Matthew Upson
| Born | 18 April 1979, Stowmarket |
| Nationality | English |
| Weight | 72 kg |
| Height | 1.85 m |
| Position | Defender/Centre back |
Many observers believe Arsene Wenger was rather hasty in allowing the former Luton Town centre-back to join Birmingham City.
Matthew went on to win England international honours.
Matthew spent the first part of the 2000-01 season battling back to full fitness after rupturing a cruciate ligament in December 1999.
He made a handful of appearances for Arsenal in the autumn, featuring in the defeats against Ipswich Town and Shakhtar Donetsk in the Worthington Cup and Champions' League competitions, but made only one substitute appearance in the Premiership away at Everton.
He subsequently joined Nottingham Forest on loan where he made a single appearance against Portsmouth in an unfamiliar midfield role before returning early to North London with a back injury.
He later moved to Crystal Palace for another loan period and featured regularly for the Eagles in the run-in to the end of the season, contributing to their struggle to avoid relegation.
Back at Highbury, he added a further appearance from the subs' bench when he replaced Robert Pires in the final stages of the last game of the season at Southampton.
Matthew is a strong, intelligent central defender who is comfortable on the ball and has good distribution skills.
He continued to feature in the England Under-21 squad winning a further three caps.
Matthew's contract at Birmingham City was extended to June 2008 in April 2006.
He joined West Ham United in January 2007 with a contract to June 2011.
Matthew joined Stoke City in August 2011 with a two-year contract.
Career stats
| Season | Team | Competition | Apps | Subs | Goals | Y | R |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1996-97 | England | UEFA Under-18 | 1 |
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| 1997-98 | Arsenal | Coca-Cola League Cup | 2 |
1
|
|||
| 1997-98 | Arsenal | FA Cup | 1 |
1
|
|||
| 1997-98 | Arsenal | Premier League | 5 | ||||
| 1997-98 | England | UEFA Under-18 | 6 | ||||
| 1998-99 | Arsenal | FA Cup | 1 | ||||
| 1998-99 | Arsenal | Premier League | 5 |
||||
| 1998-99 | Arsenal | UEFA Champions League | 1 | ||||
| 1998-99 | Arsenal | Worthington Cup | 2 | ||||
| 1998-99 | England | UEFA Under-18 | 3 | ||||
| 1998-99 | England | UEFA Under-21 | 3 | 1 |
|||
| 1998-99 | England | Under-21 | 1 | 1 |
|||
| 1999-00 | Arsenal | Premier League | 5 | 3 |
1
|
||
| 1999-00 | Arsenal | UEFA Champions League | 1 | 1 |
|||
| 1999-00 | Arsenal | Worthington Cup | 2 | ||||
| 1999-00 | England | UEFA Under-21 | 2 |
1
|
|||
| 1999-00 | England | Under-21 | 1 | ||||
| 2000-01 | Arsenal | Premier League | 2 |
||||
| 2000-01 | Arsenal | UEFA Champions League | 1 | ||||
| 2000-01 | Arsenal | Worthington Cup | 1 | ||||
