Scout Report: Marquinhos

Marquinhos, the future of Brazil’s defence

Who is Marquinhos?

Marquinhos is a Brazilian footballer of Portuguese descent. Although he had shown interest in playing for the Portuguese National team, Luis Scolari secured his services and gave him his first ever call-up to the Selecao in November last year.

Having been in the Corinthians set up since the age of eight, Marquinhos was very highly rated. While he didn’t break into the Corinthians side the way everyone expected, his six appearances for the senior side were enough to convince AS Roma to shell out 1.5 million Euros and bring him to Italy.

His time in Italy was undoubtedly his best football period till now as he established himself with defining performances against top sides like AC Milan and Juventus. A solitary season at Roma was met with applause from critics around the world and Marquinhos was the next big thing in world football.

Soon enough, PSG came knocking at his door and he couldn’t say no as he sealed a move to the French capital for a price of 31 million euros.

Career history

Marquinhos had joined the Corinthians youth set up at the tender age of eight. Through more than eight years of experience with them, he gradually developed into one of the most promising youngsters in Brazil. This was evident from the fact that he was made the captain of the Brazil U-17 team.

No more than two years later, he made it to the Corinthians first team and made more appearances towards the end of the season in 2012. Unfortunately for him, he was an unused substitute in the final of the Copa Libertadores which Corinthians won. Although he received the medal, he never made it onto the pitch in that tournament.

AS Roma’s scouting system was very active and they managed to get their hands on Marquinhos. While the factor of lack of professional experience was a stumbling block, they chose to ignore that and went on to sign him for 1.5 million.

Zdenek Zeman, the then manager of AS Roma, chose to put faith in this young lad and started him. Despite his first match being a loss, he caught everyone’s eye in his third. Playing against Atalanta, Marquinhos thrust himself into the spotlight with a great performance, which was the precursor for an entire season of amazing performances. Amassing 26 appearances in a solitary season at the age of 18, he left for greener pastures as PSG came calling.

His first season at PSG has been largely overshadowed by the dynamic presence of his fellow countrymen, Thiago Silva and Alex. With 18 appearances till date, he has been an important member of the team, although he has yet to bring back the impressions he made at Roma.

Style of play

Marquinhos’ early career was marked by him being identified as a versatile defender, but the subtle nuances of professional and amateur football led to him being rechristened a centre back with the occasional ability to switch to the right, should the team need such a change.

While the effects of Brazilian football are very visible in his game, the Italian acclimatization for a year has clearly supplemented his performances. The importance given to defence in Italy has made him a complete defender.

Playing from the back, his positioning is the biggest weapon in his armoury. The amount of concentration he possesses coupled with the right decision-making make him a tough tackler and leave little room for errors. His interceptions and reading of the game are very good. While his Brazilian teammate Thiago Silva is more of a physical defender, he is quite the opposite, as he impresses with his interceptions and calm demeanour.

While at Roma, he was a vital member of the squad and crucial to their performances, but his time at PSG has been more of a learning curve. Being exposed to European football alongside his Brazilian teammates, he is getting accustomed to performing on the big stage under pressure. With Laurent Blanc as his coach, a centre defender, it is highly likely that he will become one of the best over time.

Strengths

As mentioned above, positioning and reading the game have been his biggest assets. His light frame gives him speed, and that has been helping him against quick centre forwards. All of this put together makes him very good at making interceptions.

He also possesses the stamina to play long and enduring matches against top sides which dominate possession like Barcelona and Bayern Munich. Against such sides, his team would be compelled to defend as the opposition unquestionably dominates the ball, and his astute reading of the game could make him an important player.

Above all, his age is his biggest strength. He’s barely 20 years old and he is one of the best youngsters in Europe. This surely gives him the incentive and time to improve massively. Being at one of the best clubs in Europe with experienced players, he has everything to gain and will only become better as time passes.

Weaknesses

One of the few weaknesses he has is his aerial ability. This season, he was won just around 60% of his aerial battles. For a central defender in a team of PSG’s magnitude, that isn’t that good. Although he is 6 feet tall, his aerial presence leaves a lot to be desired.

