Joe Mattock |
Left Back |
| Born: | Leicester | 15 May 1990 | Signed: | 10 August 2009 | |||
| Nationality: | England | Height: | 5' 11" | From: | Leicester City | ||
| Caps: | 19 (U17, U19, U21) | Weight: | Fee: | Undisclosed | |||
Joseph William Mattock was one of Roberto Di Matteo's first signings
for Albion, joining for an undisclosed fee just after the start of the 2009-10
season. He effectively replaced Paul Robinson who had signed for Bolton a month
earlier. He made his debut next day in a 2-0 victory over Bury in the League Cup.
He was just 19 years old when he signed, but had already made a big name for himself. He made his debut for Leicester City as a substitute in April 2007, a month before his 17th birthday. He was given his first start three days later, making two more appearances before the end of the 2006-7 season.
He made further progress in 2007-8, and in the summer of 2008 Leicester were reported to have turned down bids of £5 million, with a whole host of Premiership clubs including Liverpool, Aston Villa and West Ham said to be interested.
By this time he was well established as Leicester's first-choice left back and an integral part of the squad that won promotion from League One at the first attempt. By the time he signed for Albion he had also won five caps for England at Under 21 level, as well as Under-17 and Under-19.
On signing for Albion he said, "I was ecstatic that a club like this was interested in me - I am ready for a new challenge ... it wasn't an easy decision, obviously I grew up in Leicester and all I wanted to do when I was a lad was play for Leicester ... hopefully I can get this club back into the Premier."
His main rival for the left-back position in the Albion team is Marek Cech. But for the first four months of the 2009-10 season it was Mattock that was preferred.
