Federico Marchetti (; born 7 February 1983) is an Italian professional

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby le ...

who plays as a

goalkeeper In many team sports which involve scoring goals, the goalkeeper (sometimes termed goaltender, netminder, GK, goalie or keeper) is a designated player charged with directly preventing the opposing team from scoring by blocking or intercepting o ...

for

Serie A The Serie A (), also called Serie A TIM for national sponsorship with TIM, is a professional league competition for football clubs located at the top of the Italian football league system and the winner is awarded the Scudetto and the Coppa ...

club

Spezia La Spezia (, or , ; in the local Spezzino dialect) is the capital city of the province of La Spezia and is located at the head of the Gulf of La Spezia in the southern part of the Liguria region of Italy. La Spezia is the second largest city ...

. Marchetti began his professional club career with

Torino Turin ( , Piedmontese: ; it, Torino ) is a city and an important business and cultural centre in Northern Italy. It is the capital city of Piedmont and of the Metropolitan City of Turin, and was the first Italian capital from 1861 to 1865. T ...

in 2002, and was subsequently loaned out to

Pro Vercelli Football Club Pro Vercelli 1892, commonly referred to as Pro Vercelli, is an Italian football club based in Vercelli, Piedmont. The club is mostly renowned as one of the most successful teams in the early football era of Italy, with seven natio ...

Crotone Crotone (, ; nap, label= Crotonese, Cutrone or ) is a city and ''comune'' in Calabria, Italy. Founded as the Achaean colony of Kroton ( grc, Κρότων or ; la, Crotona) in Magna Graecia, it was known as Cotrone from the Middle Ages until ...

, and

Treviso Treviso ( , ; vec, Trevixo) is a city and ''comune'' in the Veneto region of northern Italy. It is the capital of the province of Treviso and the municipality has 84,669 inhabitants (as of September 2017). Some 3,000 live within the Veneti ...

. In 2005, he spent a season with

Biellese The Biellese is a breed of large domestic sheep indigenous to the province of Biella, in Piedmont in north-western Italy, from which it takes its name. It may also be known as the Razza d'Ivrea, after the town of Ivrea, or as the Piemontese ...

, and later played for AlbinoLeffe and

Cagliari Cagliari (, also , , ; sc, Casteddu ; lat, Caralis) is an Italian municipality and the capital of the island of Sardinia, an autonomous region of Italy. Cagliari's Sardinian name ''Casteddu'' means ''castle''. It has about 155,000 inhabitant ...

, before moving to Lazio in 2011, where he won the

Coppa Italia The ("Italy Cup") is an annual knockout cup competition in Italian football organized by the FIGC until the 2009–10 season and the Lega Serie A ever since. History The beginning of the tournament was turbulent, due to the complexity of ...

in 2013. At international level, he has represented Italy at the

2010 FIFA World Cup , image = 2010 FIFA World Cup.svg , size = 200px , caption = ''Ke Nako. (Tswana and Sotho for "It's time") Celebrate Africa's Humanity'It's time. Celebrate Africa's Humanity'' (English)''Dis tyd. Vier Afrika se mensd ...

, at the

2013 FIFA Confederations Cup The 2013 FIFA Confederations Cup was the ninth FIFA Confederations Cup, which was held in Brazil from 15 to 30 June 2013 as a prelude to the 2014 FIFA World Cup. The most recent winners of the six continental championships appeared in the tourna ...

(winning a bronze medal), and at

UEFA Euro 2016 The 2016 UEFA European Football Championship, commonly referred to as UEFA Euro 2016 (stylised as UEFA EURO 2016) or simply Euro 2016, was the 15th UEFA European Championship, the quadrennial international men's football championship of Europe o ...

