Luis Muriel

Luis Muriel
Muriel with Colombia at the 2018 FIFA World Cup
Personal information
Full name Luis Fernando Muriel Fruto[1]
Date of birth (1991-04-16) 16 April 1991
Place of birth Santo Tomás, Colombia
Height 1.78 m (5 ft 10 in)[1]
Playing position Forward
Club information
Current team
Sevilla
Number 14
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)
2010–2011Granada (loan) 7 (0)
2011–2012Lecce (loan) 29 (7)
2015Sampdoria (loan) 16 (4)
2015–2017 Sampdoria 63 (17)
2017– Sevilla 29 (7)
National team
2011 Colombia U20 5 (4)
2012– Colombia 22 (2)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 5 June 2018
‡ National team caps and goals correct as of 11 September 2018

Luis Fernando Muriel Fruto (Spanish pronunciation: [ˈlwiz muˈɾjel];[lower-alpha 1] born 16 April 1991) is a Colombian professional footballer who plays as a striker for Sevilla and the Colombian 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.

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.

Club career

Deportivo Cali

Having spent his formative years with Atlético Junior, Muriel joined Colombian Primera A side Deportivo Cali in January 2009.[2][3] 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, 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.[4][5][6]

Udinese

Udinese officially completed the signing of Muriel on 30 May 2010 for a reported fee of €1.5m.[7] In terms of the transfer agreement, Udinese obtained 70% of Muriel's playing rights with the remaining 30% being retained by Deportivo.[8] Shortly after his arrival in Udine, however, he was loaned to Segunda División side Granada.[9]

Loans to Granada & Lecce

Muriel completed his loan move to Granada on 12 July 2010.[10] 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.[11][12]

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.[13] 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.[14] 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.[5] 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.[15]

Return to Udinese

Muriel's poor physical condition upon his return to Udinese drew the ire of Francesco Guidolin, with the club manager insiting that he needed to lose 5 pounds (2.3 kg), despite the player scoring four goals against Arta Cedarchis in a pre-season friendly.[5][16] 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.[17] He signed a contract extension the following month, signing an improved five-year deal with the club.[18] 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.[19] 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.[5][16]

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.[20][21] 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.[18][22] He ultimately amassed 15 goals in 57 appearances for the club, before leaving to join Sampdoria in 2015.[23]

Sampdoria

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.[18][24][25] He scored four times in 16 appearances during his loan spell before completing a permanent transfer at the end of the season.[18] 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.[26]

Sevilla

On 11 July 2017, La Liga side Sevilla announced the signing of Muriel for a reported club-record fee €20m, with potential add-ons.[26][27] 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.[28][29] 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.[30]

International career

Youth team

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.[31] Muriel ultimately scored four goals for the tournament before Colombia were knocked out by Mexico in the quarter-finals.[32]

Senior team

Muriel stepping up to take a penalty kick during Colombia's penalty shoot-out defeat to England at the 2018 FIFA World Cup.

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.[33][34] The following year, he was one of seven players cut from Colombia's extended squad for the 2014 FIFA World Cup in Brazil.[35] He was a member of Colombia's squad for the 2015 Copa América but was overlooked for the Copa América Centenario the following year.[36]

In May 2018 he was named in Colombia’s preliminary 35 man squad for the 2018 World Cup in Russia.[37] He featured sporadically as Colombia reached the Round of 16 where they were eliminated following a penalty shoot-out defeat to England.[38]

Style of play

He has been praised often during his time in Italy, which led him to win the award for best young player in the Serie A league in 2012. Many figures in Italy such as fellow Udinese teammate Antonio Di Natale, praised Muriel for his technique on the ball and potential.[39]

Muriel stated that his comparison to Brazilian legend Ronaldo by his playing style, is likely because he was a main supporter of Ronaldo during his time in Inter Milan.[40] Muriel went on to say that he supported Inter Milan because Ronaldo was playing for them at the time.[41] Coincidentally, Muriel also stated that he also suffers weight issues (like Ronaldo during his time) and had to lose five kilos at one point.[42][43] This meant that he had to be consistent with fitness, which explained his similar style to the Brazilian legend and high quality in terms of athletic stature.[40][44][45]

