Brighton youngster Matías Orozco has taken another big step towards his Premier League ambitions, making his senior Colombia debut at just 18.
The midfielder joined the Seagulls from Deportivo Cali in August before heading to CD Castellón on loan. He’s now had his first taste of international football, just weeks after admitting he wanted that opportunity “as soon as possible”.
And his first coach is getting rather excited about what could come next. Carlos Bolívar Meneses, who worked with Orozco from childhood, believes Brighton have signed a player capable of becoming one of Colombia’s all-time greats.
Brighton youngster takes another step towards England
Colombian newspaper El Tiempo have looked back at Orozco’s rise following his first senior international appearance under Néstor Lorenzo.
The 18-year-old had already represented Colombia’s Under-20s under César Torres. Now he’s made the step up to the senior side. And according to the newspaper, he needed only a handful of minutes to make an impression.
| Date | Opponent | Result | Minutes played |
|---|---|---|---|
| 26 September 2026 | Mexico | 1-1 | 19′ |
| 2 October 2026 | Paraguay | 0-1 | 19′ |
| 6 October 2026 | Peru | 2-0 | 0′ |
They highlight his confidence, willingness to attack the opposition box and ability to operate in different positions.
El Tiempo explain that the midfielder still needs to accumulate enough points to meet the requirements for playing in the Premier League. But of course his loan at Castellón is already helping him adjust to European football.
And the early signs have certainly been encouraging.
‘You’re the Colombian Bellingham’
Matías Orozco recently told the Colombian media that Jude Bellingham was one of his biggest references. He even joked that he could see some of the Real Madrid midfielder’s qualities in his own game.
Now it turns out his first coach has been making the same comparison.
“I told him, ‘You’re the Colombian Bellingham.’ You go up and down, you score goals, you’re technical,” Bolívar told El Tiempo.
“He loves that, and he’s going to be as great as him. He’s going to be one of the best players in Colombian football history. He’s going straight to the top.”
“At 18, he’s already playing in Europe, and that didn’t even happen to James [Rodríguez] or Lucho [Luis Díaz].”
Bolívar has known Orozco since he was a little boy, so his confidence comes from years of watching him develop. He also believes the midfielder’s versatility has always been one of his biggest strengths.
When Orozco arrived at Deportivo Cali, even the coaches struggled to decide where he should play.
“Everyone tells us, ‘We don’t know what position he plays,'” Bolívar explained. “The coach himself told me, ‘I’m keeping him because he’s responsible in any position, whether it’s number six, number eight or on the wing. He’s versatile.'”
“That’s why he adapted quickly to Spanish football. He arrived there and three days later he was already producing backheels in the penalty area.”
“They gave him freedom because that’s how he was from the beginning. They understood his style, which is original and his own. Nobody restricted him or told him off.”
He has already said he prefers playing box-to-box, although his coaches have long appreciated his ability to contribute almost anywhere.
He wasn’t even good at football when he started
Orozco started attending Escuela Barranquillera at five years old. His mother sent him there because he was an extremely restless child. Football was supposed to keep him occupied and teach him some discipline.
According to Bolívar, the young Orozco was more interested in causing trouble than becoming a footballer.
He would move the training cones, interrupt lessons and play jokes on the other children… And his coach admits he wasn’t very talented.
“When he arrived, they brought him to do sport so he wouldn’t spend so much time on the streets,” Bolívar recalled.
“The idea was to encourage him to study, develop good habits and learn values through sport. He liked it, but he wasn’t exactly a model child. He was clever, a real handful.”
“There were many others who had been kicking a ball since they were in the womb and had much better motor skills than Mati. But he was bad, to tell the truth.”
By eight, things were beginning to change. He received his first proper kit, learned the discipline of travelling with the team and started playing tournaments across Colombia’s Caribbean coast.
Football gradually became the most important thing in his life.
Five matches in a day? No problem
Matías Orozco grew up in modest surroundings. His family initially lived with relatives in Santuario, a working-class neighbourhood of Barranquilla, before moving to Mundo Feliz in Galapa.
Bolívar describes the latter as a difficult area, with crime and drugs among the problems facing the community. Yet he remembers Orozco as an unusually independent child who quickly made friends wherever he went.
“He was always very independent from his family,” the coach explained.
“At weekends, he stayed in lots of different houses, sometimes with people he barely knew. The other children’s parents became very fond of him because he helped their kids become more lively.”
“Even some teachers would take him home. He was very daring and everyone grew fond of him.”
That personality carried over onto the pitch. Orozco rarely played exclusively with children his own age. Coaches regularly moved him into older age groups. And he seemed capable of playing endlessly.
“Matías almost never played in his own age group,” Bolívar said. “They put him in the more advanced categories.”
“We’d come back from playing in one city, he’d get off one bus and jump straight onto another heading to a tournament in a different city. That helped him a lot.”
His appetite for football eventually earned him the nickname “rayúo“, referring to someone who always wanted to be playing.
“We called him that because all he thought about was playing football,” Bolívar explained.
“We’d say, ‘You can’t play five matches,’ but he could, and he did. He had the physique for it. Always ate a lot and was strongly built. He did pull-ups and started taking things seriously.”
Brighton signing never dreamed of being a footballer
For all those hours spent playing, he apparently never spoke about becoming a professional. Bolívar says the youngster had plenty of other ideas.
“He started studying online and it didn’t really suit him because he’s very restless,” the coach said.
“When he was little, he wanted to be a firefighter. The following year, a policeman. I never heard him say he wanted to be a footballer.”
“He never talked about wanting to go to Real Madrid or Manchester. For him, football was fun, not a profession. He never imagined so many golden opportunities would come his way so quickly.”
That love of simply playing eventually caught the attention of Deportivo Cali scout Agustín Garizábalo. Garizábalo had previously worked at the football school and had known about Orozco’s qualities for years.
At 14, the midfielder moved away from his family to join Cali. Bolívar believes that move transformed him physically and technically.
“He really developed at Cali,” he said. “We had him for three days a week and they had him for five. They have better facilities and much more support.”
“He developed there, got stronger, gained muscle mass, learned about technology and improved quickly because he’s very intelligent.”
Orozco also received support from agents Leonardo Daza and Mario Sarmiento of Alda Sport, who became important figures in his life away from home.
From Deportivo Cali to Brighton and Colombia
Alberto Gamero eventually handed Matías Orozco his Deportivo Cali debut in September 2025. His performances also attracted attention at international youth level.
Bolívar recalls how César Torres, Colombia’s Under-20 coach, was impressed: “He told me, ‘Carlos, your school should have eight Matíases. I need eight players like him.'”
Orozco went on to feature at the Central American Games and the Maurice Revello Tournament.
Brighton then arrived with an offer reportedly worth around €4.8m (£4.2m) plus bonuses for 85% of his rights, leaving Deportivo Cali with a 15% stake.
The Seagulls immediately sent him to Castellón, where he’s been adapting to Spanish football and getting his first European experience. Now he’s already made his senior Colombia debut and, as it seems, he’s becoming the talk of the town back home.
