Matthew Smith Signs For Saints

Smith, 23, started life at West Bromwich Albion's youth academy before English side Manchester City snapped the talented youngster up. 

Matt rose through the City academy from age 14 and would eventually go on to enjoy successful loan spells at various sides.

The first came in July of 2018 and at the age of 18, Smith joined Dutch 2nd division club FC Twente on a season-long loan, eventually making 37 appearances and scoring two goals, playing a key role in the club's promotion to the Eredivisie.

He would then go on to gain domestic experience, firstly with loan spells at EFL Championship sides QPR and Charlton Athletic, tallying up 10 appearances over the two spells.

Improved game time would come for the Welsh international, this time from a successful loan spell at EFL League One side Doncaster Rovers where he made over 40 appearances.

Smith then made his final loan move from Manchester City as he joined Hull City for the 2021/22 season, making nine appearances.

The midfielder was recalled from Hull City during the January transfer window of 2022 and on deadline day that same month, Smith joined MK Dons on a permanent transfer for an undisclosed fee and appeared 25 times for the English side.

Smith has also enjoyed a superb international career by representing Wales through his grandfather's connection.

Having appeared for the Welsh youth teams from as young as the under 17 age group, Smith made his full debut for the national side in a 0-0 draw with Mexico.

In 2021 he was selected for Wales in the delayed Euro 2020 tournament squad and was also selected for the Qatar World Cup squad in the winter of 2022. 

Smith has made 19 appearances for his national side.

Matt spoke to SaintsTV about his move to Perth: 

 “I am delighted, everything happened quite quickly but I am delighted to be here and I can't wait to get going.

“The platform of the league and the fans here makes this an exciting move for me. It is a long way from home and somewhere that it out of my comfort zone. This is a move that made sense for me in every aspect.

“I have already played at McDiarmid Park when I was 15 or 16 in the Victory Shield. We came up here with Wales and played against Scotland, I have good memories here.

“Tyler Roberts, Ben Woodburn, Ethan Ampadu all played in that side.

“Winning the league with FC Twente was great, it was my first professional loan. To win the league at that age and also play as much as I did was brilliant. I really enjoyed it out there, taking in the culture and throwing myself in the deep end to learn new things about football was fantastic.

“First impressions so far are really good, training was intense. We were preparing for the game, so it wasn’t too much, but the lads have been really welcoming.

“Being involved at the World Cup was a surreal moment. It was nice for me as my family and little one was able to travel over and watch. That is the moments you dream about, although you never think that a World Cup could ever be a part of your career. That will always be something I look back on with fond memories.

“I managed to swap shirts during the tournament, when we played USA I swapped with their captain, Tyler Adams, he is a great player.

“I do like collecting shirts, I have a few nice ones to look back on. I think my favourite so far is Lewandowski’s.

“I want to represent my country, last season I didn’t play as much as I wanted to at club level. My focus now is to get in the team and get playing every week and I can build it from there.

“I would say I am a midfielder who can get around the pitch, I like to play forward and try to hurt teams. I can play multiple roles in midfield and I will try to give everything when i play.

“This is a new experience for me, you hear so much about Scottish football and how passionate the fans are, that is something I wanted to experience.

“I want to play games and be in and around the team, I’m really excited to be here and I can’t wait to get involved.