| Tim Matavž | |
| Fullname: | Tim Matavž[1] |
| Birth Date: | 13 January 1989 |
| Birth Place: | Šempeter pri Gorici, SFR Yugoslavia[2] |
| Height: | 1.88 m |
| Currentclub: | ND Gorica |
| Clubnumber: | 9 |
| Position: | Striker |
| Youthyears1: | 1995–2004 |
| Youthclubs1: | Bilje |
| Youthyears2: | 2004–2006 |
| Youthclubs2: | ND Gorica |
| Years1: | 2006–2007 |
| Clubs1: | ND Gorica |
| Caps1: | 30 |
| Goals1: | 11 |
| Years2: | 2007–2011 |
| Clubs2: | Groningen |
| Caps2: | 84 |
| Goals2: | 34 |
| Years3: | 2008–2009 |
| Clubs3: | → FC Emmen (loan) |
| Caps3: | 15 |
| Goals3: | 5 |
| Years4: | 2011–2014 |
| Clubs4: | PSV |
| Caps4: | 70 |
| Goals4: | 24 |
| Years5: | 2014 |
| Clubs5: | Jong PSV |
| Caps5: | 2 |
| Goals5: | 0 |
| Years6: | 2014–2017 |
| Clubs6: | FC Augsburg |
| Caps6: | 27 |
| Goals6: | 3 |
| Years7: | 2016 |
| Clubs7: | → Genoa (loan) |
| Caps7: | 7 |
| Goals7: | 0 |
| Years8: | 2016–2017 |
| Clubs8: | → 1. FC Nürnberg (loan) |
| Caps8: | 20 |
| Goals8: | 5 |
| Years9: | 2017–2020 |
| Clubs9: | Vitesse |
| Caps9: | 69 |
| Goals9: | 32 |
| Years10: | 2020–2021 |
| Clubs10: | Al Wahda |
| Caps10: | 19 |
| Goals10: | 12 |
| Years11: | 2021–2022 |
| Clubs11: | Bursaspor |
| Caps11: | 16 |
| Goals11: | 2 |
| Years12: | 2022–2023 |
| Clubs12: | Omonia |
| Caps12: | 10 |
| Goals12: | 3 |
| Years13: | 2023–2024 |
| Clubs13: | HNK Gorica |
| Caps13: | 39 |
| Goals13: | 5 |
| Years14: | 2024– |
| Clubs14: | ND Gorica |
| Caps14: | 6 |
| Goals14: | 1 |
| Nationalyears1: | 2006 |
| Nationalteam1: | Slovenia U18 |
| Nationalcaps1: | 3 |
| Nationalgoals1: | 1 |
| Nationalyears2: | 2006 |
| Nationalteam2: | Slovenia U19 |
| Nationalcaps2: | 4 |
| Nationalyears3: | 2007 |
| Nationalteam3: | Slovenia U20 |
| Nationalcaps3: | 1 |
| Nationalgoals3: | 0 |
| Nationalgoals2: | 0 |
| Nationalyears4: | 2006–2010 |
| Nationalteam4: | Slovenia U21 |
| Nationalcaps4: | 20 |
| Nationalgoals4: | 6 |
| Nationalyears5: | 2010–2020 |
| Nationalteam5: | Slovenia |
| Nationalcaps5: | 39 |
| Nationalgoals5: | 11 |
| Pcupdate: | 29 September 2024 |
Tim Matavž (born 13 January 1989) is a Slovenian professional footballer who plays as a striker for ND Gorica.
Matavž began his football career at the age of 6 playing for Bilje. In 2004, he moved to Gorica youth squads. He was promoted to their senior squad in the 2006–07 season and played a total of 30 matches in the Slovenian first division, scoring 11 goals in the process.[3]
On 30 August 2007, at the age of 18, he signed a five-year contract for Groningen.[4] On 26 September 2007 he scored four goals in KNVB Cup in a match against IJsselmeervogels,[5] but later moved to Emmen on loan and remained there until January 2009.
