Personal information | |||
---|---|---|---|
Date of birth | 3 August 1999 | ||
Place of birth | Morrison, Argentina | ||
Height | 1.78 m (5 ft 10 in) [1] | ||
Position(s) | Winger [1] | ||
Team information | |||
Current team | Atlético Tucumán (on loan from Houston Dynamo) | ||
Number | 9 | ||
Youth career | |||
Unión de Morrison | |||
2016–2018 | Instituto | ||
Senior career* | |||
Years | Team | Apps | ( Gls) |
2018–2020 | Instituto | 28 | (10) |
2020– | Houston Dynamo | 9 | (0) |
2020–2021 | → Instituto (loan) | 8 | (2) |
2022 | → Huracán (loan) | 0 | (0) |
2023 | → Estudiantes de Río Cuarto (loan) | 38 | (8) |
2024– | → Atlético Tucumán (loan) | 13 | (3) |
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 18:02, 16 April 2024 (UTC) |
Mateo Bajamich ( Croatian: Bajamić, pronounced [matěo bǎjamitɕ]; [2] [3] born 3 August 1999) is an Argentine professional footballer who plays as a winger for Primera División side Atlético Tucumán, on loan from Houston Dynamo. He can also play as a striker. [4]
Bajamich's career started with Instituto Atlético Central Córdoba, joining in 2016 from his local club Unión de Morrison. [5] Ahead of the 2018–19 Primera B Nacional season, Bajamich was promoted to the Instituto first team. [6] [7] He made his Instituto debut on 23 February 2019, coming on as a substitute in a 3–2 defeat to Nueva Chicago. [8] Bajamich was a late addition to the match day squad after Facundo Affranchino was injured in the pre-match warm up. [9] He had previously been an unused substitute in 2018 for matches with Villa Dálmine and Arsenal de Sarandí. [10] [11] Bajamich made his first start in senior football in a 1–0 loss against Guillermo Brown on 3 March 2019. [12] On 21 April, he scored his first professional goal in the final match of the season in a 1–1 draw against Gimnasia y Esgrima (M). [13] Bajamich and Instituto finished the 2018–19 season 22nd in the league table. [14] After the season, he signed a contract with Instituto lasting until 2022. [15]
Bajamich netted four goals in his first five games to start the 2019–20 season, including a brace in a 3–0 win at Brown de Adrogué on 14 September 2019. [12] [16] He scored twice again on 9 November in a 2–0 win against Santamarina. [17] On 15 March Bajamich scored once to help La Gloria defeat Tigre 3–0. [12] [18] That would end up being the final game of the season for Instituto as the season was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. [19] Bajamich ended the season with 9 goals and 3 assists from 21 games, helping Instituto finish 9th in group B. [20] [21] [22]
On 5 October 2020, Bajamich joined the Houston Dynamo of Major League Soccer. [21] The transfer fee is reportedly $1,200,000, with Instituto receiving 20% of his next sale. [23] [24] The contract with Houston lasts until 2022, with the Dynamo having team options until 2025. [21]
On 9 November 2020, Bajamich was loaned back to Instituto until 21 January, 2021, prior to the start of Houston's pre-season. [25] He scored on his first appearance back, netting the opener in a 2–1 victory over Chacarita Juniors on 28 November. [20] He scored again on 27 December in a 1–1 draw against Gimnasia y Esgrima (J). [20] Bajamich made a total of eight appearances on loan, scoring twice, as Instituto lost in the first round of the promotion play-offs to Defensores de Belgrano. [20]
Bajamich made his Dynamo debut on 15 May 2021, coming off the bench in a 3–1 loss to the Colorado Rapids. [26] He recorded his first assist for the Dynamo on 29 May in a 3–2 loss to Sporting Kansas City. [26] Bajamich ended the season with 1 assist in 9 appearances, as Houston finished last in the Western Conference, missing out on the playoffs. [26] [27]
On 28 January 2022, Bajamich was again loaned out by Houston. He returned to Argentina, joining Huracán on loan for the season with Huracán holding a purchase option. [28] Bajamich made his debut for Huracán on 15 February, coming off the bench in a 3–2 loss to Estudiantes de la Plata in a Copa de la Liga Profesional match. [12] [29] Bajamich made 9 appearances while with Huracán, all in the Copa de La Liga Profesional. [12] [29]
On 7 November 2022, Houston declined Bajamich's contract option for 2023, making him a free agent. [30]
On 16 January 2023, Bajamich signed with Estudiantes de Río Cuarto in Primera Nacional. [31] [32] [33] He made his debut for Estudiantes (RC) on 11 February, coming off the bench in a 2–0 loss to CA Temperley. [12] On 17 February, Bajamich scored his first goal for el Celeste in a 2–2 draw with San Telmo. [12]
Born in Argentina, Bajamich is of Croatian descent. [34] In 1921, his great-grandfather Mariano Bajamich ( Croatian: Marin Bajamić) left Trnbusi, Croatia (then part of Yugoslavia) and moved to Argentina where he married a Spaniard named Carmen. Bajamich expressed his desire to play for the Croatia national team. In 2020, he received the Croatian citizenship. [35]
Club | Season | League | National cup [a] | League cup [b] | Continental | Total | ||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
Instituto | 2018–19 | Primera B Nacional | 7 | 1 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 7 | 1 | ||
2019–20 | 21 | 9 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 22 | 9 | ||||
Total | 28 | 10 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 29 | 10 | ||||
Houston Dynamo | 2020 | Major League Soccer | 0 | 0 | — | — | — | 0 | 0 | |||
2021 | 9 | 0 | — | — | — | 9 | 0 | |||||
Total | 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 9 | 0 | ||||
Instituto (loan) | 2020 | Primera Nacional | 8 | 2 | — | — | — | 8 | 2 | |||
Huracán (loan) | 2022 | Primera División | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 9 | 0 | — | 9 | 0 | |
Estudiantes (RC)
(loan) |
2023 | Primera Nacional | 38 | 8 | 3 | 0 | — | — | 41 | 8 | ||
Atlético Tucumán
(loan) |
2024 | Primera División | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 13 | 3 | — | 14 | 4 | |
Career total | 83 | 20 | 5 | 1 | 22 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 110 | 24 |
Matèo