Matthe Smet

Matte Smets grew up in the Genk academy, where he stayed until 2018, before Sint-Truidense took him into their own youth ranks. He signed his first professional contract with STVV in May 2022 and made his senior debut that October, coming off the bench in a 2–0 defeat to Royal Antwerp. From there he pushed his way into the STVV side, went on to make 54 appearances and was named in the club's team of the season.

That form took him back to Genk in June 2024, in a transfer worth around €2.3 million on a four-year deal running to 2028. The move did not go down well at Sint-Truiden: Smets had a release clause that let him join a direct rival, and the club reacted by publishing a photoshopped image referencing Julius Caesar's "Tu quoque, fili mi". Thorsten Fink, who had coached him at STVV and had by then taken over at Genk, played a part in bringing him across.

Smets has since worked his way through the Belgian youth set-ups, with caps at both U20 and U21 level, and made his senior international debut in November 2024 against Israel.