Marcelo Danubio Zalayeta (; born 5 December 1978) is a Uruguayan former professional

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby lea ...

who played as a striker. Zalayeta began his club career with

Danubio Danubio Fútbol Club is a Uruguayan association football, football club based in Jardines del Hipódromo, Montevideo that currently plays in the Uruguayan Primera División. Founded in 1945, the club's home stadium is Jardines del Hipódromo Ma ...

before moving to

Peñarol Club Atlético Peñarol (), more commonly referred to as Peñarol, is a Uruguayan professional football club based in Montevideo. The club currently competes in the Uruguayan Primera División, the highest tier in Uruguayan football. The nam ...

for a season in 1997, where he won the

Uruguayan Primera División The Liga Profesional de Primera División (American Spanish , , local: , ''First Division''), named "Torneo Uruguayo Copa Coca-Cola" for sponsorship reasons, is the highest professional Association football, football league in Uruguay organized b ...

and the Uruguayan Liguilla Cup. Later that year, he was acquired by Italian club

Juventus Juventus Football Club (; from , ), commonly known as Juventus or colloquially as Juve (), is an Italian professional Association football, football List of football clubs in Italy, club based in Turin, Piedmont, who compete in Serie A, the ...

, where he remained for ten seasons, winning three

Serie A The Serie A (), officially known as Serie A Enilive in Italy and Serie A Made in Italy abroad for sponsorship reasons, is a professional association football league in Italy and the highest tier of the Italian football league system. Establish ...

titles and reaching the

2003 UEFA Champions League Final The 2003 UEFA Champions League final was a Association football, football match that took place at Old Trafford in Manchester, England on 28 May 2003 to decide the winner of the 2002–03 UEFA Champions League. The match was contested by two Ital ...

, although he was sent on several loan spells with

Empoli Empoli () is a town and ''comune'' in the Metropolitan City of Florence, Tuscany, Italy, about southwest of Florence, to the south of the Arno River, Arno in a plain formed by the river. The plain has been usable for agriculture since Ancient Ro ...

, Spanish side

Sevilla Seville ( ; , ) is the capital and largest city of the Spanish autonomous community of Andalusia and the province of Seville. It is situated on the lower reaches of the River Guadalquivir, in the southwest of the Iberian Peninsula. Seville ...

and

Perugia Perugia ( , ; ; ) is the capital city of Umbria in central Italy, crossed by the River Tiber. The city is located about north of Rome and southeast of Florence. It covers a high hilltop and part of the valleys around the area. It has 162,467 ...

during his time at the

Turin Turin ( , ; ; , then ) is a city and an important business and cultural centre in northern Italy. It is the capital city of Piedmont and of the Metropolitan City of Turin, and was the first Italian capital from 1861 to 1865. The city is main ...

club, due to heavy competition from other strikers in the team's line-up. He moved to

Napoli Naples ( ; ; ) is the regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 908,082 within the city's administrative limits as of 2025, while its province-level municipality is the thir ...

in 2007, where he remained for three more seasons, aside from a loan spell with

Bologna Bologna ( , , ; ; ) is the capital and largest city of the Emilia-Romagna region in northern Italy. It is the List of cities in Italy, seventh most populous city in Italy, with about 400,000 inhabitants and 150 different nationalities. Its M ...

during the 2009–10 season. After his time in Italy, he later spent a season with Turkish side

Kayserispor Kayseri Spor Kulübü, commonly known as Kayserispor, and also called Bellona Kayserispor due to sponsorship reasons, is a Turkish professional football club based in Kayseri. They play their home matches at the RHG Enertürk Enerji Stadium ...

, before returning to his home nation to play for Peñarol once again, winning the Uruguayan Primera División for a second time in 2013, before retiring in 2016. At international level, Zalayeta represented the Uruguay national team on 32 occasions between 1997 and 2005, scoring ten goals. At youth level, he was a member of the team that finished second in the

1997 FIFA World Youth Championship The 1997 FIFA World Youth Championship, known as the 1997 FIFA/Coca-Cola World Youth Championship for sponsorship purposes, was the 11th staging of the FIFA U-20 World Cup, FIFA World Youth Championship. It was held from 16 June to 5 July 1997 i ...

, and at senior level, he helped Uruguay reach the 1999 Copa América final.

Club career

Zalayeta started his career with

and then moving to

in Uruguay in 1997, where he made a name for himself, winning the

and the Uruguayan Liguilla Cup. He moved to

later that year, but although he was considered a promising young player at the time, he was not given much of a chance to prove himself due to heavy competition from several other prominent forwards at the club. However, he scored a decisive goal on his

debut on 14 March 1998, in a 2–2 home draw against Napoli; Juventus would finish the season as league champions. He then spent a season on loan with

, and he also starred in Uruguay's surge for the

Copa América The CONMEBOL Copa América (; known until 1975 as the South American Football Championship), often simply called the Copa America, is the top men's quadrennial association football, football tournament contested among list of men's national ass ...

