Mathew Leckie facts for kids
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Leckie with Hertha BSC in 2019
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| Personal information | ||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Mathew Allan Leckie | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Date of birth | 4 February 1991 | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Place of birth | Melbourne, Victoria, Australia | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 1.81 m (5 ft 11 in) | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Position(s) | Forward, winger | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Team information | ||||||||||||||||||||||
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Current team
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Melbourne City | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Number | 7 | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Youth career | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Brimbank Stallions | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2007 | Bulleen Lions | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Senior career* | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) | |||||||||||||||||||
| 2008–2009 | Bulleen Lions | 27 | (15) | |||||||||||||||||||
| 2009–2011 | Adelaide United | 35 | (8) | |||||||||||||||||||
| 2011–2013 | Borussia Mönchengladbach II | 10 | (3) | |||||||||||||||||||
| 2011–2012 | Borussia Mönchengladbach | 9 | (0) | |||||||||||||||||||
| 2012–2013 | → FSV Frankfurt II (loan) | 5 | (4) | |||||||||||||||||||
| 2012–2013 | → FSV Frankfurt (loan) | 28 | (4) | |||||||||||||||||||
| 2013–2014 | FSV Frankfurt | 31 | (10) | |||||||||||||||||||
| 2014–2017 | FC Ingolstadt 04 | 94 | (10) | |||||||||||||||||||
| 2017–2021 | Hertha BSC | 68 | (7) | |||||||||||||||||||
| 2019 | Hertha BSC II | 1 | (0) | |||||||||||||||||||
| 2021– | Melbourne City | 73 | (18) | |||||||||||||||||||
| International career‡ | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2009–2011 | Australia U20 | 13 | (3) | |||||||||||||||||||
| 2012– | Australia | 78 | (14) | |||||||||||||||||||
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Medal record
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| *Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 5 Nov 2024 ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 17:25, 30 November 2022 (UTC) |
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Mathew Allan Leckie (born 4 February 1991) is an Australian soccer player. He plays for A-League club Melbourne City. He also plays for the Australian national team, where he was previously a captain. Mathew is known for being fast and agile. He usually plays as a winger, but he can also play as a midfielder or a striker.
Contents
Club Career Highlights
Starting Out in Melbourne
Mathew grew up in Melbourne, Australia. When he was younger, he wanted to play Australian rules football. But at age 11, he found a love for soccer and stuck with it.
He played for a team called Bulleen Lions. Then, on 2 September 2009, he signed a professional contract with Adelaide United.
Playing for Adelaide United
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Mathew played his first A-League game on 18 September 2009. He came on as a substitute for Adelaide United against Melbourne Victory.
He scored his first goal in the AFC Champions League on 24 February 2010. It was the winning goal against Pohang Steelers. He scored again in the next game against Shandong Luneng. Many people thought Mathew was one of Australia's best young players.
In the 2010–11 season, he scored two goals in Adelaide's first five games. His exciting style of play earned him a spot on the Australian Under-19 team.
Moving to Germany
After the A-League season, Mathew moved to Germany. He signed with a club called Borussia Mönchengladbach. He scored two goals in a friendly game against Aberdeen on 9 July 2011. In early 2013, he was loaned to Frankfurt. He scored 3 goals in just 2 games for their reserve team.
Playing for FSV Frankfurt
On 3 June 2013, Mathew officially joined FSV Frankfurt. He signed a three-year contract. He said he made this move to improve his skills. He had a good first season there, playing 28 games and scoring 4 goals.
Time at FC Ingolstadt 04
On 7 May 2014, Mathew signed with FC Ingolstadt 04. While he was there, his team was promoted to the Bundesliga. This is Germany's top soccer league. In the 2015–16 season, he scored a goal against FC Augsburg. It was one of his best goals that season.
Joining Hertha BSC
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On 22 May 2017, Mathew joined Hertha BSC for the 2017–18 season. He started well, helping with two goals in his first game. He then scored two goals in his first Bundesliga game for Hertha BSC. This was a 2–0 win against VfB Stuttgart. Mathew said it was "one of the best weeks of my life."
He scored his first European goal on 23 November 2017. This was in a game against Athletic Bilbao in the Europa League.
