Marcelo Saracchi

In this Spanish name, the first or paternal surname is Saracchi and the second or maternal family name is Pintos.

Marcelo Saracchi

Saracchi with RB Leipzig in 2018
Personal information
Full name	Marcelo Josemir Saracchi Pintos[1]
Date of birth	(1998-04-23) 23 April 1998 (age 26)[1]
Place of birth	Paysandú, Uruguay
Height	1.72 m (5 ft 8 in)[1]
Position(s)	Left-back
Team information
Current team	Boca Juniors
Number	3
Youth career
2008–2012	Progreso Paysandú
2012–2015	Danubio
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
2015–2017	Danubio	54	(3)
2017–2018	River Plate	19	(0)
2018–2021	RB Leipzig	13	(1)
2020–2021	→ Galatasaray (loan)	41	(2)
2022–2023	Levante	32	(0)
2023–	Boca Juniors	25	(1)
International career^‡
2012–2013	Uruguay U15	15	(3)
2014–2015	Uruguay U17	24	(4)
2015–2017	Uruguay U20	24	(0)
2018–	Uruguay	9	(0)
Medal record Men's football Representing  Uruguay South American U-20 Championship Winner 2017
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 11 November 2024 ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 20 November 2024

Marcelo Josemir Saracchi Pintos (born 23 April 1998) is a Uruguayan professional footballer who plays as a left-back for Argentine Primera División club Boca Juniors and the Uruguay national team.

Club career

Early career

Born in Paysandú,^[1] Saracchi joined hometown club Progreso Paysandú at the age of ten, spending five years in their youth system. Saracchi then joined the youth ranks of Danubio.

Danubio

In July 2015, Saracchi was moved to the Danubio first team. He was included in the matchday squad for the first time on 12 August for Danubio's Copa Sudamericana match against Universidad Católica.^[2] During that match, Saracchi was subbed on for Ignacio González in the 77th minute, but his competitive debut for the club was cut short when he was subbed off five minutes later following Alejandro Peña's second yellow card and subsequent sending off.^[3] The following weekend, Saracchi made his Primera División debut, making another substitute appearance, this time replacing Leandro Sosa in the 63rd minute of a 2-0 away victory over Juventud.^[4] A month later, Saracchi made his first start for the club in a 1-1 draw against Sud América in league play.^[5] After breaking into the first team throughout the 2015–16 season, Saracchi scored his first goal for the club, in the 77th minute of a 4-1 defeat to Montevideo Wanderers late in the Clausura tournament.^[6] It would be his only goal of the season. Saracchi would go on to make 57 appearances for the club, 54 in the league and three in the Copa Sudamericana,^[1] alongside netting against El Tanque Sisley^[7] and Montevideo Wanderers again^[8] for a total of three goals with Danubio.

River Plate

In August 2017, alterations of foreign player requirements in the Argentine Primera División paved the way for Saracchi to sign with River Plate,^[3] with the Argentine club paying around €2 million for his services.^[9] Saracchi made his debut for the club on 10 September 2017, playing the entirety of a 3-1 league victory over Banfield.^[10] Despite spending only one season with the club, Saracchi won several trophies, appearing against Defensa y Justicia,^[11] Atlanta,^[12] and Atlético Tucumán^[13] as River Plate won the Copa Argentina, and then against Boca Juniors in the Supercopa Argentina.^[14] In March 2018, interest in Saracchi was reported from Italian clubs Inter Milan and Juventus, although no formal bid was submitted from either club.^[15] Throughout 31 appearances in all competitions for River Plate, Saracchi scored once, the opener in River Plate's 4-1 victory over Atlanta.^[12]

RB Leipzig

In the summer of 2018, Saracchi moved to German club RB Leipzig for a transfer fee of around €12 million.^[3][16] He made his competitive debut for the club on 26 July 2018, registering 88 minutes before being replaced by Nordi Mukiele in a 4-0 victory over BK Häcken during Europa League qualification.^[17] During his first two seasons with Leipzig, Saracchi was mainly a fringe player, making 13 league appearances, eight of which were starts. He scored his first goal for the club on 21 September 2019, netting in the 83rd minute of a 3-0 away victory over Werder Bremen.^[18] His contract was terminated on 19 December 2021 by mutual consent.^[19]

Galatasaray

In January 2020, Saracchi moved on a year-and-a-half long loan to Turkish club Galatasaray, arriving alongside Henry Onyekuru.^[20][21] Saracchi made his debut for the club on 10 January 2020 in a friendly against Altay.^[22] He made his competitive debut for the club a little over a week later, playing the entirety of a 2-1 home victory over Denizlispor. Saracchi registered his first assist for the club in that match, providing the pass for Emre Akbaba's 26th-minute opener.^[23]

Levante

On 22 February 2022, Saracchi signed with Levante in Spain until 2024, with an option to extend for three more seasons.^[24]

International career

Saracchi is a former Uruguay youth international and was part of the under-20 team which won the 2017 South American U-20 Championship.^[25]

Saracchi made his senior international debut on 12 October 2018, coming on as an 84th-minute substitute for Diego Laxalt in a 2-1 friendly defeat against South Korea.^[26] Saracchi was included in Uruguay's squad for the 2019 Copa América, but remained as an unused substitute in Uruguay's all four matches.^[27]

In September 2024, Saracchi was called up to the Uruguay national team for the first time in five years.^[28]

Personal life

Born in Uruguay, Saracchi is of Italian descent.^[29]

Career statistics

Club

As of 25 January 2021^[1]

