The talented Portuguese João Mariou

João Mariou is a Portuguese football player who acts as a central midfielder. Also, he can play closer to the attack, the position of the attacking midfielder, and even the right winger. João Mariou is one of the most talented young players not only of Portugal, but of the whole world.

Carier start

João Mariou was born on January 19, 1993 in Portugal, where he started attending football academy of one of the strongest clubs of the country - "Porto". But there he stayed only two years, then he was enticed into the academy of a direct competitor - Sporting, where he grew up. Seven years in the club system, Mariu, and when he turned eighteen, he immediately offered a professional contract. However, by that time, few people suspected that Joao Mariu was the same player who in five years would be considered one of the most talented. Therefore, the beginning of a professional career at the midfielder was far from the most stellar.

The game for "Sporting"

The first two years, the midfielder held in the club's double, only periodically getting into the main team. On the field he came out just two times, and this clearly did not suit the player. Therefore, in the winter of 2014, João Mariou, a football player who is already twenty years old, and he has not achieved anything, was leased to Vitoria from Setubal. For six months in the new club Mariu has revealed himself as an incredibly technical, intelligent and promising midfielder. He went to the field fifteen times and constantly surprised the fans with what he showed during the game. As a result, the management of the club also saw the potential in the young Portuguese and gave him a chance to show himself in Sporting. In the first season, Mario became a key player in the club, playing 44 games and scoring 7 goals. In many ways thanks to him, "Sporting" was finally able to take the first trophy for a long time - the Cup of Portugal. The second full season of João Mariou, photos of which have already appeared on all covers of sports magazines in Portugal, also performed perfectly: in 45 games he scored the next seven goals. Naturally, he attracted the attention of the leading European clubs, especially after performing at the European Championship in 2016, where the Portuguese became champions for the first time in history.

Going to Inter

Almost all summer of 2016 Joao Mariu held in a "limbo" state. Italian "Inter" made every effort to buy a Portuguese, but in the end nothing happened. Joao did not know where he would spend the next season. But three days before the transfer window was closed, Inter could still find enough money to acquire the Portuguese talent for 40 million euros. This amount, depending on the success of the player in the club, in the future can grow to 45 million. To date, the midfielder held five matches for the new club, in which he scored two assists. The current "Inter" is difficult to call the top club, and Joao Mariu, in turn, is practically the top player. Therefore, most likely, the Italian club is only a step for the Portuguese, with which he will be able to move to one of the strongest clubs in Europe in a year or two.

National team appearances

His first challenge to the Portuguese national team Mariu was in October 2014, then he came on as a substitute in a friendly against France. At the European Championships in 2016, João went as a player base: he appeared in all seven matches, having scored one assists in a duel with the Hungarians. The last match, in which the football player took part, is a qualifying game against the Faroe Islands, where Mariou scored two assists at once. Gradually, João becomes a key figure in the center of the Portuguese field in a pair with Renat Sansheesh, who also flashed for Euro-2016 and moved to "Bavaria".