 Matosas in 2014 | ||||||||||||||
| Personal information | ||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Gustavo Cristian Matosas Paidón | |||||||||||||
| Date of birth | (1967-05-27)27 May 1967 (age 58) | |||||||||||||
| Place of birth | Buenos Aires, Argentina | |||||||||||||
| Height | 1.80 m (5 ft 11 in) | |||||||||||||
| Position | Midfielder | |||||||||||||
| Team information | ||||||||||||||
Current team | Danubio (interim) | |||||||||||||
| Senior career* | ||||||||||||||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) | |||||||||||
| 1985–1988 | Peñarol | 105 | (8) | |||||||||||
| 1989–1990 | Málaga | 45 | (4) | |||||||||||
| 1991–1992 | San Lorenzo | 45 | (3) | |||||||||||
| 1992 | Racing Club | 12 | (1) | |||||||||||
| 1993–1994 | São Paulo | 5 | (2) | |||||||||||
| 1993–1994 | Lleida | 17 | (2) | |||||||||||
| 1994–1995 | Valladolid | 15 | (1) | |||||||||||
| 1996 | Atlético Paranaense | |||||||||||||
| 1997 | Goiás | 14 | (0) | |||||||||||
| 1999–2000 | Tianjin Teda | 49 | (2) | |||||||||||
| 2001 | El Tanque Sisley | |||||||||||||
| 2001 | Querétaro | 6 | (0) | |||||||||||
| International career | ||||||||||||||
| 1987–1992 | Uruguay | 7 | (1) | |||||||||||
| Managerial career | ||||||||||||||
| 2002–2003 | Villa Española | |||||||||||||
| 2004 | Plaza Colonia | |||||||||||||
| 2005 | Rampla Juniors | |||||||||||||
| 2006–2007 | Danubio | |||||||||||||
| 2007–2008 | Peñarol | |||||||||||||
| 2008–2009 | Bella Vista | |||||||||||||
| 2009–2010 | U. de San Martín | |||||||||||||
| 2010–2011 | Danubio | |||||||||||||
| 2011 | Queretaro | |||||||||||||
| 2012–2014 | León | |||||||||||||
| 2014–2015 | América | |||||||||||||
| 2015 | Atlas | |||||||||||||
| 2016 | Al-Hilal | |||||||||||||
| 2017 | Cerro Porteño | |||||||||||||
| 2017 | Estudiantes LP | |||||||||||||
| 2018–2019 | Costa Rica | |||||||||||||
| 2019 | Atlético San Luis | |||||||||||||
| 2025– | Danubio (interim) | |||||||||||||
Medal record
| ||||||||||||||
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals | ||||||||||||||
Gustavo Cristian Matosas Paidón (born 25 May 1967) is aUruguayan football manager and former footballer. He is the current interim manager ofDanubio.
As a player, Matosas was a central midfielder known for his technical ability and leadership, notably winning the1987 Copa Libertadores withPeñarol and the1987 Copa América with theUruguay national football team. His club career spanned over 15 years acrossUruguay,Argentina,Spain,Brazil,China, andMexico.
After retiring, Matosas transitioned into management and gained widespread recognition for guidingClub León to consecutiveLiga MX titles in theApertura 2013 andClausura 2014 seasons. He also managed prominent clubs includingClub América, with whom he won the2014–15 CONCACAF Champions League, as well asAtlas F.C.,Estudiantes de La Plata,Al Hilal SFC, and theCosta Rica national football team. His coaching career has been marked by both domestic and international tenures, alongside periods of both success and controversy.
Born inBuenos Aires,Argentina on 25 May 1967, Gustavo Matosas is the son of former Uruguayan international footballerRoberto Matosas. At the time of his birth, his father was playing forRiver Plate.[1]
Despite being born in Argentina, Matosas was eligible to representUruguay through his father and chose to play internationally for that country.
He began his professional career in 1985 withPeñarol in theUruguayan Primera División.[2] While at Peñarol, he won two league titles and was part of the squad that captured the1987 Copa Libertadores, defeatingAmérica de Cali in the final.[3]
Following his success in Uruguay, Matosas had an extensive international club career. He played forMálaga inSpain,San Lorenzo in Argentina, andSão Paulo inBrazil. He later joinedTianjin Teda inChina, and also had spells with various other clubs across Argentina, Brazil, and Spain during the 1990s.[4]
He concluded his playing career inMexico, where he appeared forQuerétaro in thePrimera División de México before retiring in 2001.[5]
Matosas made his debut with theUruguay national football team in 1987. That same year, he was part of the squad that won the1987 Copa América, defeating theChile 1–0 in the final held inBuenos Aires.[6] Over the course of his international career, he earned seven caps for Uruguay.[7]
In 2012, Matosas became manager ofClub León, where he led the team to promotion toLiga MX fromAscenso MX.[8] Under his guidance, León won back-to-back league titles in theApertura 2013 andClausura 2014 tournaments, a rare achievement in Mexican football.[9]
In December 2014, Matosas was announced as the new manager ofClub América.[10] During his tenure, the club won the2014–15 CONCACAF Champions League, securing a place in the2015 FIFA Club World Cup.[11] He left América in May 2015, citing disagreements with the club’s board over player transfers.[12]
Later in 2015, Matosas took over as manager ofAtlas FC, but his time with the club was short-lived, and he departed after one season.[13]
On 12 June 2016, he signed a one-year contract withAl Hilal FC ofSaudi Arabia.[14] During his tenure, Al Hilal reached the final of theSaudi Crown Prince Cup, where they were defeated byAl-Ittihad.[15]
Matosas returned to South America in June 2017 to manageEstudiantes de La Plata inArgentina.[16] He resigned on 19 September 2017, citing personal reasons.[17]
On 10 October 2018, he was appointed head coach of theCosta Rica national football team.[18] His tenure saw underwhelming results, including draws againstHaiti andCuraçao in the2019–20 CONCACAF Nations League. He resigned on 5 September 2019, later stating the role was "boring" due to limited day-to-day activity compared to club management.[19]
On 9 September 2019, Matosas was appointed manager of newly promotedAtlético San Luis inLiga MX.[20] He made a winning debut on 13 September 2019, leading the team to a 3–1 victory overPuebla.[21]
However, his stint was cut short by mid-season. On 26 October 2019, leaked audio surfaced from a 2012 conversation between Matosas and agent Fernando Pavón, allegedly detailing a commission arrangement regarding striker Matías Britos’ transfer at Club León.[22] The revelation sparked ethical questions under FIFA rules and intensified scrutiny.
Following a string of five losses in seven matches and heightening off-field pressure, Atlético San Luis and Matosas mutually terminated his contract on 27 October 2019.[23][24] No formal sanctions were recorded, but the incident drew significant attention from media and Liga MX officials.
Peñarol
Uruguay
Danubio
León
America
International tournaments | |||||||
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