Mateo Retegui

1. Overview

Mateo Retegui, born on April 29, 1999, is an Italian footballer who plays as a forward for Serie A club Atalanta. Although born in Argentina, he represents the Italy national team at the senior international level. He is sometimes known by the nickname il Re tigre, meaning "The Tiger King".

2. Early life and background

Retegui was born and raised in San Fernando, Buenos Aires, Argentina. His Italian heritage stems from both sides of his family. His maternal grandfather, Angelo Dimarco, emigrated to Argentina from Canicattì, Sicily. Additionally, his paternal great-grandparents were originally from Genoa, Liguria, Italy, which contributed to his eligibility to play for the Italian national team. Some of his paternal ancestors also had Basque roots.

Retegui is the son of Carlos Retegui, a prominent figure in Argentine field hockey. His father represented Argentina as both a player and a coach in various Pan American Games and Olympic Games, notably winning a gold medal as a coach at the 2016 Rio Olympics. His sister, Micaela Retegui, is also an accomplished Olympian in field hockey, having earned a silver medal in the sport. Growing up, Mateo Retegui initially pursued field hockey, playing for the youth national team until the age of 16. From a young age, he was given the nickname "El Chapita" (little 'Chapa'), a tribute to his father, who was known as "El Chapa."

3. Club career

Mateo Retegui's professional football journey began in Argentina, progressing through various clubs before making a significant move to Italy, first with Genoa and then Atalanta.

### Early career in Argentina ===
Retegui started his senior career with Boca Juniors, having joined them years earlier from rivals River Plate. He was first promoted to the club's first team by manager Guillermo Barros Schelotto during the 2017-18 Argentine Primera División season, appearing as an unused substitute in matches against Arsenal de Sarandí and Estudiantes in December 2017. His professional debut for Boca Juniors occurred on November 17, 2018, when he was substituted on in the final moments of a 1-0 home victory over Patronato.

In January 2019, Retegui was loaned to Estudiantes for an 18-month period. During his time there, he made 8 appearances in the 2018-19 Argentine Primera División season and went on to score 5 goals in 21 appearances in the 2019-20 Argentine Primera División season. He was subsequently loaned to Talleres for the 2020 and 2021 seasons. In 2020, he made 13 appearances and scored 1 goal across the Copa Argentina and Copa de la Liga Profesional. In the 2021 Argentine Primera División season, he played 24 league matches, scoring 4 goals, and also made 6 appearances in the Copa Sudamericana.

In February 2022, Retegui joined Tigre on a loan deal that extended until the end of 2023. This loan spell proved to be a significant turning point in his career. In the 2022 Argentine Primera División season, he emerged as the league's top scorer, netting 19 goals in 27 appearances. His prolific goal-scoring helped Tigre secure a 7th-place finish in the league. For the 2023 season with Tigre, he continued his strong form, scoring 11 goals in 21 league appearances.

### Genoa ===
On July 26, 2023, Retegui completed a transfer to Serie A club Genoa, signing a five-year deal. The transfer fee was reported to be around 15.00 M EUR. He quickly made an impact, scoring his first two goals for the club on August 11, 2023, in a Coppa Italia match against Serie B side Modena, which Genoa won 4-3. His first Serie A goal came on August 27 against Lazio. During his single season with Genoa, Retegui made 31 appearances across all competitions, scoring 9 goals.

### Atalanta ===
Retegui made another significant move within Serie A on August 8, 2024, joining Atalanta in a deal reportedly worth 28.00 M EUR. This transfer was partly influenced by an anterior cruciate ligament injury sustained by Atalanta forward and Italy teammate, Gianluca Scamacca. Retegui swiftly adapted to his new club, scoring his first UEFA Champions League goals on November 26, 2024, by netting a brace in a dominant 6-1 away victory over BSC Young Boys. His prolific scoring continued in Serie A; on February 8, 2025, he scored four goals in a 5-0 demolition of Hellas Verona, making him the first player to score a first-half hat-trick for Atalanta in Serie A history.

4. International career

Mateo Retegui has represented both Argentina and Italy at different levels, ultimately choosing to play for the senior Italy national team.

### Youth career ===
Retegui represented his birth country, Argentina, at both the U19 and U20 levels. This included his participation with the Argentina U20 team at the 2018 South American Games.

### Senior career ===
Due to his Italian descent, Retegui became eligible to play for Italy. In February 2023, it was reported that then-Italy coach Roberto Mancini had pre-selected Retegui for the initial UEFA Euro 2024 qualification matches. He received his first official call-up to the Italy national team on March 17, 2023.

Retegui made an impressive international debut on March 23, 2023, scoring against England in a Euro 2024 qualifying match in Naples, despite Italy losing 2-1. He continued his scoring form in his subsequent appearance on March 26, netting the winning goal in a 2-0 victory over Malta in another Euro 2024 qualifier in Ta' Qali. This achievement made him the first player since Pierino Prati in 1968 to score in his first two competitive matches for the Italian national side.

On March 21, 2024, Retegui scored twice in a 2-1 victory against Venezuela. This marked a significant milestone, as he became the first Genoa player to score a brace for Italy since Virgilio Levratto achieved the feat at the 1928 Summer Olympics. In June 2024, he was included by manager Luciano Spalletti in Italy's squad for UEFA Euro 2024. Retegui played in all of Italy's matches during Euro 2024 until their elimination in the Round of 16 by Switzerland.

Later in 2024, on September 6, he was named player of the match for his performance, which also included an assist, in Italy's 3-1 away win over France during the UEFA Nations League. This victory secured Italy's first win against France in Paris since April 1954. He continued his goal-scoring streak in the UEFA Nations League, scoring against Belgium on October 10 in a 2-2 draw, and against Israel on October 14 in a 4-1 win.

5. Honours

6. Career statistics

### Club ===

### International ===

Italy score listed first, score column indicates score after each Retegui goal.