Personal information | |||||||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Full name | Luis Fernando Muriel Fruto [1] | ||||||||||||||||
Date of birth | [2] | 16 April 1991||||||||||||||||
Place of birth | Santo Tomás, Colombia | ||||||||||||||||
Height | 1.79 m (5 ft 10 in) [3] [4] [5] | ||||||||||||||||
Position(s) | Forward | ||||||||||||||||
Team information | |||||||||||||||||
Current team | Orlando City | ||||||||||||||||
Number | 9 | ||||||||||||||||
Youth career | |||||||||||||||||
2001–2008 | Atlético Junior | ||||||||||||||||
2008–2009 | Deportivo Cali | ||||||||||||||||
Senior career* | |||||||||||||||||
Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) | ||||||||||||||
2009–2010 | Deportivo Cali | 11 | (9) | ||||||||||||||
2010–2015 | Udinese | 57 | (15) | ||||||||||||||
2010–2011 | → Granada (loan) | 7 | (0) | ||||||||||||||
2011–2012 | → Lecce (loan) | 29 | (7) | ||||||||||||||
2015 | → Sampdoria (loan) | 16 | (4) | ||||||||||||||
2015–2017 | Sampdoria | 63 | (17) | ||||||||||||||
2017–2019 | Sevilla | 35 | (8) | ||||||||||||||
2019 | → Fiorentina (loan) | 19 | (6) | ||||||||||||||
2019–2024 | Atalanta | 144 | (54) | ||||||||||||||
2024– | Orlando City | 5 | (0) | ||||||||||||||
International career‡ | |||||||||||||||||
2011 | Colombia U20 | 5 | (4) | ||||||||||||||
2012– | Colombia | 45 | (8) | ||||||||||||||
Medal record
| |||||||||||||||||
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 03:15, 31 March 2024 (UTC) ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 24 March 2022 |
Luis Fernando Muriel Fruto (born 16 April 1991) is a Colombian professional footballer who plays as a forward for Major League Soccer club Orlando City and the Colombia national team.
Having started his professional career with Colombian side Deportivo Cali, Muriel joined Udinese. His first two seasons at the club saw him loaned out to Granada and Lecce respectively before returning to the club in 2012, during which year he won the Serie A Best Young Revelation award alongside Stephan El Shaarawy. After scoring 15 league goals in 57 appearances, Muriel joined fellow Serie A side Sampdoria in January 2015. He spent two-and-a-half seasons with the club, scoring 21 goals in 79 league appearances before joining Sevilla in 2017. In January 2019, he was sent back to Italy on loan with Fiorentina. In June 2019, Muriel signed for Atalanta for a reported €18 million. In his first season, he recorded 18 league goals and guided Atalanta to UEFA Champions League qualification for the first time in the club's history. The following season, he finished as the third top goalscorer in the Serie A, behind only Cristiano Ronaldo and Romelu Lukaku. Consequently, Atalanta qualified for a second consecutive Champions League tournament; for his efforts, Muriel was included in the 2020–21 Serie A Team of the Year.
Muriel is currently a Colombian international, having represented his nation at a full international level since 2012. He made his senior debut in June 2012, in a World Cup qualifying match against Ecuador, and scored his first goal the following year, netting against Guatemala. He later took part at the 2015, 2019, and 2021 editions of the Copa América, as well as the 2018 FIFA World Cup.
