Enter Rabbi Matondo, stage left; sprouting from English soil on September 9, 2000, kick-starting his ambulatory adventures with the Welsh national team. A compact young lad of 5ft 8in (1.75m), tipping the scales at 10st 5lb (66kg), he hogs the hallowed left wing position for the Rangers. Nice, pro-winger bias must be an annoying thing to shake off. He's also partial to parading the number 17 on his back, lest anyone forgets.
Training at Manchester City in July 2016, Matondo breathed life into his Premier League journey. However, the hypnotic tune of Schalke 04's song in Germany lured him away, a pied piper worth £8.1m, if you want to get numerical. Not content with being a mere wallflower, he showed face in several league games; seven in his debut 2018 - 2019 season, twenty in the following, scoring twice (no one-trick pony, our Rabbi), and a teasing trio of appearances in 2020 - 2021.
In 2021, thirsty for new pastures, Matondo swung by Stoke City on a German loan, testing English waters again. A fruitful expedition, scoring once in ten matches. Not so bad for a youngling, eh? A brief stint in the sunny climes of Belgium for Cercle Brugge followed, an adopted Bruges son with 26 appearances and a decent nine-goal tally in the 2021 - 2022 season.
July 2022 saw another swift mood swing (blame it on the summer heat or the inherent wanderlust in his football boots). His whistle-stop tour landed him amongst the jovial japes of the Scottish Rangers, breaking bank to the sweet tune of £2.7m. So far, he has represented the blue half of Glasgow with passion and determination, boasting a record of 43 appearances and seven goals over three seasons. As of now, in the 2024 - 2025 season, he's already blasted in two goals in five outings.
Footnotes, or should I say, bootnotes, of his saga with Rangers are studded with promising cup cameos. A kick-off in the League Cup 2024 - 2025, one grand entrance and three quick change-arts in the Europa League 2023 - 2024, and a sneak preview substitute in the Champions League Qualifiers 2024 - 2025. A jack in the box, this lad; always ready to spring into action when duty calls.
And there we have it; the busy, bustling, bumpy journey of Rabbi Matondo - part-time nomad, full-time winger, and, according to Transfermarkt, worth every sterling of his £2.7m transfer tag. Fancy a punt on his next destination?