Appearances and goals by club, season and competition

Club	Season	League			Cup		Continental		Other		Total
		Division	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
Danubio	2015–16	Uruguayan Primera División	30	1	—		2	0	—		32	1
	2016		14	0	—		—		—		14	0
	2017		10	2	—		1	0	—		11	2
	Total		54	3	0	0	3	0	0	0	57	3
River Plate	2017–18	Argentine Primera División	19	0	3	1	7	0	1[a]	0	30	1
RB Leipzig	2018–19	Bundesliga	9	0	1	0	5	0	5[b]	0	20	0
	2019–20		4	1	1	0	2	0	—		7	1
	Total		13	1	2	0	7	0	5	0	27	1
Galatasaray (loan)	2019–20	Süper Lig	14	2	1	0	—		—		15	2
	2020–21		13	0	1	0	—		1[b]	0	15	0
	Total		27	2	2	0	0	0	1	0	30	2
Career total			113	6	7	1	17	0	7	0	144	7

1. Appearance in Supercopa Argentina.
2. Appearances in UEFA Europa League

International

As of match played 19 November 2024^[1]

Appearances and goals by national team and year

National team	Year	Apps	Goals
Uruguay	2018	2	0
	2019	2	0
	2024	5	0
Total		9	0

Honours

River Plate

• Copa Argentina: 2016–17^[1]
• Supercopa Argentina: 2017^[1]

RB Leipzig

• DFB-Pokal runner-up: 2018–19^[1]

Uruguay U20

• South American U-20 Championship: 2017^[1]

References

1. "M. Saracchi: Summary". Soccerway. Perform Group. Retrieved 1 January 2024.
2. "Universidad Católica vs. Danubio – 12 August 2015 – Soccerway". int.soccerway.com. Retrieved 17 July 2020.
3. "RB Leipzig's Marcelo Saracchi rewriting the rules on rise to the top". bundesliga.com. 2018. Retrieved 17 July 2020.
4. "Juventud vs. Danubio – 16 August 2015 – Soccerway". int.soccerway.com. Retrieved 17 July 2020.
5. "Danubio vs. Sud America – 19 September 2015 – Soccerway". int.soccerway.com. Retrieved 17 July 2020.
6. "Danubio vs. Wanderers – 28 May 2016 – Soccerway". int.soccerway.com. Retrieved 17 July 2020.
7. "El Tanque Sisley vs. Danubio – 30 April 2017 – Soccerway". int.soccerway.com. Retrieved 17 July 2020.
8. "Wanderers vs. Danubio – 20 August 2017 – Soccerway". int.soccerway.com. Retrieved 17 July 2020.
9. "Marcelo Saracchi ya es la nueva incorporación de River Plate" [Marcelo Saracchi is already the new addition to River Plate]. heroicadeportiva.com. 2017. Retrieved 17 July 2020.
10. "River Plate vs. Banfield – 10 September 2017 – Soccerway". int.soccerway.com. Retrieved 17 July 2020.
11. "River Plate vs. Defensa y Justicia – 8 October 2017 – Soccerway". int.soccerway.com. Retrieved 17 July 2020.
12. "River Plate vs. Atlanta – 19 October 2017 – Soccerway". int.soccerway.com. Retrieved 17 July 2020.
13. "River Plate vs. Atlético Tucumán – 9 December 2017 – Soccerway". int.soccerway.com. Retrieved 17 July 2020.
14. "Boca Juniors vs. River Plate – 15 March 2018 – Soccerway". int.soccerway.com. Retrieved 17 July 2020.
15. "Inter & Juve Interested In Marcelo Saracchi". sempreinter.com. 27 March 2018. Retrieved 17 July 2020.
16. "Marcelo Saracchi – The Uruguayan Left Back Set For RB Leipzig". worldfootballindex.com. 5 June 2018. Retrieved 17 July 2020.
17. "RB Leipzig vs. Hacken – 26 July 2018 – Soccerway". int.soccerway.com. Retrieved 17 July 2020.
18. "Werder Bremen vs. RB Leipzig – 21 September 2019 – Soccerway". int.soccerway.com. Retrieved 17 July 2020.
19. "MARCELO SARACCHI AGREES TO TERMINATE CONTRACT" (Press release). RB Leipzig. 19 December 2021. Retrieved 7 February 2022.
20. "Leipzig's defender Saracchi joins Galatasaray on loan". aa.com.tr. 6 January 2020. Retrieved 17 July 2020.
21. "Galatasaray Sign Henry Onyekuru From Monaco & Marcelo Saracchi From RB Leipzig". turkish-football.com. 7 January 2020. Retrieved 17 July 2020.
22. "Galatasaray vs. Altay – 10 January 2020 – Soccerway". int.soccerway.com. Retrieved 17 July 2020.
23. "Galatasaray vs. Denizlispor – 19 January 2020 – Soccerway". int.soccerway.com. Retrieved 17 July 2020.
24. "Marcelo Saracchi, new Levante UD player" (Press release). Levante. 22 February 2022. Retrieved 22 February 2022.
25. "CAMPEONATO SUDAMERICANO SUB-20 - ECUADOR 2017. LISTA DE JUGADORES. País: Uruguay" (PDF). CONMEBOL.
26. "South Korea vs. Uruguay (2:1)". national-football-teams.com. Retrieved 17 July 2020.
27. "Copa America 2019: Uruguay National Team - Final Squad, Preview, Predictions". sportskeeda.com. 3 June 2019. Retrieved 17 July 2020.
28. "Eliminatorias: Uruguay publicó lista de convocados, la última en la que aparecerá Suárez" (in Spanish). 3 September 2024. Retrieved 3 September 2024.
29. "GM: Saracchi will join in January if he gets passport". 8 September 2016.

External links

• Profile at the Uruguayan Football Association website (in Spanish)
• Marcelo Saracchi at the Turkish Football Federation
• Marcelo Saracchi – UEFA competition record (archive)