Matías Valentín Gallardo (born 24 November 2003) is an Argentine footballer who currently plays as an attacking midfielder for Argentine Primera División side Instituto.
Early life Born in the Buenos Aires Province of Argentina, Gallardo is the son of football manager, and former Argentina international footballer, Marcelo Gallardo, and the brother of fellow footballers Nahuel and Santino Gallardo. His maternal uncle is Jonathan La Rosa, who was his manager in the River Plate reserve team.
Club career Early career Gallardo joined the academy of River Plate in 2014, when his father was appointed manager of the club. Having progressed through the academy, he made his debut for the club on 25 March 2023 in a 4–3 friendly win against Chilean team Universidad de Chile, almost exactly thirty years after his father had made his debut for the club.
Atlanta United In July 2023, Gallardo left River Plate, joining American club Atlanta United on a free transfer and being assigned to the club's reserve team. He made his MLS Next Pro debut the following month, coming on as a late substitute for Karim Tmimi in a 5–1 away loss to the New England Revolution II. Despite this, his start in the United States was seen as slow, and after a year in the country, he had not featured regularly.
As his form picked up, he accumulated more minutes, and in June 2024 he signed a Short-Term Agreement with Atlanta United's first team, ahead of their Major League Soccer match against D.C. United. An unused substitute against D.C. United, he would appear once more on the bench, in an 1–1 draw against St. Louis City, before being released by the club in October 2024.