1999 1999 was designated as the International Year of Older Persons. Events January * January 1 – The euro currency is established and the European Central Bank assumes its full powers. * January 3 – The Mars Polar Lander is launc ...

, who lost in the

final Final, Finals or The Final may refer to: *Final examination or finals, a test given at the end of a course of study or training *Final (competition), the last or championship round of a sporting competition, match, game, or other contest which d ...

Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...

. Two more years away from the club followed, and he played for Spanish side

until 2001. At last, when it seemed Juve lacked forwards, he was brought back to Italy at the start of the 2001–02 season, but he was loaned out to

in 2004 before returning to Juventus in the same year. Zalayeta-juve

Although he did not play many matches with Juventus, he performed well when given a chance, winning three

titles (

1998 1998 was designated as the ''International Year of the Ocean''. Events January * January 6 – The ''Lunar Prospector'' spacecraft is launched into orbit around the Moon, and later finds evidence for Lunar water, frozen water, in soil i ...

, 2002,

2003 2003 was designated by the United Nations as the International Year of Fresh water, Freshwater. In 2003, a Multi-National Force – Iraq, United States-led coalition 2003 invasion of Iraq, invaded Iraq, starting the Iraq War. Demographic ...

), two

Supercoppa Italiana The Supercoppa Italiana, also known as the Italian Super Cup, is an annual super cup tournament in Italian football. Founded in 1988 as a two-team competition, it has featured four teams since 2023 (the winners and runners-up of the previous ...

medals (

2002 The effects of the September 11 attacks of the previous year had a significant impact on the affairs of 2002. The war on terror was a major political focus. Without settled international law, several nations engaged in anti-terror operation ...

and

), and a

Serie B The Serie B (), officially known as Serie BKT for sponsorship reasons, is the second-highest division in the Italian football league system after the Serie A. It has been operating for over ninety years since the 1929–30 season. It had b ...

title in

2007 2007 was designated as the International Heliophysical Year and the International Polar Year. Events January * January 1 **Bulgaria and Romania 2007 enlargement of the European Union, join the European Union, while Slovenia joins the Eur ...

, also helping the club to the 2002 Coppa Italia Final. During his time at the club, he was given the nickname "Panteron". He scored two very important extra time winners against Spanish opposition upon his return to Juventus. One came in

in the quarter-finals of

UEFA Champions League The UEFA Champions League (UCL) is an annual club association football competition organised by the UEFA, Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) that is contested by List of top-division football clubs in UEFA countries, top-divisio ...

against

Barcelona Barcelona ( ; ; ) is a city on the northeastern coast of Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second-most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within c ...

, the other against

Real Madrid Real Madrid Club de Fútbol (), commonly referred to as Real Madrid, is a Spanish professional Football club (association football), football club based in Madrid. The club competes in La Liga, th ...

in the

2005 2005 was designated as the International Year for Sport and Physical Education and the International Year of Microcredit. The beginning of 2005 also marked the end of the International Decade of the World's Indigenous Peoples, Internationa ...

round of 16. In the

, Zalayeta was one of the three Juventus players to have their penalty saved by

Milan Milan ( , , ; ) is a city in northern Italy, regional capital of Lombardy, the largest city in Italy by urban area and the List of cities in Italy, second-most-populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of nea ...

keeper

Dida In England, Wales, Northern Ireland and the Isle of Man, the Diploma in Digital Applications (DiDA) was an optional information and communication technology (ICT) course, usually studied by Key Stage 4 or equivalent school students (aged 14–16) ...

in the shootout after a 0–0 draw, as Milan won the title. After a decade with Juventus, he moved to

in the summer of 2007. Napoli paid €1.4 million for half of the rights (co-ownership). He played 49 Serie A matches and scored 12 goals in 2 seasons, but at the start of 2009–10 season he became surplus to the team and was not offered a shirt number. On 21 August 2009, he joined

on loan for the 2009–10 season. On 1 July 2010, Zalayeta returned to Napoli but failed to enter first team. He left for Turkish side

on a two-year contract on 25 August. Zalayeta joined his former Uruguayan side Peñarol as a free agent on 17 July 2011; he won the Uruguayan Primera División for a second time in 2013 before retiring in 2016.

International career

Zalayeta was called up for the

in Malaysia with the Uruguay national under-20 team, scoring four goals throughout the tournament as his team reached the final, and was defeated by

Argentina Argentina, officially the Argentine Republic, is a country in the southern half of South America. It covers an area of , making it the List of South American countries by area, second-largest country in South America after Brazil, the fourt ...

. With the senior Uruguay national team, he took part at the

1997 FIFA Confederations Cup The 1997 FIFA Confederations Cup was the first FIFA Confederations Cup, Confederations Cup to be organized by FIFA. The tournament had previously been played in 1992 King Fahd Cup, 1992 and 1995 King Fahd Cup, 1995 as the King Fahd Cup. This editi ...