He needs to work on his aerial prowess to be called a future great. If that means putting a little muscle on to improve his physical strength, so be it.

Another weaknesses could be the lack of experience. He’s played just 58 games in his professional career till now. Although he has not showed any signs of a lack of experience, there is always the possibility that he could crumble in games of high magnitude such as ones in the World Cup.

While experience can only be developed by playing more games, he could entirely root out this suspicion by putting in good performances against big teams in European competitions.

Possible destinations

The most important thing for the growth of young players is a competitive league. While PSG are a very good team, they literally hold a monopoly in the French Ligue 1. Opponents in France may not be up to the level of the teams in other leagues and that could possibly fuel a desire to leave.

With Arsenal, Manchester United and Chelsea interested in him, Marquinhos could be heading to England in the near future. His Brazilian background implies that his attacking skills will be of note, no matter how unpolished they are. This could have possibly been the reason for a rumoured move to Barcelona and we may see that materialize in the near future.

Either way though, PSG have bought him for a high price and wouldn’t let go of him easily. All we can do is wait and watch.

Images of his movement v Inter

When he was at Roma, he had arguably his best game till date against Inter. A look at these images would show his efforts on the particular day.

Heat Map

This shows his overall movement in the match. As you can clearly see, he is mainly involved between the lines of the centre and the right wing where he makes the most of his abilities.

Clearances

The following picture shows the positions from where he makes the clearances. A look at it would tell you that he holds his side of the defence properly, and that he is very good at making last-ditch clearances.

Heading

As mentioned earlier, his aerial ability is the only notable weakness in the game. In this match too, it evidently showed up as he won just one of his six headers. The following picture shows the positions where he lost headers. It proves that his heading leaves a lot to be desired and loss of headers in crucial positions could end up fatal for his team. So he really needs to work on improving that area of his game.

Conclusion

While Marquinhos’ experience on the big stage is rather limited, his performances have suggested that he possesses the requisite ability. His strengths largely outnumber his weaknesses and he is certainly one of the best youngsters in Europe.

The table below gives a comprehensive account of his profile:

Name: Marquinhos		Age: 19 Years		Primary Position: CB
Club: Paris Saint Germain		Salary: 800,000 EUR (2012)		Transfer Fee: 35 Million euros
Secondary Position: RB		Foot: Right		Country: Brazil
Player Bio Information
BMI: 22.3
Height: 1.83 M	Weight: 79 kg			Build: Light and muscular
Past Clubs: Corinthians and AS Roma			Major injuries this year: None so far
Physical Attributes
Strength: Good		Reaction: Good
Power: Excellent		Endurance: Difficult to assess. But, doesn’t get tired easily.
Positioning: Very good for his age		Discipline: Neat record. Just two bookings this season
Speed: Very quick		Work Rate: i) Attacking: Minimal ii) Defensive: High
Technical Ability
First Touch: Highly Cultivated		Heading: Needs to improve defensively. Has a poor rate of winning headers presently.
Weaker foot: More precision required		Dribbling: Rarely ever. But can make a good dribble on occasion
Long Passing: Very good at bringing the ball out of the back		Short Passing: Neat
Tackling: Impressive		Decision Making: Necessary level.
Ball Control: Good		Possession: Composed
Tactical Ability
Attacking: Not much of a role. However, does provide an option for a pass.
Defending: Positioning is his best ability. Has worked well in tandem with his countryman Thiago Silva. Needs to improve aerial ability and have a bigger impact on the game should he upstage his teammates Alex or Thiago Silva from the starting line-up.
Attacking corners: Has yet to score from an attacking corner this season. Needs to improve this along with his heading.
Free Kicks (att & def): N/A
Psychological Analysis
Courage: Good		Motivation: Good
Confidence: Has been a little short on confidence at PSG. Needs to build up the same he possessed at Roma.		Concentration: Very high. Has made just 3 errors this season in his defensive actions.
Communication: Good, Link up with short passes has been decent. Has forged a good partnership with Silva		Temperament: Aggressive while defending coupled with a neat record and very few bookings.

And finally, watch this video to get a glimpse of his footballing abilities:

http://youtu.be/1FmyVx0-66o