Having spent his formative years with Atlético Junior, Muriel joined Colombian Primera A side Deportivo Cali in January 2009. [6] [7] He made his debut against Envigado FC on 12 July 2009 in what would be his only appearance for the year before scoring nine goals in 10 appearances the following season. Muriel's early form for Deportivo Cali, which included a hat-trick against Once Caldas in his third match, earned him the nickname "the Colombian Ronaldo", in comparison to former Brazil striker Ronaldo, and midway through the season he was signed by Italian Serie A side Udinese. [8] [9] [10]
Udinese officially completed the signing of Muriel on 30 May 2010 for a reported fee of €1.5m. [11] In terms of the transfer agreement, Udinese obtained 70% of Muriel's playing rights with the remaining 30% being retained by Deportivo. [12] Shortly after his arrival in Udine, however, he was loaned to Segunda División side Granada. [13]
Muriel completed his loan move to Granada on 12 July 2010. [14] The club achieved promotion to La Liga for the first time in 35 years but it was an unsuccessful spell for Muriel, as he made only seven appearances for the season and failed to score. [15] [16]
Upon the expiration of his loan with Granada, Muriel was loaned out again for the following season to fellow Serie A side, Lecce. He made his debut for the club on 27 October 2011, coming on as a second-half substitute for Daniele Corvia in a 2–0 loss to Palermo. [17] On his first start for the club the following month, against Cesena, Muriel was sent off for two bookable offences. Lecce hung on to claim a 1–0 victory, however, thanks to a goal from fellow countryman and Udinese-loanee, Juan Cuadrado. [18] He improved to end the campaign with a return of seven goals in 29 appearances, though his efforts were not enough to prevent Lecce from being relegated to Serie B. [9] His form during the course of the season garnered the attention of A.C. Milan and Internazionale, with both clubs making official offers to sign him, but Muriel confirmed that he would be returning to Udinese. [19]
Muriel's poor physical condition upon his return to Udinese drew the ire of Francesco Guidolin, with the club manager insisting that he needed to lose 5 pounds (2.3 kg), despite the player scoring four goals against Arta Cedarchis in a pre-season friendly. [9] [20] He was able to get in shape for the start of the season and made his debut in a 2–1 defeat against Fiorentina on 25 August 2012, providing the assist to Maicosuel for the opening goal. [21] He signed a contract extension the following month, signing an improved five-year deal with the club. [22] In January 2012, Muriel was awarded the Serie A Best Young Revelation award alongside Milan's Stephan El Shaarawy in recognition of his form with Lecce and Udinese the previous year. [23] By the conclusion of the season, he had contributed a return of 11 goals in 22 Serie A appearances, despite having missed nearly four months of football because of a hairline fracture of his left femur. [9] [20]
The following season, in the qualifying playoff rounds of the 2013–14 UEFA Europa League, Muriel scored his first ever European goals, netting twice in a 3–1 victory over Široki Brijeg and in his first league match of the season, scored against reigning Coppa Italia champions, Lazio in a 2–1 loss. [24] [25] His form declined however, as he struggled with weight and injury issues, and over the course of the next season-and-a-half he scored only four goals in 35 league appearances, including a spell without any goals in 11 matches from the start of the 2014–15 Serie A season. [22] [26] He ultimately amassed 15 goals in 57 appearances for the club, before leaving to join Sampdoria in 2015. [27]
In spite of his struggles with Udinese, Sampdoria completed the double loan signings of Muriel and teammate Andrea Coda on 22 January 2015, with an obligation to purchase both players at the end of the season for a combined sum of €12m. In terms of the agreement, Muriel signed a contract with Sampdoria until 30 June 2019. [22] [28] [29] He scored four times in 16 appearances during his loan spell before completing a permanent transfer at the end of the season. [22] In his final campaign with the club he recorded a career best return of 11 league goals and five assists, which prompted Sevilla to break their club record to sign him at the end of the season. [30]
On 11 July 2017, La Liga side Sevilla announced the signing of Muriel for a reported club-record fee €20m, with potential add-ons. [30] [31] He made his debut on 19 August, starting in a 1–1 draw with Espanyol and scored his first goal for the club on 17 September, netting the winner in a 1–0 victory over Girona. [32] [33] Following a disappointing debut campaign, in which he only scored 9 goals in 46 appearances, Muriel found himself behind Wissam Ben Yedder and new club signings André Silva and Quincy Promes in the pecking order for Sevilla the following season. [34]
On 2 January 2019, Muriel returned to Serie A after signing with Fiorentina on loan for the remainder of the season. [35] He scored a hat-trick on his non-competitive debut a week later in a win over Maltese side, Hibernians before making his official debut on 14 January in a 2–0 Coppa Italia win over Torino. [36] [37] He then scored twice on his league debut on 20 January during a 3–3 draw with former club, Sampdoria. [38] He ultimately scored six league goals during his loan spell but was not signed permanently after the club underwent a change in ownership. [39] [40]
On 21 June 2019, after a successful loan spell with Fiorentina, Muriel returned to Serie A after signing with Atalanta in a permanent deal worth a reported €18 million. [41] For the 2020-2021 Atalanta season, he was the team's top goalscorer in Serie A league games (22 goals), and for all competitions (26 goals).