Club career

Early career

A Torino

youth system In sporting terminology, a youth system (or youth academy) is a youth investment program within a particular team or league, which develops and nurtures young talent in farm teams, with the vision of using them in the first team in the future if ...

trainee, Marchetti made his professional debut on loan to Pro Vercelli, being then loaned to a number of other

Serie C1 Lega Pro Prima Divisione was the third highest football (soccer), football league in Italy. It consisted of 33 teams, divided geographically into two divisions of 16 and 17 teams for group A and B respectively. Until 2008 it was known as Serie C1 ...

and

Serie C2 Lega Pro Seconda Divisione was the fourth highest football league in Italy, the lowest with a professional status. Usually it consisted of 36 teams, but in the 2011–12 season, there were 41 teams divided geographically into two divisions of 2 ...

teams in the following years: he spent the 2003–04 season as second choice keeper with Crotone and later Treviso, without making a single appearance with any of these teams. He started the 2004–05 season as third-choice keeper Torino, making a single appearance in his time with the ''granata'' as a substitute; he then asked to be transferred in January 2005, after Torino signed another keeper, Gianluca Berti, and he was subsequently loaned to Pro Vercelli for the remainder of the season.

AlbinoLeffe

In mid-2005, Torino which originally promoted to Serie A, went bankrupt and a new team started again in Serie B as successor, and all of the old Torino players were allowed to leave for free. He was signed by AlbinoLeffe and left for Biellese in co-ownership deal. In June 2006, he was bought back by

Serie B The Serie B (), currently named Serie Balkrishna Industries, BKT for sponsorship reasons, is the second-highest division in the Italian football league system after the Serie A. It has been operating for over ninety years since the 1929–30 ...

club AlbinoLeffe, initially as reserve to

Paolo Acerbis Paolo Domenico Acerbis (born 5 May 1981) is an Italian footballer, who plays as a goalkeeper for Eccellenza club S.S.D. Mapello. He also played for professional club Livorno in Serie A, as well as AlbinoLeffe, Triestina, Catania and Vicenza ...

. In his first season with the ''celeste'', he made 13 appearances, being successively promoted as first choice keeper the following season. During the 2007–08 season, his performances proved to be instrumental in AlbinoLeffe's historic first qualification to the promotion playoffs, where his club narrowly missed promotion to

Lecce Lecce ( ); el, label=Griko, Luppìu, script=Latn; la, Lupiae; grc, Λουπίαι, translit=Loupíai), group=pron is a historic city of 95,766 inhabitants (2015) in southern Italy. It is the capital of the province of Lecce, the province ...

. He subsequently won the Serie B best goalkeeper award, thus raising significant interest from top-flight teams.

Cagliari

In July 2008, Cagliari agreed a loan bid with AlbinoLeffe for the goalkeeper, with Cagliari having an option to buy 50% of players' rights to an agreed price. In his first season in the

, Marchetti confirmed his performances, firmly ensuring a place in the starting lineup, his performances being praised by several football pundits, being also defined by

Gianluigi Buffon Gianluigi Buffon (; born 28 January 1978) is an Italian professional footballer who captains and plays as a goalkeeper for the club Parma. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest goalkeepers of all time. He is one of the few recorded pl ...

as his favourite Italian young goalkeeper. On 1 February 2010, Cagliari bought the remain rights from AlbinoLeffe. However, he was frozen by the club in 2010–11 season, as his transfer request denied He became the third keeper, behind

Michael Agazzi Michael Agazzi (; born 3 July 1984) is an Italian former footballer who played as a goalkeeper. He is currently working as a youth coach at Real Calepina. Club career Early career Agazzi was a youth product of Atalanta. He start his professiona ...

and

Ivan Pelizzoli Ivan Pelizzoli (; born 18 November 1980) is an Italian former professional footballer who played as a goalkeeper. Club career Early career After playing for Atalanta and Triestina from 1997 to 2000, he made his Serie A debut with Atalanta on 5 ...

. He was unfrozen on 3 April 2011, winning

Genoa Genoa ( ; it, Genova ; lij, Zêna ). is the capital of the Italian region of Liguria and the List of cities in Italy, sixth-largest city in Italy. In 2015, 594,733 people lived within the city's administrative limits. As of the 2011 Italian ce ...

as unused bench.

