1. Early Life and Career
Andrés Mateus Uribe Villa was born on March 21, 1991, in Medellín, Colombia. He began his football development in the youth academy of Envigado FC. Due to limited opportunities with Envigado's first team, Uribe spent a year playing in the regional league of the Antioquia Department. He then made his professional debut with Argentine third-division side Deportivo Español in the Primera B Metropolitana during the 2010-11 season, where he scored two goals in four appearances during his time in Buenos Aires.
Following his stint in Argentina, Uribe returned to Colombia, officially joining Envigado in 2012 and making his debut in the Categoría Primera A. From 2015 to 2016, he was loaned to Deportes Tolima, where he further established himself as a regular player before making his move to Atlético Nacional.
2. Club Career
Mateus Uribe's club career has seen him play for several prominent teams across South America, Mexico, Portugal, and Qatar, collecting numerous titles and accolades.
2.1. Atlético Nacional
Mateus Uribe joined Atlético Nacional in July 2016. During his time at the club, he played a crucial role in a period of significant success, contributing to several major titles. He helped Atlético Nacional win the Copa Colombia in 2016 and the Categoría Primera A Torneo Apertura in 2017. His contributions extended to continental competitions, as he was part of the squad that lifted the Copa Libertadores in 2016 and the Recopa Sudamericana in 2017. Across all competitions, Uribe made 28 appearances and scored 6 goals for Atlético Nacional.
2.2. Club América
On August 1, 2017, Mateus Uribe moved to Club América in the Mexican Liga MX. He quickly made an impact, scoring 14 goals across all competitions in his debut season in Mexico City. This included a notable performance where he scored two goals in a 4-1 victory against Pumas UNAM on May 3, 2018, during the Clausura Liguilla quarter-finals. His excellent form led to his inclusion in the 2018 Clausura Best XI. During his tenure with Club América, Uribe contributed to the club's success, winning the Liga MX Apertura 2018 title, the Copa MX Clausura, and the Campeón de Campeones title in 2019. He accumulated 65 appearances and scored 15 goals for the club before his departure.
2.3. FC Porto
Mateus Uribe signed with Portuguese club FC Porto on August 4, 2019, agreeing to a four-year contract. The transfer fee was 10.00 M EUR, with Uribe earning an annual net salary of 3.00 M EUR. He made his debut for Porto nine days later, on August 13, 2019, in the second leg of their UEFA Champions League qualifying round match against FC Krasnodar. He came on as a substitute in the 49th minute for the injured Sérgio Oliveira in a match Porto lost 3-2, leading to their elimination on away goals.
In November 2019, Uribe, along with teammates Luis Díaz, Agustín Marchesín, and Renzo Saravia, faced disciplinary action and was suspended from the derby match against Boavista F.C. The incident stemmed from a party held the night before, which was inadvertently revealed by Uribe's wife, Cindy Álvarez García, on Instagram.
Uribe scored his first goal for Porto on July 25, 2020, in a 2-1 loss against S.C. Braga on the final day of the season, after Porto had already been crowned champions. He was, however, substituted due to injury shortly after scoring. On February 10, 2021, during a Taça de Portugal semi-final match against the same opponent, Braga, Uribe received a red card for headbutting Ricardo Esgaio, an incident that occurred after his compatriot Luis Díaz had also been sent off. This occurred during an extended injury time in which David Carmo was injured due to Díaz's play, leading to Díaz's dismissal after VAR review.
Despite these incidents, Uribe's time at Porto was highly successful in terms of silverware. He won eight trophies with the club, including two Primeira Liga titles (2019-20, 2021-22), three Taça de Portugal cups (2019-20, 2021-22, 2022-23), one Taça da Liga (2022-23), and two Supertaça Cândido de Oliveira titles (2020, 2022). He made a total of 113 appearances for Porto across all competitions, scoring 10 goals.
2.4. Al Sadd SC
On June 5, 2023, Mateus Uribe signed a three-year contract with Qatari club Al Sadd SC on a free transfer. He quickly made an impact, scoring his first goal for Al Sadd on May 24, 2024, in the Amir Cup final against Qatar SC. His decisive 118th-minute goal secured the title for Al Sadd, marking his first trophy with the club. For the 2023-24 season, Uribe made 22 appearances across all competitions for Al Sadd, scoring 2 goals. His contract with Al Sadd was mutually terminated on January 4, 2025.
3. Playing Style
Mateus Uribe is known for his versatile and comprehensive playing style as a central midfielder. He is often described as a "hexagonal defensive midfielder," highlighting his balanced abilities across various aspects of the game. Uribe possesses solid defensive capabilities, combined with notable speed and strong physicality. In addition to his defensive contributions, he also exhibits good attacking prowess, making him an effective presence in both phases of play. His well-rounded skill set allows him to perform effectively in diverse tactical setups and contribute significantly to his teams.
4. International Career
Mateus Uribe has been a regular member of the Colombia national football team, representing his country in major international tournaments and World Cup qualifiers.
4.1. Debut and Major Tournaments
Mateus Uribe made his debut for the Colombia national football team on January 25, 2017, in a friendly match against Brazil held at the Estádio Olímpico Nilton Santos in Rio de Janeiro. He played the full 90 minutes in the 1-0 defeat.