On 15 February 2024, Major League Soccer club Orlando City announced the signing of Muriel as a Designated Player on a three-year contract. [42]
Muriel represented Colombia at U20 level and featured for the nation at the 2011 FIFA U-20 World Cup for which Colombia were the host nation. On 6 August 2011, having previously scored twice against France, he scored the only goal of the match as Colombia defeated Korea Republic 1–0 to progress from the group stages with a perfect record. [43] Muriel ultimately scored four goals for the tournament before Colombia were knocked out by Mexico in the quarter-finals. [44]
Muriel was called up to the senior side for the first time in 2012 by new manager José Pékerman and made his debut in a 1–0 World Cup qualifier loss to Ecuador on 10 June. He scored his first goal the following year, scoring in a friendly against Guatemala on 6 February 2013. [45] [46] The following year, he was one of seven players cut from Colombia's extended squad for the 2014 FIFA World Cup in Brazil. [47] He was a member of Colombia's squad for the 2015 Copa América but was overlooked for the Copa América Centenario the following year. [48]
In May 2018 he was named in Colombia's preliminary 35-man squad for the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia. [49] He featured sporadically as Colombia reached the Round of 16 where they were eliminated following a penalty shoot-out defeat to England. [50]
The following summer, Muriel was included in the 23-man Colombia squad for the 2019 Copa América in Brazil. [51]
On 9 July 2021, Muriel assisted Luis Diaz's match–winning goal in a 3–2 victory over Peru in the third-place match of the 2021 Copa América. [52]
In his youth, Muriel was often praised in the media for his precocious performances during his early career in Italy, [53] which led him to win the Serie A Best Young Revelation Award in 2012. [54] Several footballing figures in Italy, such as manager Massimiliano Allegri, have recognised Muriel for his speed and technique on the ball, as well as the potential which he already demonstrated as a youngster; [55] his former Udinese teammate Antonio Di Natale even compared him to Alexis Sánchez in 2013. [56] Although Muriel is usually deployed as a centre-forward, he is a versatile forward, who is capable of playing in several offensive positions; indeed, during the 2012–13 season, under his former Udinese manager Francesco Guidolin, he also demonstrated his creative capabilities in a more withdrawn, central role behind another striker, which frequently saw him operate as either a second striker or attacking midfielder. [57] He is also capable of playing as a winger. [58] A fast, talented, creative, two-footed, and technically gifted striker, with good dribbling skills, pace, agility, acceleration, movement, and an eye for goal, Muriel's playing style, physical build, and appearance have led him to be compared to former Brazil striker Ronaldo. [6] [20] [57] [59] [60] Muriel has stated that this comparison is likely due to the fact that, as a youngster, he was an admirer of Ronaldo during the latter's time with Inter Milan. [9] Muriel went on to say that he supported Inter Milan because Ronaldo was playing for them at the time, and that he was initially a Milan fan. [61] [62] Coincidentally, Muriel also stated that, like his childhood idol, he also suffers from weight issues, and even had to lose five kg at one point during the 2012–13 season. [20] [61] [63] [64] This meant that he had to be consistent with his fitness regime, which enabled him to achieve a similar level of athletic ability to Ronaldo. [9] [65] [66] Aside from Ronaldo, another one of Muriel's major influences as a footballer in his youth was compatriot Iván Valenciano. [59] Despite his ability, he is also known to be inconsistent. [67]
Club | Season | League | National cup [lower-alpha 1] | Continental | Other | Total | ||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
Deportivo Cali | 2009 | Primera A | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | 1 | 0 | |||
2010 | Primera A | 10 | 9 | — | — | — | 10 | 9 | ||||
Total | 11 | 9 | — | — | — | 11 | 9 | |||||
Udinese | 2010–11 | Serie A | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 0 | 0 | ||
2012–13 | Serie A | 22 | 11 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 23 | 11 | ||
2013–14 | Serie A | 24 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 4 [lower-alpha 2] | 2 | — | 31 | 8 | ||
2014–15 | Serie A | 11 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 11 | 0 | |||
