Matz Willy Els Sels (born 26 February 1992) is a Belgian professional

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby lea ...

who plays as a

goalkeeper In many team sports that involve scoring goal (sport), goals, the goalkeeper (sometimes termed goaltender, netminder, GK, goalie, or keeper) is a designated player charged with directly preventing the opposing team from scoring by blocking or i ...

for club

Nottingham Forest Nottingham Forest Football Club is a professional association football club based in West Bridgford, Nottinghamshire, England. The club competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football league system, English football. Founde ...

and the Belgium national team.

Club career

Lierse

Sels started his youth career at Kontich, and transferred to Lierse at the age of seven. Over there, he made his first-team debut in 2010. After the departure of Eiji Kawashima to

Standard Liège Royal Standard de Liège, commonly referred to as Standard Liège ( ; ; ) or simply Standard in Belgium, is a Belgian professional football club based in the city of Liège. They are one of the most successful clubs in Belgium, having won t ...

in the summer of 2012, Sels became the first choice keeper. In his first game in the First Division, on 29 July 2012 against Gent, he saved a penalty. At the start of the 2013–14 season, when he refused to sign a new contract, he was demoted to the second team.

Gent

On 31 December 2013, it was announced that Sels would complete a transfer to Gent once the transfer window opened. He would become the number one goalkeeper as Frank Boeckx's contract was due to expire at the end of the season. Sels made his debut for Gent on 14 January 2014 against

K.V. Kortrijk Koninklijke Voetbalclub Kortrijk (often simply called KV Kortrijk or KVK) is a Belgian professional football club based in Kortrijk, West Flanders. They play in the Belgian First Division, and they achieved their best ranking ever during the 20 ...

, in the quarter-finals of the

Belgian Cup The Belgian Cup (; ; ) is the main knockout football competition in Belgium, run by the Royal Belgian FA. The competition started in 1908 with provincial selections as the "Belgian Provinces Cup". Starting from 1912 only actual clubs were allowed ...

. He helped Gent qualify for the next round after penalties; with the game ending 1–1 on aggregate. Sels played a key role in helping Gent become champions of the

2014–15 Belgian Pro League The 2014–15 season of the Belgian Pro League (known as the ''Jupiler Pro League'' for sponsorship reasons) is the 112th season of top-tier football in Belgium. It started on 27 July 2014 and finished in May 2015. K.A.A. Gent won the league, ...

, the first national championship in the club's history. This triumph allowed Gent to qualify for the

2015–16 UEFA Champions League The 2015–16 UEFA Champions League was the 61st season of Europe's premier club football tournament organised by UEFA, and the 24th season since it was renamed from the European Champion Clubs' Cup to the UEFA Champions League. Barcelona were th ...

. On his Champions League debut Sels dramatically saved an

Alexandre Lacazette Alexandre Armand Lacazette (; born 28 May 1991) is a French professional association football, footballer who plays as a forward (association football), forward for and Captain (association football), captains club Olympique Lyonnais, Lyon. He p ...

penalty to help his side secure a 1–1 draw with

Lyon Lyon (Franco-Provençal: ''Liyon'') is a city in France. It is located at the confluence of the rivers Rhône and Saône, to the northwest of the French Alps, southeast of Paris, north of Marseille, southwest of Geneva, Switzerland, north ...

. On 13 January 2016 he was voted Best Goalkeeper of Belgium 2015.

Newcastle United

On 29 June 2016, Sels completed a transfer to

Premier League The Premier League is a professional association football league in England and the highest level of the English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Football Lea ...

club

Newcastle United Newcastle United Football Club is a professional association football club based in Newcastle upon Tyne, Tyne and Wear, England. The club competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football league system, English football. Since th ...

on a five-year contract for a reported transfer fee of £6.5 million. Sels made his Newcastle debut in the

Championship In sport, a championship is a competition in which the aim is to decide which individual or team is the champion. Championship systems Various forms of competition can be referred to by the term championship. Title match system In this sys ...

on 5 August against

Fulham Fulham () is an area of the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham in West London, England, southwest of Charing Cross. It lies in a loop on the north bank of the River Thames, bordering Hammersmith, Kensington and Chelsea, London, Chelsea ...

