Federico Marchetti was born in Bassano del Grappa, on February 7, 1983.
Marchetti grew up in the village of Cassola, near Vicenza, in the Veneto region. He started playing in his home team and knew from a young age that goalkeeper was his position.
His formative career then took him to Bessica (Treviso) and then on to Torino's youth sector. He then spent a year at Pro Vercelli followed by Crotone (C1) and Treviso (Serie B) but without making any appearances.
After a second brief spell at Pro Vercelli (13 games) he joined Biellese (30 games).
His first real breakthrough came when he signed for Albinoleffe (Serie B) in 2006. He stayed in Lombardy two seasons and especially in the second was undisputed first choice keeper and played regularly. Albinoleffe almost got promoted in 2008 (lost playoff against Lecce). He made 49 appearances for La celeste and started to attract attention from some Serie A clubs.
In July 2008, Cagliari bought 50% of the players' rights and Marchetti flew to Sardinia to play in Serie A. In his first two seasons he was a great success playing a total of 70 appearances (68 in Serie A). In 2009 he was voted best Italian keeper of the year. He received universal praise for his performances, including Gianluigi Buffon (Italy national keeper) who claimed Marchetti was his favourite goalie.
In his third year on the island he ran into problems when, following his transfer request, he was frozen by the club and demoted to third choice. He would not play for the Sardi again.
In 2010 Lazio were looking for a replacement for Uruguayan Fernando Muslera who was off to Galatasaray in Turkey. Marchetti was considered the best choice. President Lotito activated the 5.2 million Euros release clause and Marchetti signed a five-year contract for the Biancazzurri.
His first two seasons were excellent and he helped Lazio achieve two consecutive Europa League qualifications (5th and 4th).
The third was the apotheosis with Marchetti keeping a clean sheet in a historic Rome derby Coppa Italia final. Lazio triumphed 1-0 (Lulic) and Marchetti's save on to the crossbar from a Totti freekick shortly after the Lazio goal (the unforgettable 71st minute) has taken on legendary status. His performances in those years also earned him call ups to the national team.
In the following two seasons Marchetti was the untouchable first choice defending Lazio’s posts.
The 2016-17 season however saw Marchetti play less regularly; a combination of injuries and unspecified personal problems led to him playing only 17 times while youngster Thomas Strakosha got 21 games.
The next season would be his last and in February he was excluded from the squad again for apparent injuries and personal issues.
Marchetti played 161 Serie A games for Lazio, 5 in Coppa Italia, 26 in Europa League and 2 Italian Supercoppa finals (both lost against Juve). He won a Coppa Italia (2013) and is in Lazio's top ten keepers for unbeaten records (512 minutes in 2012-13).
In 2018 Marchetti and Lazio finally parted ways. He joined Genoa and stayed four years without ever establishing himself. He only played a total of 13 matches (8 in Serie A and 5 in Coppa Italia). In January 2023 he joined Spezia and made one appearance.
In July 2023 Marchetti signed for Hamrun Spartans in Malta. He will be coached by his former team mate Luciano Zauri.
At International level Marchetti won 11 Italy caps. He made his debut in 2006 under Marcello Lippi and was part of the Italy squad in the disastrous 2010 world cup. In South Africa he replaced an injured Gianluigi Buffon for the second half of Italy's first game against Paraguay (1-1) and then also played the next two games against New Zealand (1-1) and Slovakia (2-3). He then lost touch with the Azzurri until 2013 under Cesare Prandelli and was then called up again by Antonio Conte and took part in Euro 2016 as third keeper.
Marchetti is a strong and agile goalkeeper. He is 1.90 metres but quick and explosive in his reactions in goal. He is considered one of the best keepers of his generation. He is also one of the bravest, being extremely courageous when coming off his line to face potentially dangerous situations. He has a certain wild look in his eyes giving the impression he is ready for anything (apparently, he listens to heavy metal music before games to energize himself).
At Lazio he was a reliable, well respected goalkeeper. He had five excellent years before running into a few problems of various nature. His long hair, spirited expression in concentration and agility earned him the nickname of "Tarzan". He enjoyed the best years of his career at Lazio. He was well liked and will always be remembered for his key role on the 26th May 2013 when he kept Roma at bay and helped Lazio win THE derby for the Coppa Italia triumph.
Appearances for Lazio
Seasons | Total | Serie A | Coppa Italia | Europa League | Super Coppa |
2011-12 | 39 | 31 | 1 | 7 | - |
2012-13 | 46 | 33 | 3 | 10 | - |
2013-14 | 26 | 21 | - | 4 | 1 |
2014-15 | 30 | 30 | - | - | - |
2015-16 | 35 | 29 | - | 5 | 1 |
2016-17 | 18 | 17 | 1 | - | - |
Total | 194 | 161 | 5 | 26 | 2 |
Sources
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