Total | 57 | 15 | 4 | 2 | 4 | 2 | — | 65 | 19 | |||
Granada (loan) | 2010–11 | La Liga | 7 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | — | 9 | 0 | ||
Lecce (loan) | 2011–12 | Serie A | 29 | 7 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 29 | 7 | ||
Sampdoria (loan) | 2014–15 | Serie A | 16 | 4 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 16 | 4 | ||
Sampdoria | 2015–16 | Serie A | 32 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 2 [lower-alpha 2] | 1 | — | 35 | 7 | |
2016–17 | Serie A | 31 | 11 | 2 | 2 | — | — | 33 | 13 | |||
Total | 79 | 21 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 1 | — | 84 | 24 | |||
Sevilla | 2017–18 | La Liga | 29 | 7 | 9 | 2 | 8 [lower-alpha 3] | 0 | — | 46 | 9 | |
2018–19 | La Liga | 6 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 10 [lower-alpha 2] | 3 | 1 [lower-alpha 4] | 0 | 19 | 4 | |
Total | 35 | 8 | 11 | 2 | 18 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 65 | 13 | ||
Fiorentina (loan) | 2018–19 | Serie A | 19 | 6 | 4 | 3 | — | — | 23 | 9 | ||
Atalanta | 2019–20 | Serie A | 34 | 18 | 1 | 0 | 6 [lower-alpha 3] | 1 | — | 41 | 19 | |
2020–21 | Serie A | 36 | 22 | 5 | 1 | 7 [lower-alpha 3] | 3 | — | 48 | 26 | ||
2021–22 | Serie A | 27 | 9 | 2 | 1 | 10 [lower-alpha 5] | 4 | — | 39 | 14 | ||
2022–23 | Serie A | 29 | 3 | 2 | 0 | — | — | 31 | 3 | |||
2023–24 | Serie A | 18 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 5 [lower-alpha 2] | 4 | — | 25 | 6 | ||
Total | 144 | 54 | 12 | 2 | 28 | 12 | — | 184 | 68 | |||
Orlando City | 2024 | Major League Soccer | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 [lower-alpha 6] | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 0 |
Career total | 383 | 120 | 36 | 11 | 55 | 18 | 1 | 0 | 479 | 149 |
National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
---|---|---|---|
Colombia | 2012 | 1 | 0 |
2013 | 4 | 1 | |
2014 | 0 | 0 | |
2015 | 3 | 0 | |
2016 | 6 | 0 | |
2017 | 3 | 0 | |
2018 | 5 | 1 | |
2019 | 10 | 3 | |
2020 | 4 | 2 | |
2021 | 8 | 1 | |
2022 | 1 | 0 | |
Total | 45 | 8 |
No. | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 6 February 2013 | Sun Life Stadium, Miami Gardens, United States | Guatemala | 4–1 | 4–1 | Friendly |
2 | 23 March 2018 | Stade de France, Saint-Denis, France | France | 1–2 | 3–2 | Friendly |
3 | 3 June 2019 | Estadio El Campín, Bogotá, Colombia | Panama | 2–0 | 3–0 | Friendly |
4 | 6 September 2019 | Hard Rock Stadium, Miami Gardens, United States | Brazil | 1–1 | 2–2 | Friendly |
5 | 2–1 | |||||
6 | 9 October 2020 | Estadio Metropolitano Roberto Meléndez, Barranquilla, Colombia | Venezuela | 2–0 | 3–0 | 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification |
7 | 3–0 | |||||
8 | 8 June 2021 | Estadio Metropolitano Roberto Meléndez, Barranquilla, Colombia | Argentina | 1–2 | 2–2 | 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification |
Colombia U20
Colombia
Individual
Fabio Quagliarella is an Italian former professional footballer who played as a forward.
Alex Sandro Lobo da Silva is a Brazilian professional footballer who plays as a left-back for Serie A club Juventus and the Brazil national team.
Juan Guillermo Cuadrado Bello is a Colombian professional footballer who plays for Serie A club Inter Milan and the Colombia national team. He usually plays on the right side of the pitch, either as a winger, full-back or wing-back. He is known for his direct style of play, including his pace as well as his dribbling skills.
During the 1997–98 Italian football season, Società Sportiva Lazio competed in the Serie A, Coppa Italia and UEFA Cup.
ACF Fiorentina returned to Serie A, following a two-year absence after the bankruptcy of the previous incarnation of the club. Fiorentina returned only due to the expansion in terms of the number of top-league teams, and therefore had to significantly strengthen the squad in pre-season. Dario Dainelli, Giorgio Chiellini, Hidetoshi Nakata, Fabrizio Miccoli, Martin Jørgensen, goalkeeper Cristiano Lupatelli, Enzo Maresca, Tomáš Ujfaluši and Javier Portillo were among the highly rated players to sign up for Fiorentina, either permanently or on loan. With this squad, Fiorentina was expected to challenge for a place on the top half of the table, but slipped into the relegation battle that affected more than half of the Serie A clubs during the dramatic season. In the end, a strong finish to the season under incoming coach Dino Zoff saved La Viola from relegation, with an emotional 3–0 victory against Brescia confirming their survival.