After the 2019–20 season, Mathew played fewer games for Hertha. He wanted to leave the club in early 2020. However, he decided to stay for another season for family reasons.
Returning to Australia with Melbourne City FC
On 5 June 2021, it was announced that Mathew signed a three-year deal with Melbourne City FC.
In the 2025 A-League Men Grand Final, Mathew won the Joe Marston Medal. This award goes to the best player in the Grand Final. Melbourne City beat Melbourne Victory 1–0 in this big game.
International Career for Australia
Early International Games
In August 2009, Mathew played for Australia in the AFF U19 Youth Championship 2009. He scored the first goal in a 4–1 win against Vietnam. He was also called up to the Australian Under-19s for the 2010 AFC U-19 Championship.
Former Australian coach Pim Verbeek chose Mathew for the national team squad in 2011. This was for an AFC Asian Cup 2011 Qualifier. He did not play in that game.
Later, in November 2012, another coach, Holger Osieck, included Mathew in the squad. This was for a friendly game against South Korea. Mathew came on as a late substitute.
2014 World Cup
Mathew had a great performance at the 2014 FIFA World Cup. Many experts thought he was worth a lot of money after his games. He was happy with his decision to join FC Ingolstadt in Germany.
2015 Asian Cup
Mathew was part of Australia's team for the 2015 AFC Asian Cup. He started in Australia's first game against Kuwait. He helped James Troisi score Australia's fourth goal in a 4–1 win. Australia won the tournament that year.
2017 Confederations Cup
Mathew also played for Australia in the 2017 FIFA Confederations Cup. He started in the first two group games. He came on as a substitute in the last group game against Chile.
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World Cup Qualifiers
On 3 September 2015, Mathew scored his second goal for Australia. This was in a World Cup qualifier against Bangladesh. On 5 September 2017, he scored his sixth international goal against Thailand.
In May 2018, he was chosen for Australia's 23-man squad for the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia.
Becoming Captain
In May 2021, Mathew was named the new captain of the Socceroos. He took over from Mark Milligan, who had retired. Later in 2021, Mathew stepped away from the national team for a while. This was due to travel rules that made it hard for players coming from overseas.
2022 World Cup Success
In November 2022, Mathew was part of the squad for the 2022 FIFA World Cup. In a very important group game against Denmark, he scored the winning goal. This 1–0 victory meant Australia qualified for the next round of the tournament.
Career Statistics
Club Appearances
| Club | Season | League | National cup | Continental | Total | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Bulleen Royals | 2008 | Victorian State League Division 1 | 11 | 1 | — | — | 11 | 1 | ||
| Bulleen Lions | 2009 | 16 | 14 | — | — | 16 | 14 | |||
| Total | 27 | 15 | — | — | 27 | 15 | ||||
| Adelaide United | 2009–10 | A-League | 20 | 3 | — | — | 20 | 3 | ||
| 2010–11 | 15 | 5 | — | 6 | 2 | 21 | 7 | |||
| Total | 35 | 8 | — | 6 | 2 | 41 | 10 | |||
| Borussia Mönchengladbach | 2011–12 | Bundesliga | 9 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | 11 | 0 | |
| Borussia Mönchengladbach II | 2011–12 | Regionalliga West | 10 | 3 | — | — | 10 | 3 | ||
| FSV Frankfurt | 2012–13 | 2. Bundesliga | 28 | 4 | 2 | 1 | — | 30 | 5 | |
| 2013–14 | 31 | 10 | 2 | 2 | — | 33 | 12 | |||
| Total | 59 | 14 | 4 | 3 | — | 63 | 17 | |||
| FSV Frankfurt II | 2012–13 | Regionalliga Südwest | 5 | 4 | — | — | 5 | 4 | ||