. Sels kept a run of four clean sheets spanning 20 August to 13 September. Sels came under considerable fire from Newcastle fans for allowing a late equaliser from

Aaron Tshibola Aaron Tshibola (born 2 January 1995) is a professional footballer who plays as a midfielder who plays for Greek Super League club Levadiakos. Born in England, he represents DR Congo at internatioanl level. Born in London, he came through the y ...

Aston Villa Aston Villa Football Club (commonly referred to as simply Villa) is a professional football club based in Aston, Birmingham, England. The club, founded in 1874, compete in the Premier League, the top tier of English football. The team have p ...

on 24 September. Despite receiving endorsement from manager Rafa Benítez during the week, Sels lost his place in the line-up to Karl Darlow against

Norwich City Norwich City Football Club is a professional football club based in Norwich, Norfolk, England. The club competes in the Championship, the second tier of English football. The club was founded in 1902. Since 1935, Norwich have played their h ...

on 28 September. His displacement from the line-up also received notable media coverage in his native Belgium. When Newcastle's next League Cup tilt came up, it was Sels who got the start, enjoying a clean sheet in a 6–0 victory over

Preston North End Preston North End Football Club, commonly referred to as Preston, North End or PNE, is a professional association football club in Preston, Lancashire, England. They currently play in the EFL Championship, the second level of the English footbal ...

on 25 October. On 22 June 2017, Sels signed for

Anderlecht Anderlecht (; ) is one of the List of municipalities of the Brussels-Capital Region, 19 municipalities of the Brussels-Capital Region, Belgium. Located in the south-western part of the region, it is bordered by the City of Brussels, Forest, B ...

on a season-long loan.

Strasbourg

On 27 July 2018, Sels moved to

Ligue 1 Ligue 1 (; ), officially known as Ligue 1 McDonald's France, McDonald's for sponsorship reasons, is a professional association football league in France and the highest level of the French football league system. Administered by the Ligue de ...

side

Strasbourg Strasbourg ( , ; ; ) is the Prefectures in France, prefecture and largest city of the Grand Est Regions of France, region of Geography of France, eastern France, in the historic region of Alsace. It is the prefecture of the Bas-Rhin Departmen ...

for £3.5 million. In his first season at the club, he was awarded Strasbourg's player of the Season.

Nottingham Forest

On 1 February 2024, Sels moved to

. He made his Premier League debut for Forest 3 days later, in a 1–1 draw away to

Bournemouth Bournemouth ( ) is a coastal resort town in the Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole unitary authority area, in the ceremonial county of Dorset, England. At the 2021 census, the built-up area had a population of 196,455, making it the largest ...

. On 2 March, Sels made a point-blank save in a match against

Liverpool Liverpool is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. It is situated on the eastern side of the River Mersey, Mersey Estuary, near the Irish Sea, north-west of London. With a population ...

that earned him the

Premier League Save of the Month The Premier League Save of the Month is an association football award that recognises the goalkeeper deemed to have made the best Premier League save in each month of the season from August to April. For sponsorship purposes, it was called the C ...

award. By achieving that honour, he became the first ever Nottingham Forest player to win a Premier League monthly award. Following the 2024–25 season, Sels was the first Nottingham Forest goalkeeper awarded the

Premier League Golden Glove The Premier League Golden Glove is an annual association football award presented to the goalkeeper who has kept the most clean sheets in the Premier League. In football a team's defence or goalkeeper may be said to "keep a clean sheet" if they ...

, shared with

Arsenal An arsenal is a place where arms and ammunition are made, maintained and repaired, stored, or issued, in any combination, whether privately or publicly owned. Arsenal and armoury (British English) or armory (American English) are mostly ...

's David Raya, after achieving 13 clean sheets.

International career

Sels was called up to the

Belgium Belgium, officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. Situated in a coastal lowland region known as the Low Countries, it is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeas ...

squad in October 2015 for

UEFA Euro 2016 The 2016 UEFA European Football Championship, commonly referred to as UEFA Euro 2016 (stylised as UEFA EURO 2016) or simply Euro 2016, was the 15th UEFA European Championship, the quadrennial international men's association football, football ch ...

qualifiers against

Andorra Andorra, officially the Principality of Andorra, is a Sovereignty, sovereign landlocked country on the Iberian Peninsula, in the eastern Pyrenees in Southwestern Europe, Andorra–France border, bordered by France to the north and Spain to A ...

and

Israel Israel, officially the State of Israel, is a country in West Asia. It Borders of Israel, shares borders with Lebanon to the north, Syria to the north-east, Jordan to the east, Egypt to the south-west, and the Mediterranean Sea to the west. Isr ...

