Martín Payero
Argentine footballer (born 1998)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Martín Ismael Payero (born 11 September 1998) is an Argentinian professional footballer who plays as a central midfielder for EFL Championship club Watford.[1]
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Martín Ismael Payero | ||
| Date of birth | 11 September 1998 | ||
| Place of birth | Pascanas, Argentina | ||
| Height | 1.83 m (6 ft 0 in)[1] | ||
| Position | Central midfielder | ||
| Team information | |||
Current team | Watford | ||
| Number | 22 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| Banfield | |||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2017–2021 | Banfield | 37 | (1) |
| 2019–2020 | → Talleres (loan) | 16 | (1) |
| 2021–2023 | Middlesbrough | 13 | (1) |
| 2022–2023 | → Boca Juniors (loan) | 25 | (5) |
| 2023–2026 | Udinese | 54 | (3) |
| 2025–2026 | → Cremonese (loan) | 25 | (1) |
| 2026– | Watford | 0 | (0) |
| International career‡ | |||
| 2021 | Argentina Olympic | 3 | (0) |
|
* Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 25 May 2026 ‡ National team caps and goals as of 14:55, 5 August 2021 (UTC) | |||
Club career
Banfield
Payero's career started with Banfield.[1][2] He first appeared in their first-team squad during the Primera División season, making his debut against San Martín on 4 December 2017; being substituted on for Eric Remedi with five minutes remaining.[1][3] He made three further appearances in 2017–18 before fourteen more occurred in 2018–19.[1] He scored his first senior goal in the latter, netting in a Copa Argentina victory over Juventud Unida on 27 February 2019.[1]
Loan to Talleres
The succeeding August saw Payero depart on loan to fellow Primera División team Talleres.[4] He scored once, versus Newell's Old Boys, in eighteen matches for them.[1]
Middlesbrough
On 5 August 2021, Payero joined Championship side Middlesbrough on a three-year deal for around €7 million.[5] On 11 August he made his debut for the club in a cup game against Blackpool which Middlesbrough then lost 3–0. He made his league debut on 14 August against Bristol City Which Middlesbrough went on to win 2–1. He scored his first goal for the club in a 2–0 victory over Cardiff City on 23 October that year.[6] He scored a penalty in the shootout against Manchester United as Middlesbrough knocked them out of the FA Cup on 4 February 2022.[7] Just less than a week later Middlesbrough went to QPR, and Payero came on as a substitute in the 87th minute. Minutes later, he went into a tackle, injured himself, was stretchered off the pitch, and did not make an appearance for the Middlesbrough senior team until the team played Swansea City on 23rd April, where he came on as a 90th-minute substitute for Marcus Tavernier in his last competitive appearance for Middlesbrough.
Loan to Boca Juniors
On 14 July 2022, Payero returned to Argentina to join Boca Juniors on a season-long loan deal.[8] On 23 October 2022, the 2022 Argentine Primera División ended with Payero's Boca Juniors winning the league title.[9]
Udinese
On 1 September 2023, Payero joined Serie A club Udinese for a fee believed to be £3 million on a four-year contract with the option of a further 12 months.
Loan to Cremonese
On 22 August 2025, Payero was loaned by Cremonese, with a conditional obligation to buy.[10]
Watford
On 31 July 2026, Payero signed for Championship club Watford on a two-year deal for an undisclosed fee.[11]
International career
Payero has previously been called up to train with the Argentina U20 squad.[3] He played in all three of Argentina's matches in the 2020 Summer Olympics.[5]
Career statistics
- As of match played 1 December 2025[1]
| Club | Season | League | National cup | League cup | Continental | Other | Total | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Banfield | 2017–18 | Argentine Primera División | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | |
| 2018–19 | 10 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1[a] | 0 | 0 | 0 | 14 | 1 | ||
| 2019–20 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | |||
| 2020–21 | 12 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | 14 | 1 | |||
| 2021 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | 10 | 0 | |||
| Total | 37 | 1 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 43 | 2 | ||
| Talleres (loan) | 2019–20 | Argentine Primera División | 16 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | 18 | 1 | |
| Middlesbrough | 2021–22 | EFL Championship | 13 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | 15 | 1 | |
| 2023–24 | EFL Championship | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | ||
| Total | 13 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 16 | 1 | ||
| Boca Juniors (loan) | 2022 | Argentine Primera División | 15 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | 17 | 1 | |
| 2023 | Argentine Primera División | 10 | 4 | 1 | 0 | – | 4 | 0 | – | 15 | 4 | |||
| Total | 25 | 5 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 32 | 5 | ||
| Udinese | 2023–24 | Serie A | 29 | 2 | — | — | — | — | 29 | 2 | ||||
| 2024–25 | Serie A | 25 | 1 | 2 | 0 | — | — | — | 27 | 1 | ||||
| Total | 54 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 56 | 3 | ||
| Cremonese (loan) | 2025–26 | Serie A | 10 | 1 | 0 | 0 | — | — | — | 10 | 1 | |||
| Career total | 155 | 12 | 12 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 175 | 13 | ||
- Appearance(s) in the Copa Sudamericana
Honours
Boca Juniors