| FC Ingolstadt | 2014–15 | 2. Bundesliga | 32 | 7 | 0 | 0 | — | 32 | 7 | |
| 2015–16 | Bundesliga | 32 | 3 | 0 | 0 | — | 32 | 3 | ||
| 2016–17 | 30 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | 32 | 0 | |||
| Total | 94 | 10 | 2 | 0 | — | 96 | 10 | |||
| Hertha BSC | 2017–18 | Bundesliga | 26 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 29 | 6 |
| 2018–19 | 18 | 2 | 1 | 0 | — | 19 | 2 | |||
| 2019–20 | 7 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | 9 | 0 | |||
| 2020–21 | 17 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | 18 | 0 | |||
| Total | 68 | 7 | 5 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 75 | 8 | ||
| Hertha BSC II | 2019–20 | Regionalliga Nordost | 1 | 0 | — | — | 1 | 0 | ||
| Melbourne City | 2021–22 | A-League Men | 23 | 9 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 26 | 10 |
| 2022–23 | 22 | 7 | 2 | 1 | — | 24 | 8 | |||
| 2023–24 | 13 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 17 | 1 | ||
| Total | 58 | 17 | 6 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 67 | 19 | ||
| Career total | 366 | 78 | 19 | 5 | 11 | 3 | 396 | 86 | ||
International Appearances
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| Australia | 2012 | 1 | 0 |
| 2013 | 4 | 1 | |
| 2014 | 11 | 0 | |
| 2015 | 12 | 1 | |
| 2016 | 9 | 1 | |
| 2017 | 12 | 3 | |
| 2018 | 10 | 3 | |
| 2019 | 4 | 2 | |
| 2021 | 4 | 2 | |
| 2022 | 10 | 1 | |
| 2023 | 1 | 0 | |
| 2024 | 1 | 0 | |
| Total | 79 | 14 | |
International Goals
| No. | Date | Venue | Cap | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 15 October 2013 | Craven Cottage, London, England | 4 |  Canada |
3–0 | 3–0 | Friendly |
| 2 | 3 September 2015 | Perth Oval, Perth, Australia | 26 |  Bangladesh |
1–0 | 5–0 | 2018 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 3 | 4 June 2016 | Stadium Australia, Sydney, Australia | 31 |  Greece |
1–0 | 1–0 | Friendly |
| 4 | 23 March 2017 | PAS Stadium, Teheran, Iran | 38 |  Iraq |
1–0 | 1–1 | 2018 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 5 | 28 March 2017 | Sydney Football Stadium, Sydney, Australia | 39 |  United Arab Emirates |
2–0 | 2–0 | |
| 6 | 5 September 2017 | Melbourne Rectangular Stadium, Melbourne, Australia | 46 |  Thailand |
2–1 | 2–1 | |
| 7 | 1 June 2018 | NV Arena, Sankt Pölten, Austria | 52 |  Czech Republic |
1–0 | 4–0 | Friendly |
| 8 | 3–0 | ||||||
| 9 | 20 November 2018 | Stadium Australia, Sydney, Australia | 59 |  Lebanon |
3–0 | 3–0 | |
| 10 | 10 September 2019 | Al Kuwait Sports Club Stadium, Kuwait City, Kuwait | 62 |  Kuwait |
1–0 | 3–0 | 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 11 | 2–0 | ||||||
| 12 | 3 June 2021 | Jaber Al-Ahmad International Stadium, Kuwait City, Kuwait | 64 | Kuwait |
1–0 | 3–0 | |
| 13 | 11 June 2021 | Jaber Al-Ahmad International Stadium, Kuwait City, Kuwait | 65 |  Nepal |
1–0 | 3–0 | |
| 14 | 30 November 2022 | Al Janoub Stadium, Al Wakrah, Qatar | 76 |  Denmark |
1–0 | 1–0 | 2022 FIFA World Cup |
Awards and Achievements
Ingolstadt 04
- 2. Bundesliga: 2014–15 (Won the league title)
Melbourne City
- A-League Men Championship: 2025 (Won the Grand Final)
- A-League Men Premiership: 2021–22, 2022–23 (Finished first in the regular season)
Australia
- AFC Asian Cup: 2015 (Won the tournament)
Australia U-20
- AFC U-20 Asian Cup: runner-up 2010 (Finished second)
- AFF U19 Youth Championship: 2010 (Won the tournament)
Individual Awards
- Adelaide United Rising Star: 2009–10
- A-Leagues All Star: 2022, 2024
- PFA A-League Team of the Season: 2022–23
See also
In Spanish: Mathew Leckie para niños