Career statistics

Club

As of match played 23 August 2018[46]
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
ClubSeasonLeagueCup1Continental2OtherTotal
LeagueAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
Deportivo Cali2009Primera A 1010
2010109109
Total119000000119
Udinese2010–11Serie A 000000
2012–13 221110002311
2013–14 2443242318
2014–15 1100000110
Total57154242006519
Granada (loan)2010–11La Liga 702090
Lecce (loan)2011–12Serie A 29700297
Sampdoria2014–15Serie A 16400164
2015–16 3261021357
2016–17 3111223313
Total79213221008424
Sevilla2017–18La Liga 2979280469
2018–19 1000411061
Total30792121105210
Career total 213591861841025069

1 Includes Coppa Italia and Copa del Rey matches.
2 Includes UEFA Europa League matches.

International

As of match played 3 July 2018
Appearances and goals by year[47]
National teamYearAppsGoals
Colombia 201210
201341
201400
201530
201660
201730
201851
Total222

International goals

Scores and results list Colombia's goal tally first.[47]
No.DateVenueOpponentScoreFinalCompetition
1.6 February 2013Sun Life Stadium, Miami Gardens, United States Guatemala4–14–1Friendly
2.23 March 2018Stade de France, Saint-Denis, France France1–23–2

Honours

Individual

Notes

  1. In isolation, Luis is pronounced [lwis].

References

  1. 1 2 "2018 FIFA World Cup Russia: List of players: Colombia" (PDF). FIFA. 10 June 2018. p. 5. Retrieved 11 June 2018.
  2. Mitchell, Steve (30 November 2016). "Scouting Report: Introducing Chelsea target Luis Muriel". Calcio Mercato. Retrieved 9 July 2017.
  3. Futbolmanía RCN (ed.): «Tres goles de Muriel le dan respiro al Deportivo Cali ». Canalrcn.com.
  4. "Barcelona tiene a Muriel en su radar". El Heraldo. 16 June 2017. Retrieved 9 July 2017. (in Spanish)
  5. 1 2 3 4 Doyle, Mark (30 May 2013). "'The Colombian Ronaldo' - Introducing Liverpool target Luis Muriel". Goal. Retrieved 9 July 2017.
  6. "Luis Muriel jugará en Udinese". ESPN. 13 May 2010. Retrieved 9 July 2017. (in Spanish)
  7. Beattie, Chris. "Why Man Utd and Liverpool have joined the battle for Luis Muriel - the new Ronaldo". Tribal Football. Retrieved 9 July 2017.
  8. "Luis Muriel pasa del Cali al Udinese italiano". Vanguardia. 14 May 2010. Retrieved 9 July 2017. (in Spanish)
  9. "El Granada ficha a los jugadores del Udinese Muriel y Siqueira". Marca. 12 July 2010. Retrieved 12 November 2017. (in Spanish)
  10. Granada Club de Fútbol – Web oficial. Granada CF. (in Spanish)
  11. "Granada promoted to La Liga". Sky Sports. 18 June 2011. Retrieved 9 July 2017.
  12. "Atleti interest in Muriel". Football Espana. 19 June 2017. Retrieved 9 July 2017.
  13. "Palermo v Lecce: 2–0". Soccerway. 27 October 2017. Retrieved 9 July 2017.
  14. "Cesena 0–1 Lecce". Sapo Desporto. 6 November 2011. Retrieved 9 July 2017.
  15. Coerts, Stefen (10 April 2012). "Inter & AC Milan have made official offers for me, says Luis Muriel". Goal. Retrieved 9 July 2017.
  16. 1 2 "Meet Udinese's Luis Muriel, the forward aiming to emulate Brazil's Ronaldo". Eurosport. 12 June 2013. Retrieved 9 July 2017.
  17. "Fiorentina 2 - 1 Udinese". Football Italia. 25 August 2012. Retrieved 9 July 2017.
  18. 1 2 3 4 De Cosemo, Harry (16 March 2017). "Luis Muriel: Colombia's fallen star now taking Serie A by storm with Sampdoria". Sportskeeda. Retrieved 9 July 2017.
  19. "Gran Gala Del Calcio 2012 – Winners". Forza Italian Football. 28 January 2013. Retrieved 9 July 2017.
