Rabbi Matondo

Rabbi Matondo (born 9 September 2000) is a professional footballer who last played as a winger for Eliteserien club Brann and the Wales national team.

Matondo played youth football for Cardiff City and Manchester City. He joined German club Schalke 04 in January 2019, where he made 32 first-team appearances and was sent on loan to Stoke City and Cercle Brugge. He had a three-and-a-half year spell at Rangers before moving to Norwegian side Brann.

Born in England to parents from the DR Congo, Matondo was eligible to play for either country, as well as Wales, where he grew up. Having played for the England under-15 team, he later opted to represent Wales and played at under-17 and under-21 levels before making his debut for the senior national team in November 2018.

Early life Matondo was born in Liverpool, England but moved to south Wales as a child. He grew up in the Tremorfa area of Cardiff where he first played football in local parks with his father and brothers. His father Dada played football in his native DR Congo. Two of his brothers, Cedrick and Japhet, also played football for Cardiff City, Newport County and Stoke City at youth level.

He made his debut for the Manchester City U21 side in the EFL Trophy on 15 August 2017 against Rotherham United, scoring his first goal in the side's next match, a 2–1 defeat to Bradford City. He added two more goals in the 2018–19 EFL Trophy, the game's only away to Tranmere Rovers in the final group game, and one more in a 3–3 draw at Barnsley in the second round, as well as netting in the subsequent penalty shootout win.

Schalke 04 On 30 January 2019, Matondo signed for Bundesliga club Schalke 04 for a reported fee of up to £11 million on a four-and-a-half-year deal. He made his professional league debut three days later in a 2–0 home loss to Borussia Mönchengladbach, as a 75th-minute substitute for Sebastian Rudy; on 16 February he was given a start in a goalless home draw with SC Freiburg. On 28 September 2019, he scored his first goal for Schalke in a 3–1 away victory over RB Leipzig.

On 7 January 2021, Matondo joined EFL Championship club Stoke City on a loan deal until the end of the 2020–21 season. He played 11 times for Stoke, scoring once in a 1–1 draw with Nottingham Forest on 24 April 2021.

On 9 August 2021, Matondo agreed to join Cercle Brugge on a season-long loan with an option to make the move permanent.

Rangers On 12 July 2022, Rangers announced the signing of Matondo on a four-year deal, subject to international clearance. He made his debut for the club against Belgian side Union Saint-Gilloise during a UEFA Champions League qualifier loss on 2 August. On 4 October 2022, he made his 5th UEFA Champions League appearance for Rangers away against Liverpool as a substitute. Rangers lost 2-0, however their first big chance in the game came through Matondo in the 84th minute (3 minutes after he came on), where his pace allowed him to breeze past Joel Matip and nutmeg Liverpool goalkeeper Alisson Becker, but had his shot cleared off the line by Kostas Tsimikas before it could be tapped into the net by Fashion Sakala. Matondo scored his first UEFA Champions League goal in a 1st leg Qualifier on 22 August 2023 vs PSV Eindhoven slotting home a first-time finish into the bottom corner after a counter-attack to equalise. He left Rangers in March 2026.

Loan to Hannover 96 On 30 January 2025, Matondo signed for Hannover 96 on loan from Rangers for the remainder of the 2024-25 season. Matondo scored 34 minutes into his debut against Hamburger SV.

SK Brann

On 31 March 2026, Matondo joined Brann on a permanent deal.

International career Matondo was eligible to represent DR Congo, England or Wales at international level. He received his first call up to the Wales under-21 squad in September 2017, making his debut for the side in a 3–1 victory over Liechtenstein. After appearing in four qualifying matches as a substitute, He played eight games in total at under-21 level. He made his international debut during the match on 20 November as a 78th-minute substitute in place of Sam Vokes as Wales lost 1–0 in Elbasan.

In May 2019, after travelling back to England from a Welsh national team training camp in Portugal, Matondo was escorted from the plane by police after "behaving disruptively".

On 8 October 2020, Matondo started for Wales in a friendly against England.

On 1 June 2022, Matondo came on as a half time substitute for Wales in a Nations League Group A game against Poland. Wales lost 2–1 with Matondo providing the assist for Jonny Williams's Wales goal.

On 22 March 2025, Matondo came on in the second half for Wales in a World Cup qualifier against Kazakhstan. Wales won 3-1 with Matondo scoring his first international goal in the closing stages of the match.

Career statistics

Club

International

Honours Rangers Scottish League Cup: 2023–24