Lazio

Following the departure of their

Uruguay Uruguay (; ), officially the Oriental Republic of Uruguay ( es, República Oriental del Uruguay), is a country in South America. It shares borders with Argentina to its west and southwest and Brazil to its north and northeast; while bordering ...

international

Fernando Muslera Néstor Fernando Muslera Micol (; born 16 June 1987) is a Uruguayan professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for Turkish club Galatasaray, whom he captains, and the Uruguay national team. He is considered one of the finest goalkeepers ...

at the end of the

2010–11 1 (one, unit, unity) is a number representing a single or the only entity. 1 is also a numerical digit and represents a single unit of counting or measurement. For example, a line segment of ''unit length'' is a line segment of length 1. I ...

season, Marchetti joined Lazio. President

Claudio Lotito Claudio Lotito (born 9 May 1957 in Rome) is an Italian entrepreneur and politician. He is the owner and president of the Serie A football club S.S. Lazio since 2004. Lotito earned his high school diploma in Classics at Ugo Foscolo Classical Ly ...

activated Marchetti's €5.2 million release clause. Marchetti arrived in Rome on 5 July to undertake a medical and sign a five-year contract. He described his move to Lazio as "the end of a nightmare". Marchetti played a terrific season for Lazio and his presence and command over the defence together with his numerous saves helped Lazio achieve two consecutive Europa League qualifications with 5th and 4th-place finishes in the 2010–11 and 2011–12 Serie A campaigns respectively. Federico Marchetti's continued period of good form during the 2012–13 season saw become one of the club's protagonists; on 26 May 2013, he won the

with Lazio, keeping a clean sheet in a historic 1–0

Rome derby The Derby della Capitale ( en, Derby of the capital city), also known as Derby Capitolino and Derby del Cupolone, as well as The Rome Derby in English and Derby di Roma in Italian, is the football local derby in Rome, Italy, between Lazio and R ...

final victory against cross-city rivals

Roma Roma or ROMA may refer to: Places Australia * Roma, Queensland, a town ** Roma Airport ** Roma Courthouse ** Electoral district of Roma, defunct ** Town of Roma, defunct town, now part of the Maranoa Regional Council *Roma Street, Brisbane, a ...

. His performances led him to be called up once again to the Italian national team.

Genoa

Marchetti was acquired by

on 2 July 2018 on a free transfer after his contract expired with Lazio.

Spezia

On 21 January 2023 signed a 6 months contract for

until the end of the season.

International career

In May 2009, following his impressive performances with Cagliari, Marchetti received his first call-up to

Marcello Lippi Marcello Romeo Lippi (; born 12 April 1948) is an Italian former professional football player and manager, who led the Italian national team to victory in the 2006 FIFA World Cup. He was appointed as Italy head coach in the summer of 2004 and 2 ...

's Italian national team for a friendly game versus

Northern Ireland Northern Ireland ( ga, Tuaisceart Éireann ; sco, label= Ulster-Scots, Norlin Airlann) is a part of the United Kingdom, situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, that is variously described as a country, province or region. Nort ...

. He was featured in the game as a starter, and played the whole match, also keeping a clean sheet in a clear 3–0 win for the ''azzurri''. Marchetti surprisingly made his

World Cup A world cup is a global sporting competition in which the participant entities – usually international teams or individuals representing their countries – compete for the title of world champion. The event most associated with the concept i ...

debut in the 2010 edition of the tournament in South Africa, when he replaced the injured starter Gianluigi Buffon at half time during Italy's opening Group F clash with

Paraguay Paraguay (; ), officially the Republic of Paraguay ( es, República del Paraguay, links=no; gn, Tavakuairetã Paraguái, links=si), is a landlocked country in South America. It is bordered by Argentina to the south and southwest, Brazil to th ...

, which ended in a 1–1 draw. Marchetti kept a clean sheet, as Italy were already 1–0 down at the time of his introduction. In Marchetti's next two matches, he allowed four goals from five shots on goal, as Italy suffered a 1–1 draw against

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

, and a 3–2 defeat to

Slovakia Slovakia (; sk, Slovensko ), officially the Slovak Republic ( sk, Slovenská republika, links=no ), is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east, Hungary to the south, Austria to the s ...