. He was named in the Roberto Martinez Belgian squad for the friendly against

Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabia, officially the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), is a country in West Asia. Located in the centre of the Middle East, it covers the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula and has a land area of about , making it the List of Asian countries ...

in Brussels on 27 March. In May 2018 he was named in Belgium's preliminary squad for the

2018 FIFA World Cup The 2018 FIFA World Cup was the 21st FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial world championship for national association football, football teams organized by FIFA. It took place in Russia from 14 June to 15 July 2018, after the country was awarded t ...

in Russia. However, he did not make the final 23. In May 2021, Sels was named in Belgium's provisional squad for the rescheduled

UEFA Euro 2020 The 2020 UEFA European Football Championship, commonly referred to as UEFA Euro 2020 or simply Euro 2020, was the 16th UEFA European Championship, the Anniversary#Latin-derived numerical names, quadrennial international men's association footb ...

. He made his debut on 3 June 2021 in a friendly against

Greece Greece, officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. Located on the southern tip of the Balkan peninsula, it shares land borders with Albania to the northwest, North Macedonia and Bulgaria to the north, and Turkey to th ...

, coming on as a substitute for Simon Mignolet in the 90th minute.

Career statistics

Club

International

Honours

Gent *

Belgian Pro League The Belgian Pro League (; ; ), officially the Jupiler Pro League () for sponsor Jupiler, is a professional association football league in Belgium and the highest level of the Belgian football league system. Contested by 16 clubs from the 2023 ...

: 2014–15 *

Belgian Super Cup The Belgian Super Cup ( ; ; ), ''Pro League Supercup'', is a Belgian club competition played as a single match between the Belgian Pro League champions (also received the Super Cup host) and the Belgian Cup winners. If both teams are the same, ...

2015 2015 was designated by the United Nations as: * International Year of Light * International Year of Soil __TOC__ Events January * January 1 – Lithuania officially adopts the euro as its currency, replacing the litas, and becomes ...

Newcastle United *

EFL Championship The English Football League Championship, known simply as the Championship and for sponsorship purposes as Sky Bet Championship, is a professional association football league in England and Wales. Contested by 24 clubs, it is the highest divi ...

: 2016–17 Anderlecht *

2017 2017 was designated as the International Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development by the United Nations General Assembly. Events January * January 1 – Istanbul nightclub shooting: A gunman dressed as Santa Claus opens fire at the ...

Strasbourg *

Coupe de la Ligue The Coupe de la Ligue (), known outside France as the French League Cup, was a knockout cup competition in French football organized by the Ligue de Football Professionnel. The tournament was established in 1993 and, unlike the Coupe de France ...

: 2018–19 Individual * Belgian Professional Goalkeeper of the Season: 2015–16 *

Goalkeeper of the Season: 2021–22 *

: March 2024 *

: 2024–25 (shared) *

EA Sports FC ''EA Sports FC'' is a football video game franchise developed by EA Vancouver and EA Romania and published by EA Sports. It serves as the direct successor to their former ''FIFA'' series, which was discontinued following the termination of EA ...

Premier League Team of the Season: 2024–25 *

Fan Team of the Season: 2024–25 * ''The Athletic'' Premier League Team of the Season: 2024–25

References

External links

Profile
at the Nottingham Forest F.C. website * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Sels, Matz 1992 births Living people Belgian men's footballers Men's association football goalkeepers Lierse S.K. players K.A.A. Gent players Newcastle United F.C. players R.S.C. Anderlecht players RC Strasbourg Alsace players Nottingham Forest F.C. players Belgian Pro League players English Football League players Ligue 1 players Premier League players Belgium men's youth international footballers Belgium men's under-21 international footballers Belgium men's international footballers UEFA Euro 2020 players UEFA Euro 2024 players Belgian expatriate men's footballers Expatriate men's footballers in England Expatriate men's footballers in France Belgian expatriate sportspeople in England Belgian expatriate sportspeople in France 21st-century Belgian sportsmen Footballers from Antwerp Province