  20. "Football Results Thursday 1st August 2013". Sky Sports. 1 August 2013. Retrieved 9 July 2017.
  21. "Lazio 2-1 Udinese: Muriel Strike Not Enough As Biancocelesti Win". Forza Italian Football. 25 August 2013. Retrieved 9 July 2017.
  22. Jiang, Allan (12 January 2015). "Luis Muriel: Colombian Ronaldo High Risk, High Reward for Sampdoria". Bleacher Report. Retrieved 9 July 2017.
  23. "Sampdoria Land Udinese Duo Muriel and Cora". Four Four Two. 22 January 2015. Retrieved 9 July 2017.
  24. "Finalmente Blucerchiati: Murie e Coda, Benvenuti al Doria" (in Italian). UC Sampdoria. 22 January 2015. Retrieved 9 July 2017.
  25. "Sampdoria, è fatta per Muriel: dall'Udinese arriva anche Coda, i dettagli". GianlucaDiMarzio.com (in Italian). 9 January 2015. Retrieved 11 July 2017.
  26. 1 2 "Sevilla strikes deal for Luis Muriel". beIN Sports. 8 July 2017. Retrieved 9 July 2017.
  27. "El Fichaje de Muriel ya es Oficial". Sevilla. 11 July 2017. Retrieved 11 July 2017.
  28. Carral, Gorka (20 August 2017). "Luis Muriel: "No estuve afortunado de cara al gol"". Vavel. Retrieved 20 August 2017. (in Spanish)
  29. "Real Madrid get needed win vs. La Real; Sevilla beat Girona to go second". ESPN. 17 September 2017. Retrieved 17 October 2017.
  30. Alba, Jesus (11 September 2018). "Volver a la 'pole', el nuevo reto de Muriel" (in Spanish). Diario de Sevilla. Retrieved 12 September 2018.
  31. "Colombians finish perfect, South Koreans through". FIFA. 6 August 2011. Retrieved 9 July 2017.
  32. "FIFA U-20 World Cup Colombia 2011". FIFA. Retrieved 12 November 2017.
  33. Edwards, Daniel (16 May 2012). "Muriel included in Colombia squad for World Cup qualifiers". Goal. Retrieved 9 July 2017.
  34. "Scout report - Luis Muriel". Sportskeeda. 4 May 2014. Retrieved 9 July 2017.
  35. Worswick, Carl (4 June 2014). "Life after Falcao for Colombia". ESPN. Retrieved 9 July 2017.
  36. Juniorista, Rincon (5 June 2016). "El regalo de Luis Fernando Muriel para Ovelar". El Heraldo. Retrieved 10 July 2017. (in Spanish)
  37. "Revealed: Every World Cup 2018 Squad". Goal. Retrieved 6 July 2018.
  38. Wallace, Sam; Tylers, Alan (4 July 2018). "England banish penalty curse to pass Colombia test and reach World Cup quarter-final". The Telegraph. Retrieved 6 July 2018.
  39. Muriel will be a great, says Di Natale. Football Italia (2 May 2013).
  40. 1 2 http://www.goal.com/en-gb/news/2892/transfer-zone/2013/05/30/4014129/the-colombian-ronaldo-introducing-liverpool-target-luis
  41. http://football-italia.net/35100/muriel-im-inter-fan
  42. https://uk.eurosport.yahoo.com/blogs/pitchside-europe/meet-udinese-luis-muriel-forward-aiming-emulate-brazil-142745779.html
  43. http://metro.co.uk/2013/08/08/who-is-manchester-united-target-luis-muriel-3916602/
  44. Player Focus: Luis Muriel – The Forgotten Forward in This Summer's Transfer Window. Whoscored.com (18 July 2013).
  45. http://www.goal.com/en/news/10/italy/2012/07/20/3254214/guidolin-muriel-must-lose-weight
  46. "Luis Fernando Muriel Fruto". Soccerway. Retrieved 9 July 2017.
  47. 1 2 "Luis Muriel". National Football Teams. Retrieved 11 September 2018.
  48. "Gran Galà del Calcio Aic. E' Pirlo il migliore del 2012" (in Italian). Tuttosport. 27 January 2013. Archived from the original on 25 April 2016. Retrieved 25 April 2016.
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