On 13 March 2009, Matavž scored his first goal in the Eredivisie in a 2–0 victory over Roda. Soon he began scoring for Groningen on regular basis in all competitions. On 24 February 2010 Matavž extended his contract with club until 2013.[6] On 6 February 2011, in a match against Willem II, Matavž scored his first hat-trick in the Eredivisie.[7]
On 2 February 2011, Groningen sporting director Hans Nijland said that Matavž had already agreed terms with Napoli and that he was looking forward to joining them.[8] However, Eredivisie side PSV Eindhoven were also in talks with Groningen to buy him before the transfer window closed. On 31 August 2011, Matavž eventually signed a five-year contract with PSV.[9]
On 29 June 2017, Matavž returned to the Netherlands, to join Vitesse on a three-year deal.[10] [11]
On 19 July 2020, Matavž joined Al Wahda on a two-year deal.[12]
On 9 October 2010, Matavž scored a hat-trick for Slovenia in the UEFA Euro 2012 qualifying match against Faroe Islands.[13] At the age of 21, he became the youngest player ever to score three goals for Slovenia.[14] Overall, Matavž earned a total of 39 caps for the national team, scoring 11 goals.[15]
Matavž was born in Šempeter pri Gorici, Slovenia (then part of Yugoslavia).[16] He is the cousin of fellow footballer Etien Velikonja.[17] In June 2014, Matavž married his long-term partner Polona Faganelj.[18] He has two daughters, Tia (born 2012) and Ela (born 2015), and one son, Val (born 2017).[19] Beside Slovene, Matavž is also fluent in Dutch.[20]
In April 2024, several Slovenian media outlets reported that Matavž had been charged with domestic violence, and that the court allegedly imposed a restraining order, preventing him from contacting his wife and children.[21] [22] [23]
| Club | Season | League | National cup | Continental | Other | Total | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | |||
| ND Gorica | 2006–07 | Slovenian PrvaLiga | 27 | 11 | 3 | 2 | 1[24] | 0 | — | 31 | 13 | ||
| 2007–08 | Slovenian PrvaLiga | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2[25] | 1 | — | 5 | 1 | |||
| Total | 30 | 11 | 3 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 36 | 14 | |||
| Groningen | 2007–08 | Eredivisie | 15 | 0 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 0 | — | 17 | 4 | ||
| 2008–09 | Eredivisie | 4 | 2 | 0 | 0 | — | 4[26] | 1 | 8 | 3 | |||
| 2009–10 | Eredivisie | 32 | 13 | 3 | 2 | — | 2 | 1 | 37 | 16 | |||
| 2010–11 | Eredivisie | 29 | 16 | 4 | 2 | — | 2 | 2 | 35 | 20 | |||
| 2011–12 | Eredivisie | 4 | 3 | 0 | 0 | — | 4 | 3 | |||||
| Total | 84 | 34 | 9 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 4 | 101 | 46 | |||
| FC Emmen (loan) | 2008–09 | Eerste Divisie | 15 | 5 | 1 | 0 | — | 16 | 5 | ||||
| PSV | 2011–12 | Eredivisie | 28 | 11 | 5 | 4 | 9[27] | 5 | — | 42 | 20 | ||
| 2012–13 | Eredivisie | 27 | 11 | 4 | 2 | 7 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 38 | 20 | ||
| 2013–14 | Eredivisie | 15 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 6[28] | 2 | — | 22 | 4 | |||
| Total | 70 | 24 | 10 | 6 | 22 | 14 | 0 | 0 | 102 | 44 | |||
| FC Augsburg | 2014–15 | Bundesliga | 16 | 3 | 1 | 0 | — | 17 | 3 | ||||
| 2015–16 | Bundesliga | 11 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 0 | — | 17 | 0 | |||
| Total | 27 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 34 | 3 | |||
| Genoa (loan) | 2015–16 | Serie A | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 7 | 0 | ||||
| 1. FC Nürnberg (loan) | 2016–17 | 2. Bundesliga | 20 | 5 | 1 | 0 | — | 21 | 5 | ||||
| Vitesse | 2017–18 | Eredivisie | 30 | 14 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 1 | 5[29] | 2 | 41 | 17 | |
| 2018–19 | Eredivisie | 14 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 2 | 4 | 3 | 22 | 11 | ||
| 2019–20 | Eredivisie | 25 | 12 | 2 | 1 | — | 27 | 13 | |||||
| Total | 69 | 32 | 3 | 1 | 9 | 3 | 9 | 5 | 90 | 41 | |||
| Al Wahda | 2020–21 | UAE Pro League | 19 | 12 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 27 | 13 | |
| Bursaspor | 2021–22 | TFF First League | 16 | 2 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 17 | 2 | |||
| Omonia | 2021–22 | Cypriot First Division | 6 | 2 | 5 | 0 | — | — | 11 | 2 | |||
| 2022–23 | Cypriot First Division | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 6 | 1 | ||
| Total | 10 | 3 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 17 | 3 | |||
| HNK Gorica | 2022–23 | Croatian Football League | 15 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 15 | 0 | |||
| 2023–24 | Croatian Football League | 24 | 5 | 2 | 0 | — | — | 26 | 5 | ||||
| Total | 39 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 41 | 5 | |||
| Career total | 406 | 136 | 38 | 17 | 46 | 19 | 19 | 9 | 509 | 181 | |||
Scores and results list Slovenia's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Matavž goal.[30]
| No. | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 8 October 2010 | Stožice Stadium, Ljubljana, Slovenia | 1–0 | 5–1 | UEFA Euro 2012 qualification | ||
| 2 | 2–0 | ||||||
| 3 | 3–0 | ||||||
| 4 | 3 June 2011 | Svangaskarð, Tórshavn, Faroe Islands | 1–0 | 2–0 | UEFA Euro 2012 qualification | ||
| 5 | 2 September 2011 | Stožice Stadium, Ljubljana, Slovenia | 1–1 | 1–2 | UEFA Euro 2012 qualification | ||
| 6 | 15 November 2011 | Stožice Stadium, Ljubljana, Slovenia | 1–1 | 2–3 | Friendly | ||
| 7 | 2–3 | ||||||
| 8 | 12 October 2012 | Ljudski vrt, Maribor, Slovenia | 1–0 | 2–1 | 2014 FIFA World Cup qualification | ||
| 9 | 2–0 | ||||||
| 10 | 31 May 2013 | Schüco Arena, Bielefeld, Germany | 2–0 | 2–0 | Friendly | ||
| 11 | 19 November 2019 | Stadion Narodowy, Warsaw, Poland | 1–1 | 2–3 | UEFA Euro 2020 qualification |
PSV
Omonia