Marcelo Ariel Morales Suárez (born 6 June 2003) is a Chilean professional footballer who plays as a left-back for Chilean Primera División side Universidad de Chile and the Chile national team.

Marcelo Morales
Personal information
Full name Marcelo Ariel Morales Suárez
Date of birth (2003-06-06) 6 June 2003 (age 21)
Place of birth Santiago, Chile
Height 1.77 m (5 ft 10 in)
Position(s) Left-back
Team information
Current team
Universidad de Chile
Number 23
Youth career
2011–2020 Universidad de Chile
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2020– Universidad de Chile 95 (1)
International career
2021–2023 Chile U20 10 (0)
2022– Chile U23 1 (0)
2024– Chile 2 (0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 13:19, 11 October 2024 (UTC)
‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 23:27, 15 October 2024 (UTC)

Club career

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Universidad de Chile

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Born in San Miguel, Morales joined Universidad de Chile at the under-8 level in 2011,[1] and made his professional debut at the age of 17 in a Primera División match against Universidad de Concepción on October 29, 2020.[2][3] At international level, he made his debut in a 2021 Copa Libertadores match against San Lorenzo played in Argentina on March 18, 2021.[4] On March 31, 2024, Morales scored his first league goal for Universidad de Chile, in a 3-1 victory over Cobreloa. [5] On November 20, 2024, Morales helped Universidad de Chile in capturing its 6th Copa Chile title, in a 1-0 victory over Ñublense. [6]

International career

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In December 2021, he represented Chile U20 at the friendly tournament Copa Rául Coloma Rivas, playing three matches,[7][8][9] and at the friendly match versus Peru U20 in 12 July 2022.[10] In 2023, he made two appearances in the South American U20 Championship.

He represented Chile at under-23 level in a 1–0 win against Peru U23 on 31 August 2022, in the context of preparations for the 2023 Pan American Games.[11]

Morales received his first call-up to the Chile senior team for the 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification matches against Brazil and Colombia in October 2024.[12] He made his debut in the first match on 10 October.[13]

Career statistics

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Club

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As of match played 5 October 2024.
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League National cup Continental Other Total
Division Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Universidad de Chile 2020 Chilean Primera División 1 0 1 0
2021 Chilean Primera División 26 0 1 0 1[a] 0 28 0
2022 Chilean Primera División 20 0 4 0 24 0
2023 Chilean Primera División 21 0 2 1 23 1
2024 Chilean Primera División 27 1 6 0 33 1
Total 95 1 13 1 1 0 109 2
Career total 95 1 13 1 1 0 0 0 109 2
  1. ^ Appearances in Copa Libertadores

International

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As of match played 15 October 2024
Appearances and goals by national team and year
National team Year Apps Goals
Chile 2024 2 0
Total 2 0

Honours

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Universidad de Chile

References

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  1. ^ "Marcelo Morales: "Valoro mucho ser jugador de este Club"" (in Spanish). Universidad de Chile. 28 August 2020. Retrieved 24 May 2021.
  2. ^ Fernández, José Tomás (15 March 2021). "Los juveniles que son opción en la U para la Libertadores" (in Spanish). AS Chile. Retrieved 24 May 2021.
  3. ^ @udechile (29 October 2020). "76' - Debut oficial de Marcelo Morales" (Tweet) (in Spanish). Retrieved 24 May 2021 – via Twitter.
  4. ^ "La solución estaba en casa: Los tres juveniles de la U que se ganaron un lugar en el primer equipo". EnCancha.cl (in Spanish). 19 March 2021. Retrieved 24 May 2021.
  5. ^ "La doble felicidad de Marcelo Morales en la U: Gol y asistencia a su amigo Nicolás Guerra". bolavip.com (in Spanish). 31 March 2024. Retrieved 31 March 2024.
  6. ^ "La "U" es el flamante campeón de la Copa Chile Coca-Cola Sin Azúcar". campeonatochileno.cl (in Spanish). 20 November 2024. Retrieved 20 November 2024.
  7. ^ Quijada, Vicente (8 December 2021). "La Roja Sub 20 debutó con un empate ante Uruguay en la Copa Raúl Coloma Rivas". laroja.cl (in Spanish). Retrieved 29 April 2022.
  8. ^ Quijada, Vicente (10 December 2021). "MINUTO A MINUTO: La Roja Sub 20 ya tiene formación confirmada". laroja.cl (in Spanish). Retrieved 29 April 2022.
  9. ^ González, Christian (12 December 2021). "La Roja Sub 20 no pudo con Colombia en su despedida de la Copa Raúl Coloma Rivas". laroja.cl (in Spanish). Retrieved 29 April 2022.
  10. ^ "La Roja Sub 20 supera a Perú en Lima". laroja.cl (in Spanish). FFCh. 12 July 2022. Retrieved 15 July 2022.
  11. ^ Quijada, Vicente (31 August 2022). "En un intenso encuentro, La Roja Sub 23 se impuso por 1-0 ante Perú en Iquique". laroja.cl (in Spanish). FFCh. Retrieved 7 October 2022.
  12. ^ Viluñir Silva, Jp (27 September 2024). "La SANGRE JOVEN lidera LAS SORPRESAS en la nómina de Ricardo Gareca en Chile". RedGol (in Spanish). Retrieved 7 October 2024.
  13. ^ "A la altura ante Brasil: Los debutantes de la Roja en Clasificatorias" (in Spanish). TNT Sports Chile. 11 October 2024. Retrieved 11 October 2024.
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