The announcement had the effect of a bomb this Saturday early evening. Without a contract after his termination by mutual agreement with the Saudi club Al-Ittihad, the Italian-Brazilian central defender, Luiz Felipe, will join Olympique de Marseille to everyone's surprise. According to information from the Spanish media Reliefthe native of São Paulo will therefore arrive freely and sign a one and a half year contract with the Phocaeans. His arrival in Marseille is scheduled for this Monday. It was an open secret, but Pablo Longoria and Medhi Benatia had set themselves the objective of strengthening the Marseille defense after a first part of the season in this sector. With the more than uncertain situation of Lilian Brassier, the downgrading of Bamo Méïté, the shelving of Chancel Mbemba, and the disparate states of form of Derek Cornelius and Leonardo Balerdi, OM needed a defender more than ever center confirmed. The first reactions were not long in coming. Very quickly, the Marseille community came to the information to get to know the man who will become its first winter recruit in the coming hours.
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Born in Colina in the suburbs of São Paulo in Brazil, Luiz Felipe Ramos Marchi, his full name, is nevertheless a very well-known and respected player in Italy, where he spent a large part of his career. Moreover, Luiz Felipe is, like several other players such as Jorginho, Thiago Motta and Emerson Palmieri, an Italian international oriundo. This term defines all the descendants of Italian emigrants who, over the centuries, moved abroad without ever returning to Italy. Today, the number of Oriundi is estimated between 60 and 80 million with a large diaspora present in South America, explained by the successive waves of emigrations taking place in the 19th and 20th centuries when nearly 30 million Italians left the Boot for the two Americas. In Brazil, where Luiz Felipe was born, raised and trained, almost 13% of its population has Italian origins. It is logical that the 27-year-old central defender left Ituano FC to join Lazio at just 18 years old in 2016.
Simone Inzaghi's favorite!
Together with Pablo Longoria, Medhi Benatia was able to use his Italian networks to find the ideal profile: an experienced player at a lower cost. It is true that Luiz Felipe ticks a lot of boxes sought by OM to strengthen its defense. After a small loan to Salernitana, he very quickly integrated into Simone Inzaghi's group from the 2017/2018 season, becoming a centerpiece of his system. Measuring 1m87 and weighing 85 kilos, Luiz Felipe has good feet (like almost all Brazilian defenders), great dynamism, competitive energy, but above all, very strong confidence in his own abilities, which sometimes makes him take too many risks. . Taken under the wing of Stefan de Vrij at Lazio, his progression was meteoric as a central defender with a slender and very dynamic physique, also capable of playing at right-back and left-back from time to time. Luiz Felipe has good individual technique and is also skilled in setting up the game, which explains why his role was dominant in the flat 3-4-2-1 of Simone Inzaghi, who did everything to bring him back then at Inter Milan. His leadership qualities were noticed from his first outings in the Biancocelesti jersey. Strong in recovery and solid in intervention, he received few yellow cards, only 39 in 144 matches with Lazio, to which must be added a single expulsion.
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Artisan of the victories in the Coppa in 2019 and in the Supercoppa in 2017 and 2019, Luiz Felipe, who says he is inspired by Thiago Silva, David Luiz and Paolo Maldini as models, finally left Lazio Rome at the end of his contract in 2022 after 144 matches played with the Laziali: “Yesterday was my last match at the Olimpico with the Lazio jersey. There is a lot to say, but there will be time. Today I just want to thank all my teammates, all the supporters and all the people who work at this club which represents my home to me. Five years is a long time, here I grew up, became a man, a father and a Serie A footballer. Here I won many titles and wore the national team jersey. I am grateful and will always be linked to the colors of the Biancocelesti“, he then declared upon his departure from Lazio for Real Betis. His adventure in Spain was short-lived. After just one full season with the Verdiblancos, during which he played 34 matches in total, the Italian-Brazilian, who decided to represent the Nazionale, ended up packing his bags for Saudi Arabia.
«I want to clarify that there is not even a conflict over the sale of Luiz Felipe. It was an extraordinarily positive sale, his arrival was made for free and his sale brought in 22 million for the club. But this sale has a sporting cost. We are fewer, nine or ten players were sold and five came. We have more offensive elements but a lot of important defensive gaps now», lamented Manuel Pellegrini when Luiz Felipe left. On September 7, 2023, the former Lazio player signed with the Saudi club Al-Ittihad, where Karim Benzema, Fabinho and N'Golo Kanté play, for an amount of 25 million euros – bonus Understood. There, Felipe played 18 league games, before being hampered by some physical problems. This season, the Italian international (1 selection) only played one match with his club, before terminating his contract. these last few days. Marseille supporters can rest assured, their management has achieved a formidable coup at 0€ with the arrival of an experienced 27-year-old defender, who has played in Serie A and La Liga and has more than 30 European matches between the Champions League. and the Europa League, who will be able to perfectly use his technical qualities when restarting in Roberto De Zerbi's system.
Pub. the 04/01/2025 22:00
– UPDATE 04/01/2025 23:01
