Players - Dominic Matteo

Dominic Matteo
Birthdate: 28 April 1974
Birthplace: Dumfries, Scotland
Other clubs: Sunderland (loan 1995), Leeds United (2000-04), Blackburn Rovers (2004-07), Stoke City (2007-09)
Signed from: Local
Signed for LFC: Joined 1985 - Professional 27.05.1992
International debut: 15.11.2000 vs. Australia
International caps: 6/0 (at Leeds United) - 27.03.2002
Liverpool debut: 23.10.1993
Last appearance: 14.05.2000
Debut goal: 16.01.1999
Last goal: 12.12.1999
Contract expiry: 18.08.2000
Win ratio: 45.16% W:70 D:42 L:43
Games/assists ratio: 15.5
Total games/goals opposite LFC: 8 / 0
League games / goals / assists: 127 / 1 / 10
Total games / goals / assists: 155 / 2 / 10

Player Profile

Matteo was brought to Liverpool at only eleven-years-old after catching Kenny Dalglish's eye when he was watching his son Paul play for Birkdale United. It was Graeme Souness who blooded the 19-year-old in October 1993 as a left midfielder. Matteo was now on the other side of those carefully-painted white lines but old habits die hard and he found himself singing along to “You’ll Never Walk Alone” before realising that he was no longer a fan but a player! "He's a young boy with an awful lot to offer. We just don't yet know his best position," Souness said following his debut against Manchester City. Matteo, who was making his breakthrough at the same time as Robbie Fowler, got a decent run in the side but once Souness was sacked Matteo only made a few sporadic appearances in Roy Evans' first two full seasons. He did start the first couple of games in the 1995/96 season in a three-man centre-back line but once Neil Ruddock had recovered from injury Matteo was benched. He finally got his big breakthrough in the 1996/97 season when he featured in two-thirds of the League games when Liverpool were top of the division at the turn of the year but faded away in the last third of the campaign.

In 1999/00, when Matteo was taking orders from his fourth manager in his time at Liverpool, Gérard Houllier, he played left-back. Matters come to a head when Houllier told Matteo prior to the 2000/01 season that Christian Ziege was on his way from Middlesbrough and going straight into the first team. Devastated at not even being given a chance to fight for his place 26-year-old Matteo moved across the Pennines to join Leeds. “On the Monday, I was signing a five-year deal that, by the standards of the day, was a lucrative one. But, just four days later, I was on my way out of Liverpool," Matteo revealed in his autobiography. “I was in shock. How could things change so quickly in just four days? The thought of leaving was an upsetting one. But, for the good of my career, I needed a fresh start. So, I went. It meant I missed out on all the trophies that Liverpool won the following season. I’ll admit that seeing the lads pick up the FA Cup, League Cup and UEFA Cup was difficult."

Matteo was made club captain when Rio Ferdinand left Leeds to join Manchester United in the summer of 2002. A few months earlier Matteo had made his Scotland debut. Even though he had English parents he was born in Dumfries and was even eligible for Italy as his grandparents are Italian. He had already played for England's u-21 team and called up by Glenn Hoddle to the senior squad but injuries prevented him from making his full England debut. His former boss, Souness, persuaded Matteo to join Blackburn in 2004 and after his time at Ewood Park where he was captain for a while, he moved to Championship club Stoke City on a free transfer in January 2007. Although Stoke were promoted to the Premier League at the end of the 2007/08 season, Matteo had played little part in that success. Injuries were starting to seriously affect Matteo’s availability and with more time on his hands than if he was fully fit, he got dragged into a very serious gambling addiction, on which he squandered an absolutely massive sum of money. After an eventful career Matteo called it quits at the end of the 2008/09 season.

"The question I always ask myself is 'could I have done more with my career, could I have been better?' And the answer to that is 'yes'. My age group in football were the last of an era. We were brought up into football having a bevvy, enjoying ourselves, we were out three or four times a week. I think if I'd have lived my life better I might have played for longer, suffered less injuries."