| 2000-01 | Crystal Palace | League Division 1 | 7 |
1
|
|||
| 2000-01 | England | UEFA Under-21 | 1 | ||||
| 2000-01 | England | Under-21 | 1 | 2 |
|||
| 2000-01 | Nottingham Forest | League Division 1 | 1 | ||||
| 2001-02 | Arsenal | FA Cup | 1 |
||||
| 2001-02 | Arsenal | Premier League | 10 | 4 |
2
|
||
| 2001-02 | Arsenal | UEFA Champions League | 5 | 1 |
2
|
||
| 2001-02 | Arsenal | Worthington Cup | 1 |
1
|
|||
| 2002-03 | Arsenal | FA Cup | 1 | ||||
| 2002-03 | Birmingham City | Premier League | 14 |
1
|
1
|
||
| 2002-03 | England | European Championship | 1 | ||||
| 2002-03 | England | International | 1 | 1 |
|||
| 2002-03 | Reading | League Division 1 | 13 | 1 |
3
|
||
| 2002-03 | Reading | Worthington Cup | 1 | 1 |
|||
| 2003-04 | Birmingham City | Carling Cup | 1 | ||||
| 2003-04 | Birmingham City | FA Cup | 2 | ||||
| 2003-04 | Birmingham City | Premier League | 30 |
2
|
|||
| 2003-04 | England | European Championship | 1 | ||||
| 2003-04 | England | International | 1 | 1 |
|||
| 2004-05 | Birmingham City | Carling Cup | 2 | ||||
| 2004-05 | Birmingham City | FA Cup | 2 |
2
|
|||
| 2004-05 | Birmingham City | Premier League | 36 | 2 |
5
|
||
| 2004-05 | England | International | 1 |
||||
| 2005-06 | Birmingham City | Carling Cup | 4 |
2
|
|||
| 2005-06 | Birmingham City | FA Cup | 1 |
1
|
|||
| 2005-06 | Birmingham City | Premier League | 24 | 1 |
2
|
||
| 2006-07 | Birmingham City | FA Cup | 3 |
1
|
|||
| 2006-07 | Birmingham City | League Championship | 8 | 1 |
2 |
1
|
|
| 2006-07 | West Ham United | Premier League | 2 | ||||
| 2007-08 | England | International | 1 | ||||
| 2007-08 | West Ham United | Carling Cup | 2 | ||||
| 2007-08 | West Ham United | FA Cup | 2 | ||||
| 2007-08 | West Ham United | Premier League | 29 | 1 |
2
|
||
| 2008-09 | England | FIFA World Cup | 3 | 1 |
|||
| 2008-09 | England | International | 2 | 1 |
1 |
||
| 2008-09 | West Ham United | Carling Cup | 2 | ||||
| 2008-09 | West Ham United | FA Cup | 2 | ||||
| 2008-09 | West Ham United | Premier League | 37 |
2
|
|||
| 2009-10 | England | FIFA World Cup | 3 | 1 |
|||
| 2009-10 | England | International | 3 | ||||
| 2009-10 | West Ham United | Carling Cup | 1 |
||||
| 2009-10 | West Ham United | FA Cup | 1 | ||||
| 2009-10 | West Ham United | Premier League | 33 | 3 |
3
|
||
| 2010-11 | West Ham United | Carling Cup | 3 | ||||
| 2010-11 | West Ham United | FA Cup | 1 | ||||
| 2010-11 | West Ham United | Premier League | 30 |
4
|
|||
| 2011-12 | Stoke City | Carling Cup | 1 | ||||
| 2011-12 | Stoke City | FA Cup | 2 | ||||
| 2011-12 | Stoke City | Premier League | 10 | 4 |
1 |
1
|
|
| 2011-12 | Stoke City | UEFA Europa League | 8 | 1 |
2
|
1
|
Please note: Career stats are based on performances in the Premier and Football Leagues and (in most cases all) internationals.
