Matthew Robert Jones is an English goalkeeper who began his career with Port Vale before moving to West Bromwich Albion where he made several appearances for the Baggies reserve side.
It was in 2005 that the 25-year-old keeper decided to move away from Blighty and headed to the United States where he played college soccer at Sacred Heart University and won Male Rookie of the Year.
After a brief spell with American side Western Mass Pioneers it was then off to Portugal where he signed for Santa Clara before joining C.F. Uniao of Madeira. Sportsvibe.co.uk caught up with the globetrotting goalkeeper to find out what it is like playing abroad.
Q. You played for Port Vale and West Bromwich Albion at youth level, how hard is it to break into the first teams at those clubs?
As a young English player it is incredibly hard to earn a professional contract in England. The competition is not only between young players in England but from all over the world. Out of the 40 or so players I played with in my time at West Brom there are only 2 or 3 still playing professional football that I know of. This shows the level of difficulty to make that step up from youth level in England.
Also for me personally I was a player that developed later. This is not only my physical characteristics but also my mental characteristics too. I matured a lot once I moved away to America.
Q. Your next step en-route to becoming a professional footballer saw you attend college in America - how did the level of football compare between England and the United States?
The standard of players was lower. But this is not surprising considering I was coming from a Premiership set up. The make up of players was different as well as players are more all rounded athletes due to the fact that they play so many different types of sports. For example a young player in high school will play soccer, baseball, football and basketball competitively all in one year due to the short seasons of each.
I played with some extremely good players and the standard only got better in my four years over there. In the past 10 years or so the standard in America has increased rapidly and is continuing to do so. The pool of players they have to choose from is huge as soccer is one of the most participated sports for children, both girls and boys, and so it is only sooner rather than later that they will become one of the major forces in world football.
Q. How hard was it for you from away from home at a young age and then move to a new country?
I moved away from home when I was 16 as I moved from Stoke to Birmingham when I signed for West Brom. So from a young age I was independent and so moving to America wasn’t as big of a shock as might be thought. Also I saw it more of an exciting challenge rather than a huge move. It didn’t take me too long to settle in as the team was compiled from other English, Swedish and Brazilians as well so that helped too.
Q. After a successful spell in America, you were then signed by Portuguese club Santa Clara in 2009 - how did that move come about, and were there any other European clubs interested?
It came about through a connection my coach had. He is Portuguese and had a connection with Belenenses here in Portugal. I trained there for a few days but it seemed as if nothing was happening and no decisions were being made. However, whilst I was there training I gained the attention of Santa Clara who invited me to their preseason camp. I decided this was the better opportunity for me and after 2 or 3 days there I was offered a contract. At that time there was no other firm contract offers from European clubs and so I decided that this was the club for me to try and build my professional career.
Q. Earlier this year you had a trail with Scottish Premier League club Aberdeen - how did that go and have you had any other offers from Scottish or English clubs?
My trial with Aberdeen was a great experience for me. I was already in talks with clubs here in Portugal and so decided to use the invitation of a trial as, not only an opportunity to win a contract at Aberdeen, but to have an extra week head start in preseason should I come back to Portugal. I also had opportunities to sign for other lower league clubs in England but I felt Portugal was the best opportunity for me at this stage of my career.
Q. You have however stayed in Portugal, moving to C.F. Uniao based on the island of Madeira - has that been another surreal move?
Madeira is a fantastic place to live and play and so this was an obvious lure once they had put a contract offer on the table. Who wouldn’t want to play in a climate with sun all year round! I had spoke to many people about the club and they had only positives to say and so it was an easy decision in the end.
Q. You have played in Portugal for a few years now, what was it like when you first moved with the language barrier?
The language barrier was a challenge at first. Luckily for me a lot of my teammates spoke English so that helped. However, I made it my priority to learn the language and began learning from the first day that I arrived here. It wasn’t easy as Portuguese is very different grammatically compared to English but I got there in the end. It was just another challenge for me.
Q. Do any of your teammates or managers speak English to you in the dressing room or is it all in Portuguese - as a goalkeeper it is quite important to communicate with your defence?
Once I had learnt the basics of Portuguese I always spoke with my teammates and coaches in Portuguese. It is important for me to do so as I want to keep improving my Portuguese and speaking it is the best way to learn. A few of the guys like to speak to me in English though as well as they want to improve their English. But I very rarely speak in English with my teammates.
As you said it’s essential that a goalkeeper communicates well with his defence. The very first day I got here I sat down with a Portuguese friend and wrote down and learnt the essential words I would need. Words and phrases such as “Get out”, “You have time”, “Squeeze”, etc, I made sure I knew even before my first training session.
Q. Are there any things you miss from England?
Yes there are things that I miss from England but the longer I am away the less I do miss to be honest. Obviously I miss all my friends and family but there are a few trivial things that I miss as well. Sounds ridiculous but I miss Match of the Day! Even though I watch all the games here you can’t beat Match of the Day! Also being from Stoke I miss my Oatcakes! There is nothing quite like a Staffordshire Oatcake!
Q. What are some of the main cultural differences between Portugal and England aside from football?
Everything in Portugal is a lot slower. Here and in the Açores, where I lived for the past 2 years, everything is very relaxed and calm. Things get done when they get done, which at times can be frustrating! But it’s a great way to live, completely without stress. Also it is a very sociable culture. People love nothing more than a get together for a party! Also the food is unbelievable. A lot of fresh fish, meat, rice and pastas and there is no shortage of quality restaurants to sample!
Q. What are the differences in terms of a match day between games in England and Portugal?
The obvious difference is the amount of fans that attend the games. It has always been a mystery to me the amount of fans that actually go to the games. Unless you are playing one of the Premierships big boys (Porto, Benfica, Sporting, etc) then you very rarely will have a sell out. A normal game could get anywhere between 1000-2000 fans. But it is strange as the Portuguese are obsessed with football. Everything revolves around football. People would die for their clubs here. But for some reason they would prefer to watch the games on the television as compared to going to the stadium on matchday. It’s something I have never been able to understand.
Q. A number of British players have plied their trade abroad recently and haven't had too much success - what inspired you to play football abroad?
The quality of life is what keeps me here in Portugal. The money might not be what it is in England but my standard of life here is head and shoulders above England. I wake up to an ocean view with the sun in the sky and have no worries whatsoever apart from focusing on the next game. One day I would love to come back to England but that would only be for a higher standard of football. I prefer a higher quality of life than a few extra pennies in my pocket.
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