (2 April 2023). "Bolton crush Plymouth to win Papa Johns Trophy". BBC Sport. Retrieved 4 August 2023.
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