Răzvan Marin


Răzvan Gabriel Marin is a Romanian professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for Dutch club Ajax and the Romania national team.
Marin began his senior career in 2013 with local club Viitorul Constanța at the age of 17. He established himself as a first-team regular, and earned a move to Standard Liège at the start of 2017. Two and a half years later, he was transferred to Dutch team Ajax for a reported fee of €12.5 million.
Marin made his debut with Romania in 2016, after having previously represented the country at youth levels.

Club career

Early years / Viitorul Constanța

Born in Bucharest, Marin started playing football at the age of 6 with local Pro Luceafărul, and joined the academy of Viitorul Constanța seven years later. He made his professional debut with the latter club on 18 October 2013, in a 0–4 Liga I away loss to FC Steaua București.
Marin scored his first league goal in a 2–1 away victory over CFR Cluj, on 15 March 2015. In December 2016, aged just 20, daily newspaper Gazeta Sporturilor announced that he came third for the 2016 Romanian Footballer of the Year award, behind Denis Alibec and Nicolae Stanciu.
During his spell in Constanța, Marin amassed competitive totals of 85 games and ten goals.

Standard Liège

On 20 January 2017, Marin signed a four-and-a-half-year contract with Belgian side Standard Liège. Romanian press had initially reported the transfer value at €2.4 million, but Viitorul stated that the sum was lower than €2 million and that it retained interest on the capital gain of a potential future transfer. He made his first Belgian First Division A appearance two days later, coming on as an 80th-minute substitute in a 0–3 loss to Club Brugge at the Stade Maurice Dufrasne.
On 8 April 2017, Marin scored his first goal for Les Rouches in a 2–2 league draw with Sint-Truiden. On 20 September, he netted once and also provided an assist in a 4–0 victory over Heist for the Belgian Cup; in December, he scored in league fixtures against Waasland-Beveren, Sint-Truiden and Kortrijk respectively. On 3 February 2018, Marin scored the final goal of a 3–0 success over Lokeren only two minutes after replacing Gojko Cimirot. One month later, he assisted all of his team's goals as they won 3–2 against Mechelen, a home game where he also missed a late penalty. On 17 March, he was a starter in the 1–0 win for the Belgian Cup Final against Genk.
Standard played league winner Club Brugge in the Belgian Super Cup on 22 July 2018, with Marin being once again in the starting eleven, however his team lost the match 1–2. He recorded his first European appearance for Standard in the UEFA Champions League's third qualifying round 2–2 home draw with Dutch side Ajax, on 7 August. Marin then played all six matches in the group stage of the UEFA Europa League, as his team finished third behind Sevilla and FC Krasnodar.
Marin's good display throughout the year earned him the Romanian Footballer of the Year award at the 2018 Gala Fotbalului Românesc, on 3 December. On the 21st that month, he finished second for the same trophy awarded by the Gazeta Sporturilor newspaper. Marin netted the first goal of 2019 on 3 February, in an eventual 2–1 victory against rivals Anderlecht.

Ajax

On 4 April 2019, it was announced that Ajax signed Marin on a five-year deal for a reported transfer fee of €12.5 million, with the player due to join the squad in the summer. The sum was the third-highest ever paid by the Dutch club, and it also made Marin the third-most expensive Romanian footballer behind Adrian Mutu and Cristian Chivu.

International career

In September 2016, 20-year-old Marin was selected in Romania's senior squad for the 2018 FIFA World Cup qualifier against Montenegro. On 8 October, for the same competition, he earned his first cap and scored a goal in a 5–0 away victory over Armenia.

Style of play

Marin is usually deployed as either a central or defensive midfielder, although he is also capable of playing in a more advanced position as an attacking midfielder.

Personal life

Marin's father, Petre, was also a Romanian international and played as a full-back for Steaua București and Rapid București among others.

Career statistics

Club

International

International goals

No.DateVenueCapOpponentScoreResultCompetition
18 October 2016Vazgen Sargsyan, Yerevan, Armenia13–05–02018 FIFA World Cup qualification

Honours

Club

Standard Liège
Ajax