On June 4, 2018, Uribe was named in Colombia's final 23-man squad for the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia. He featured in three of Colombia's four matches in the tournament, starting the group stage game against Senegal. In the Round of 16 match against England, Uribe was brought on as a substitute in the 79th minute. After the game ended 1-1 following extra time, leading to a penalty shootout, Uribe was the fourth penalty taker for Colombia. His shot unfortunately struck the crossbar, and Colombia ultimately lost the shootout 3-4, exiting the tournament.
Uribe also represented Colombia in major continental tournaments, participating in both the 2019 Copa América and the 2021 Copa América, where the team achieved a third-place finish in the latter.
4.2. International Goals
Mateus Uribe has scored six international goals for the Colombia national team.
| No. | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | June 9, 2019 | Estadio Monumental "U", Lima, Peru | Peru | 1-0 | 3-0 | Friendly |
| 2 | 2-0 | |||||
| 3 | November 19, 2019 | Red Bull Arena, Harrison, United States | Ecuador | 1-0 | 1-0 | Friendly |
| 4 | June 3, 2021 | Estadio Nacional, Lima, Peru | Peru | 2-0 | 3-0 | 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 5 | March 24, 2022 | Estadio Metropolitano Roberto Meléndez, Barranquilla, Colombia | Bolivia | 3-0 | 3-0 | 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 6 | October 12, 2023 | Uruguay | 2-1 | 2-2 | 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification |
5. Career Statistics
This section provides a comprehensive overview of Mateus Uribe's professional football statistics, detailing his appearances and goals for various clubs and the national team.
5.1. Club Statistics
| Club | Season | League | National Cup | League Cup | Continental | Other | Total | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Deportivo Español | 2010-11 | Primera B Metropolitana | 4 | 2 | - | - | - | - | 4 | 2 | ||||
| Envigado | 2012 | Categoría Primera A | 30 | 1 | 5 | 2 | - | 4 | 0 | - | 39 | 3 | ||
| 2013 | 28 | 3 | 4 | 1 | - | - | - | 32 | 4 | |||||
| 2014 | 29 | 3 | 2 | 0 | - | - | - | 31 | 3 | |||||
| Total | 87 | 7 | 11 | 3 | - | 4 | 0 | - | 102 | 10 | ||||
| Deportes Tolima | 2015 | Categoría Primera A | 33 | 2 | 7 | 1 | - | 3 | 0 | - | 43 | 3 | ||
| 2016 | 16 | 7 | 5 | 3 | - | - | - | 21 | 10 | |||||
| Total | 49 | 9 | 12 | 4 | - | 3 | 0 | - | 64 | 13 | ||||
| Atlético Nacional | 2016 | Categoría Primera A | 11 | 1 | 8 | 0 | - | 7 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 28 | 2 | |
| 2017 | 17 | 5 | 0 | 0 | - | 2 | 1 | - | 19 | 6 | ||||
| Total | 28 | 6 | 8 | 0 | - | 9 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 47 | 8 | |||
| América | 2017-18 | Liga MX | 30 | 11 | 3 | 0 | - | 5 | 3 | - | 38 | 14 | ||
| 2018-19 | 33 | 3 | 5 | 0 | - | - | - | 38 | 3 | |||||
| 2019-20 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | - | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 1 | |||
| Total | 65 | 15 | 8 | 0 | - | 5 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 80 | 18 | |||
| Porto | 2019-20 | Primeira Liga | 26 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 8 | 0 | - | 41 | 1 | |
| 2020-21 | 31 | 4 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 9 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 46 | 5 | ||
| 2021-22 | 25 | 1 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 1 | - | 38 | 4 | |||
| 2022-23 | 31 | 4 | 6 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 7 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 51 | 5 | ||
| Total | 113 | 10 | 18 | 2 | 11 | 0 | 32 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 176 | 15 | ||
| Al Sadd | 2023-24 | Qatar Stars League | 9 | 0 | 4 | 1 | - | 5 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 22 | 2 | |
| 2024-25 | Qatar Stars League | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | - | 2 | 0 | - | 7 | 0 | |||
| Total | 14 | 0 | 4 | 1 | - | 7 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 29 | 2 | |||
| Career total | 360 | 49 | 61 | 10 | 11 | 0 | 60 | 9 | 10 | 0 | 502 | 68 | ||
5.2. International Statistics
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| Colombia | 2017 | 5 | 0 |
| 2018 | 10 | 0 | |
| 2019 | 11 | 3 | |
| 2020 | 2 | 0 | |
| 2021 | 11 | 1 | |
| 2022 | 4 | 1 | |
| 2023 | 10 | 1 | |
| 2024 | 9 | 0 | |
| Total | 62 | 6 | |
6. Honours
Mateus Uribe has achieved significant success throughout his career, winning numerous club titles and earning individual recognition.
6.1. Club Honours
Atlético Nacional
- Categoría Primera A: Torneo Apertura 2017
- Copa Colombia: 2016
- Copa Libertadores: 2016
- Recopa Sudamericana: 2017
América
- Liga MX: Apertura 2018
- Copa MX: Clausura 2019
- Campeón de Campeones: 2019
Porto
- Primeira Liga: 2019-20, 2021-22
- Taça de Portugal: 2019-20, 2021-22, 2022-23
- Taça da Liga: 2022-23
- Supertaça Cândido de Oliveira: 2020, 2022
Al Sadd
- Amir Cup: 2024
6.2. Individual Honours
- CONCACAF Champions League Best XI: 2018
- Liga MX Best XI: 2018 Clausura