Luis Muriel

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.

Having spent his formative years with Atlético Junior, Muriel joined Colombian Primera A side Deportivo Cali in January 2009.

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.

Udinese officially completed the signing of Muriel on 30 May 2010 for a reported fee of €1.5m.

In terms of the transfer agreement, Udinese obtained 70% of Muriel's playing rights with the remaining 30% being retained by Deportivo.

Shortly after his arrival in Udine, however, he was loaned to Segunda División side Granada.

Muriel completed his loan move to Granada on 12 July 2010.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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 lbs, despite the player scoring four goals against Arta Cedarchis in a pre-season friendly.

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.

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 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.

He signed a contract extension the following month, signing an improved five-year deal with the club.

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.

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.

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.

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.

After scoring 15 league goals in 57 appearances, Muriel joined fellow Serie A side Sampdoria in January 2015.

He later took part at the 2015, 2019, and 2021 editions of the Copa América, as well as the 2018 FIFA World Cup.

He ultimately amassed 15 goals in 57 appearances for the club, before leaving to join Sampdoria in 2015.

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.

He spent two-and-a-half seasons with the club, scoring 21 goals in 79 league appearances before joining Sevilla in 2017.

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

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.

In terms of the agreement, Muriel signed a contract with Sampdoria until 30 June 2019.

He scored four times in 16 appearances during his loan spell before completing a permanent transfer at the end of the season.

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.

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.