Match history
| Date | Match | Result | Competition | Round | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 13 May 1997 | Portugal v England | L | 3-0 | UEFA U18 | 2nd round group 3 |
| 09 Sep 1997 | England v Yugoslavia | D | 0-0 | UEFA U18 | Preliminary |
| 11 Oct 1997 | Yugoslavia v England | W | 0-4 | UEFA U18 | Group 5 |
| 26 Oct 1997 | Russia v England | L | 2-1 | UEFA U18 | Group 5 |
| 14 Nov 1997 | England v Russia | W | 3-2 | UEFA U18 | Group 5 |
| 26 Mar 1998 | England v France | W | 3-0 | UEFA Under 18 | 2nd round group 3 |
| 23 Apr 1998 | France v England | L | 1-0 | UEFA U18 | 2nd round group 3 |
| 19 Jul 1998 | Cyprus v England | W | 1-2 | UEFA Under 18 | Final group B |
| 21 Jul 1998 | Republic of Ireland v England | W | 0-1 | UEFA U18 | Final group B |
| 23 Jul 1998 | England v Croatia | L | 0-3 | UEFA U18 | Final group B |
| 04 Sep 1998 | Sweden v England | W | 0-2 | UEFA Under-21 | Group 5 |
| 09 Oct 1998 | England v Bulgaria | W | 1-0 | UEFA Under-21 | Group 5 |
| 13 Oct 1998 | Luxembourg v England | W | 0-5 | UEFA Under-21 | Group 5 |
| 09 Feb 1999 | England v France | W | 2-1 | Under-21 | |
| 03 Sep 1999 | England v Luxembourg | W | 5-0 | UEFA Under-21 | Group 5 |
| 07 Sep 1999 | Poland v England | L | 3-1 | UEFA Under-21 | Group 5 |
| 08 Oct 1999 | England v Denmark | W | 4-1 | Under-21 | |
| 14 Nov 2000 | Italy v England | D | 0-0 | Under-21 | |
| 27 Feb 2001 | England v Spain | L | 0-4 | Under-21 | |
| 24 May 2001 | England v Mexico | W | 3-0 | Under-21 | |
| 05 Jun 2001 | Greece v England | L | 3-1 | UEFA Under-21 | Group 9 |
| 22 May 2003 | South Africa v England | W | 1-2 | International | |
| 03 Jun 2003 | England v Serbia and Montenegro | W | 2-1 | International | |
| 11 Jun 2003 | England v Slovakia | W | 2-1 | European Championship | Group 7 |
| 20 Aug 2003 | England v Croatia | W | 3-1 | International | |
| 10 Sep 2003 | England v Liechtenstein | W | 2-0 | European Championship | Group 7 |
| 16 Nov 2003 | England v Denmark | L | 2-3 | International | |
| 17 Nov 2004 | Spain v England | L | 1-0 | International | |
| 06 Feb 2008 | England v Switzerland | W | 2-1 | International | |
| 10 Sep 2008 | Croatia v England | W | 1-4 | FIFA World Cup | Europe group 6 |
| 11 Oct 2008 | England v Kazakhstan | W | 5-1 | FIFA World Cup | Europe group 6 |
| 15 Oct 2008 | Belarus v England | W | 1-3 | FIFA World Cup | Europe group 6 |
| 19 Nov 2008 | Germany v England | W | 1-2 | International | |
| 11 Feb 2009 | Spain v England | L | 2-0 | International | |
| 28 Mar 2009 | England v Slovakia | W | 4-0 | International | |
| 06 Jun 2009 | Kazakhstan v England | W | 0-4 | FIFA World Cup | Europe group 6 |
| 05 Sep 2009 | England v Slovenia | W | 2-1 | International | |
| 09 Sep 2009 | England v Croatia | W | 5-1 | FIFA World Cup | Europe group 6 |
| 14 Nov 2009 | Brazil v England | L | 1-0 | International | |
| 03 Mar 2010 | England v Egypt | W | 3-1 | International | |
| 23 Jun 2010 | Slovenia v England | W | 0-1 | FIFA World Cup | Finals group C |
| 27 Jun 2010 | Germany v England | L | 4-1 | FIFA World Cup | Finals - round of 16 |
Please note: Match history is complete for the Premier and Football Leagues and (in most cases all) internationals.
Club history
| Team | Joined | Left | Loan / Trialist |
|---|---|---|---|
| Luton Town | 24 Apr 1996 | 10 May 1997 | |
| Arsenal | 10 May 1997 | 23 Jan 2003 | |
| Nottingham Forest | 12 Aug 2000 | 20 Dec 2000 | L |
| Crystal Palace | 02 Mar 2001 | 07 May 2001 | L |
| Reading | 05 Sep 2002 | 08 Dec 2002 | L |
| Birmingham City | 23 Jan 2003 | 31 Jan 2007 | |
| West Ham United | 31 Jan 2007 | 30 Jun 2011 | |
| Stoke City | 09 Aug 2011 |