, and were ultimately eliminated from the tournament in the first round, failing to win a match, and finishing last in their group with only two points. Marchetti played only one game for the Italy national team under new coach

Cesare Prandelli Claudio Cesare Prandelli (; born 19 August 1957) is an Italian football coach and former player. He was most recently head coach of Fiorentina. Career Player Prandelli was a midfielder who moved from Atalanta to Juventus in 1979. His first game ...

between 2010 and 2012. In 2013, however, Marchetti was recalled by Prandelli to represent Italy in a friendly match against

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

. Marchetti was also selected for Prandelli's 23-man Italy squad for the 2013 FIFA Confederations Cup, as a back-up behind Buffon and

Salvatore Sirigu Salvatore Sirigu (, ; born 12 January 1987) is an Italian professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for club Fiorentina and the Italy national team. Sirigu began his career with Venezia, and then Palermo. In 2011, he moved to Paris Sa ...

; the Confederations Cup 2013 was Marchetti's second major international tournament with Italy, after previously featuring in the 2010 World Cup, and the Italians went on to earn a third-place finish. On 14 August 2013, Marchetti was brought on for the second half of an international friendly match, in honour of

Pope Francis Pope Francis ( la, Franciscus; it, Francesco; es, link=, Francisco; born Jorge Mario Bergoglio, 17 December 1936) is the head of the Catholic Church. He has been the bishop of Rome and sovereign of the Vatican City State since 13 March 2013. ...

, between Italy and

Argentina Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, th ...

, played in Rome. On 31 May 2016, Marchetti was included in

Antonio Conte Antonio Conte (; born 31 July 1969) is an Italian professional football manager and former player who is the head coach of Premier League club Tottenham Hotspur. Playing as a midfielder, Conte began his career at local club Lecce and later b ...

's 23-man Italy squad for UEFA Euro 2016, but remained as the only member of the squad not to play in the tournament.

Style of play

A strong, agile and reliable shot-stopper, Marchetti is considered to be one of the best Italian goalkeepers of his generation; due to his promising performances in his youth, he was considered a possible heir to Gianluigi Buffon as Italy's starting goalkeeper, who himself praised the youngster. He is known in particular for his composure, concentration, and his explosive reactions in goal, as well as his speed and bravery when rushing off his line. In his youth, he played as a

forward Forward is a relative direction, the opposite of backward. Forward may also refer to: People * Forward (surname) Sports * Forward (association football) * Forward (basketball), including: ** Point forward ** Power forward (basketball) ** Sm ...

before switching to the role of goalkeeper. Due to his long hair, he earned the nickname ''

Tarzan Tarzan (John Clayton II, Viscount Greystoke) is a fictional character, an archetypal feral child raised in the African jungle by the Mangani great apes; he later experiences civilization, only to reject it and return to the wild as a heroic adv ...

'' from the Lazio fans.

Career statistics

Club

International

Honours

Lazio * Coppa Italia:

2012–13 1 (one, unit, unity) is a number representing a single or the only entity. 1 is also a numerical digit and represents a single unit of counting or measurement. For example, a line segment of ''unit length'' is a line segment of length 1. I ...

References

External links

Profile at AIC

Profile at FIGC
{{DEFAULTSORT:Marchetti, Federico 1983 births Living people Italian footballers Italy international footballers Association football goalkeepers U.C. AlbinoLeffe players Cagliari Calcio players F.C. Crotone players Genoa C.F.C. players S.S. Lazio players Sportspeople from the Province of Vicenza F.C. Pro Vercelli 1892 players Torino F.C. players Treviso F.B.C. 1993 players Spezia Calcio players Serie A players Serie B players 2010 FIFA World Cup players 2013 FIFA Confederations Cup players UEFA Euro 2016 players A.S.D. La Biellese players Footballers from Veneto