Cosmin Gabriel Matei (born 30 September 1991) is a Romanian professional footballer who plays as an attacking midfielder or a winger for Liga I club Sepsi OSK. Matei started out his senior career at Farul Constanța in 2008, and has since represented Steaua București, Astra Ploiești, Dinamo București, Viitorul Constanța and Sepsi OSK in his country. Abroad, he competed for teams in Greece, Turkey and Croatia, respectively. Internationally, Matei earned caps for Romania at under-17, under-19 and under-21 levels, before making his full debut in May 2014.

Club career

Farul Constanța

Matei made his Liga I debut for Farul Constanța on 18 October 2008, in a match against Politehnica Timișoara.

Steaua București

Matei was transferred to Steaua București in July 2010. On 22 August, he recorded his league debut by coming on as a 85th-minute substitute for Romeo Surdu in a 3–0 win over Vaslui. On 4 September 2010, Matei made his debut for Steaua's reserves in a Liga II game against Juventus București, entering in the 17th minute as they won 1–0.

Astra Ploiești

In June 2011, Matei was transferred to Astra Ploiești. He did not impress during his stint in Prahova County, appearing in only five matches without scoring.

Dinamo București

In August 2012, Matei penned down a five-year contract with Dinamo București, the cross-town rival of his former club Steaua. He scored his first goal in a game against Universitatea Cluj, on 2 May that year.

Atromitos

In January 2016, Matei moved abroad for the first time after joining Greek club Atromitos for an undisclosed transfer fee.

Gençlerbirliği

On 10 August 2016, Süper Lig side Gençlerbirliği announced the signing of Matei on a three-year deal.

Viitorul Constanța

On 26 August 2019, Matei returned to Romania by agreeing to a two-year contract with Viitorul Constanța.

Return to Dinamo București

In September 2021, Matei returned to Dinamo București as one of the experienced players in a youth-oriented squad. After several unconvincing performances, he was excluded from the first team in December 2021 by manager Mircea Rednic. He resumed trainings the following month after Rednic's dismissal, but Dinamo continued its poor results which led to the first relegation in the club history. Matei became the first player to depart Dinamo after the relegation, only three days after featuring 73 minutes in the decisive promotion/relegation play-off match against Universitatea Cluj.

Sepsi OSK

On 2 June 2022, shortly after Dinamo București's relegation, Matei remained in the Liga I by signing a two-year contract with Sepsi OSK. He made his debut on 9 July, in a 2–1 victory over CFR Cluj in the Supercupa României.

International career

Matei made his debut for the Romania national team in a friendly against Albania played in Switzerland, in May 2014.

Career statistics

Club

International

Honours

Steaua București Dinamo București Sepsi OSK Individual