After retiring from playing Matteo ran up heavy gambling debts and was declared bankrupt in 2015. He worked as a pundit for LFC TV. In November 2019 he required emergency surgery after suffering a brain tumour. 
Appearances per season
Season League FA LC Europe Other Total
Totals 127 8 9 11 0 155
1993-1994 11 0 2 0 0 13
1994-1995 7 1 0 0 0 8
1995-1996 5 1 0 0 0 6
1996-1997 26 2 3 7 0 38
1997-1998 26 1 4 2 0 33
1998-1999 20 1 0 2 0 23
1999-2000 32 2 0 0 0 34
A more detailed look at the player's appearances
Apps Minutes Opponent
9 810 Coventry City
9 634 Sheffield Wednesday
8 688 Leeds United
8 630 West Ham United
8 584 Wimbledon
7 660 Newcastle United
7 630 Manchester United
7 572 Chelsea
7 560 Middlesbrough
7 489 Leicester City
6 540 Southampton
6 532 Tottenham
6 465 Aston Villa
6 458 Blackburn Rovers
5 388 Arsenal
5 377 Nottingham Forest
4 360 Derby
4 296 Charlton Athletic
3 270 Sunderland
3 270 Everton
2 180 Bolton Wanderers
2 180 Barnsley
2 180 Sion
2 180 Burnley
2 180 Watford
2 180 Crystal Palace
2 169 Mypa 47
2 136 Brann
2 118 Ipswich Town
2 99 Manchester City
1 90 Norwich City
1 90 Paris St Germain
1 90 Strasbourg
1 90 Celta Vigo
1 90 Grimsby Town
1 90 Celtic
1 82 Bradford City
1 55 Huddersfield Town
1 32 Rochdale
1 27 Kosice
Total Started/substitutions
137 Started
34 On the bench
18 Substitute
14 Substituted
Total Venue
79 Away
76 Home
Total Competition
127 Premier League
9 League Cup
8 FA Cup
7 European Cup Winners Cup
4 UEFA Cup
Total W D L Win % Manager
87 41 24 22 47.1% Roy Evans
53 23 12 18 43.4% Gérard Houllier
11 5 4 2 45.5% Graeme Souness
4 1 2 1 25% Evans / Houllier
Goals per season
Season League FA LC Europe Other Total
Totals 1 1 0 0 0 2
1993-1994 0 0 0 0 0 0
1994-1995 0 0 0 0 0 0
1995-1996 0 0 0 0 0 0
1996-1997 0 0 0 0 0 0
1997-1998 0 0 0 0 0 0
1998-1999 1 0 0 0 0 1
1999-2000 0 1 0 0 0 1
A more detailed look at the player's goalscoring
Total Opponent
1 Huddersfield Town
1 Southampton
Total Started/substitutions
1 Started
1 Substitute
Total Competition
1 FA Cup
1 Premier League
Total Goal minute period
1 31-45 minutes
1 46-60 minutes
Total Goal origin
2 Open play
Assists per season
Season League FA LC Europe Other Total
Totals 10 0 0 0 0 10
1993-1994 1 0 0 0 0 1
1994-1995 0 0 0 0 0 0
1995-1996 0 0 0 0 0 0
1996-1997 1 0 0 0 0 1
1997-1998 0 0 0 0 0 0
1998-1999 2 0 0 0 0 2
1999-2000 6 0 0 0 0 6
A more detailed look at the player's assists
Milestone Appearances
# Date Against Stadium Competition
1 23.10.1993 Manchester City Maine Road League
50 01.01.1997 Chelsea Stamford Bridge League
100 19.09.1998 Charlton Athletic Anfield League
150 16.04.2000 Wimbledon Selhurst Park League
Milestone Goals
# Minute Date Against Stadium Competition
1 35 16.01.1999 Southampton Anfield League
Related Articles
Dominic Matteo: In my Defence

Matteo's story is an interesting one where he has opened his heart and spoken very honestly about what he has achieved and, just as importantly, what he learnt from battling with the negative influences that surround the game.

City young bloods warm boss' heart

Match report from 23.10.1993 on Manchester City - Liverpool on The Daily Mail.

Scrapbook
Dominic is angling for the prize catch - Liverpool match programme
Dominic is angling for the prize catch - Liverpool match programme
The game of my life
The game of my life
Other Clubs
Club Season Club rank League apps League goals Total apps Total goals
Sunderland 1994-1995 England First Division 1 0 1 0
Leeds United 2000-2001 England Premier League 30 0 48 0
Leeds United 2001-2002 England Premier League 32 0 40 0
Leeds United 2002-2003 England Premier League 20 0 24 0
Leeds United 2003-2004 England Premier League 33 2 34 2
Blackburn Rovers 2004-2005 England Premier League 28 0 32 1
Blackburn Rovers 2005-2006 England Premier League 6 0 7 0
Blackburn Rovers 2006-2007 England Premier League 0 0 0 0
Stoke City 2006-2007 England Championship 9 1 10 1
Stoke City 2007-2008 England Championship 14 0 14 0
Stoke City 2008-2009 England Premier League 0 0 1 0
Total 173 3 211 4