Associazione Calcio Fiorentina came off second best in a competitive battle for fourth in Serie A. Under Alberto Malesani's leadership, Fiorentina played an attacking 3–5–2 formation, where goal scoring duo Gabriel Batistuta and Luís Oliveira scored an accumulated 36 goals between them. Following the end of the season, Malesani accepted an offer from Parma, thus departing the club after only one season in charge. Sensationally, Giovanni Trapattoni became his successor, remarking that Fiorentina was serious about winning the league.
Parma Football Club only just survived a horror Serie A season for the club, in which the cash-strapped club went from Champions League contenders to relegation strugglers, only surviving thanks to a spareggio victory against Bologna. With lethal striker Alberto Gilardino leaving the club for Milan and goalkeeper Sébastien Frey for Fiorentina, the future looked bleak, especially given that several clubs had accumulated more than 40 points in the 2004–05 season. On a positive note, Parma reached the semi-finals of the UEFA Cup, where it drew 0–0 to CSKA Moscow, before finally losing 3–0 in Russia.
Duván Esteban Zapata Banguero is a Colombian professional footballer who plays as a forward for Serie A club Torino, on loan from Atalanta, and the Colombia national team.
Gerard Deulofeu Lázaro is a Spanish professional footballer who plays for Serie A club Udinese. Mainly a forward, he can also play as a winger on both flanks.
The 2013–14 season was Udinese Calcio's 34th season in Serie A and their 19th consecutive season in the top-flight. The club competed in Serie A, finishing 13th, and reached the semi-finals of the Coppa Italia. Having finished fifth in the 2012–13 Serie A, Udinese qualified for the third qualifying round of the UEFA Europa League. The team, however, failed to qualify for the group stage of the tournament, becoming the only Italian team to fail to qualify for a European group stage during the 2013–14 season.
The 2014–15 season was the 88th season in ACF Fiorentina's history and their 77th season in Serie A. The club competed in Serie A, finishing fourth, and reached the semi-finals in both the Coppa Italia and UEFA Europa League; in the latter competition they were eliminated 5–0 on aggregate by eventual champions Sevilla.
Carlos Joaquín Correa, nicknamed "El Tucu", is an Argentine professional footballer who plays as a forward for Ligue 1 club Marseille, on loan from Serie A club Inter Milan, and the Argentina national team.
The 2016–17 season was Atalanta Bergamasca Calcio's sixth consecutive season in Serie A.
The 2016–17 season was Udinese Calcio's 37th season in Serie A and their 22nd consecutive season in the top-flight. The club competed in Serie A, finishing 13th, and in the Coppa Italia, where they were eliminated in the third round by Serie B side Spezia Calcio.
The 2016–17 season was Unione Calcio Sampdoria's 60th season in Serie A, and their 5th consecutive season in the top-flight. Sampdoria competed in Serie A, finishing 10th, and in the Coppa Italia, where the club was eliminated in the round of 16 by Roma.
The 2017–18 season was Unione Calcio Sampdoria's 61st season in Serie A, and their 6th consecutive season in the top-flight. The club competed in Serie A and in the Coppa Italia, finishing 10th in the league after spending most of the campaign in 6th, and being eliminated in the latter competition in the round of 16.
The 2018–19 season was the 92nd season in ACF Fiorentina's history and their 81st in the top-flight of Italian football. Having finished 8th the previous season, Fiorentina competed only in Serie A and in the Coppa Italia.
The 2019–20 season was Atalanta Bergamasca Calcio's ninth consecutive season in Serie A, the top-flight of Italian football. The club competed in Serie A, the Coppa Italia, and, for the first time ever following their third-place finish the previous season, in the UEFA Champions League.
The 2019–20 season was Torino F.C.'s 109th season of competitive football, 92nd season in the top division of Italian football and 75th season in Serie A. The club competed in Serie A, the Coppa Italia, and, following Milan's exclusion from the competition following their breach of Financial Fair Play regulations, in the UEFA Europa League, starting in the second qualifying round.
The 2021–22 season was the 76th season in the existence of U.C. Sampdoria and the club's 10th consecutive season in the top flight of Italian football. In addition to the domestic league, Sampdoria participated in this season's edition of the Coppa Italia.