, in which Uruguay managed a fourth-place finish, and the

1999 Copa América The 1999 Copa América was a football tournament held in Paraguay, from 29 June to 18 July. It was organized by CONMEBOL, South America's football governing body. In order to bring the number of competing teams to twelve, CONMEBOL invited CONCAC ...

, scoring three goals in five appearances in the latter tournament, as they reached the

of the competition, only to be defeated by

. Zalayeta represented Uruguay during his country's campaign to qualify for the 2006 FIFA World Cup, notably scoring a hat-trick in a 3–2 home win over

Colombia Colombia, officially the Republic of Colombia, is a country primarily located in South America with Insular region of Colombia, insular regions in North America. The Colombian mainland is bordered by the Caribbean Sea to the north, Venezuel ...

on 4 September 2005. He was selected in a 23-man squad for Uruguay's

World Cup A world cup is a global sporting competition in which the participant entities – usually international teams or individuals representing their countries – compete for the title of world champion. The event most associated with the name is ...

intercontinental playoff against

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

on 16 November. Zalayeta was one of two penalty kick takers whose shots were saved by Australian goalkeeper

Mark Schwarzer Mark Schwarzer ( , ; born 6 October 1972) is an Australian former professional football player who played as a Goalkeeper (association football), goalkeeper. He represented Australia men's national soccer team, Australia at international level ...

. Zalayeta's failure to convert culminated in Australia winning the play-off 4–2 on penalties, qualifying for the

2006 FIFA World Cup The 2006 FIFA World Cup was the 18th FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial international Association football, football world championship tournament. It was held from 9 June to 9 July 2006 in Germany, which had won the right to FIFA World Cup hosts ...

finals in Germany, and eliminating Uruguay in the process. This was his final appearance for Uruguay. In total, he made 32 appearances for the national team between 1997 and 2005, scoring ten goals.

Style of play

A tall and physically strong

forward Forward is a relative direction, the opposite of backward. Forward may also refer to: People *Forward (surname) Sports * Forward (association football) * Forward (basketball), including: ** Point forward ** Power forward (basketball) ** Smal ...

, with a slender build, Zalayeta usually played as a

centre-forward In the sport of association football, a forward (attacker or striker) is an Glossary of association football terms#O, outfield position which primarily plays further up the pitch than Midfielder, midfielders and Defender (association football), d ...

, and was primarily known for his technical skills and touch on the ball, as well as his eye for goal, heading, and ability in the air, which enabled him both to score and assist goals with his head; however, despite being a quick player in his youth, he was also known for his lack of pace as his career progressed. A team player, he was also known for his work-rate, ability to link-up with teammates, and hold up the ball with his back to goal, and was often involved in the build-up of attacking plays; he also possessed good movement, which enabled him to find spaces and get on the end of his teammates passes. Regarded as a promising but undisciplined player in his youth, he later developed into a more mature and reserved player as his career progressed, and was known for his tendency to score decisive goals for his teams, especially after coming off the bench, in particular during his time with Juventus, despite his lack of playing time with the club. He also had a strong personality, and was known for his exuberant

goal celebration In sports, a goal celebration is the practice of celebrating the scoring of a goal. The celebration is normally performed by the goalscorer, and may involve their teammates, the manager or coaching staff or the supporters of the team. Whilst ...

s with his arms lowered. He was nicknamed ''il panterone'' ("the big panther," in Italian) in the media throughout his career, due to his movements and agility.

Personal life

Zalayeta is the uncle of footballer Gonzalo Carneiro. In December 1999, Zalayeta and compatriot Sevilla teammates

Nicolás Olivera Nicolas or Nicolás may refer to: People Given name * Nicolas (given name) Mononym * Nicolas (footballer, born 1999), Brazilian footballer * Nicolas (footballer, born 2000), Brazilian footballer Surname Nicolas * Dafydd Nicolas (c.1705–1774), ...

and Marcelo Otero were charged for assaulting a man. Having struck a

plea bargain A plea bargain, also known as a plea agreement or plea deal, is a legal arrangement in criminal law where the defendant agrees to plead guilty or no contest to a charge in exchange for concessions from the prosecutor. These concessions can include a ...

, they paid €3,600 fines in March 2002 instead of facing a maximum eight-year sentence.

Honours

Juventus *

: 1997–98, 2001–02, 2002–03 *

: 2006–07 *

Peñarol * Uruguayan First Division Championship:

1997 Events January * January 1 – The Emergency Alert System is introduced in the United States. * January 11 – Turkey threatens Cyprus on account of a deal to buy Russian S-300 missiles, prompting the Cypriot Missile Crisis. * January 1 ...

2012–13 1 (one, unit, unity) is a number, numeral, and glyph. It is the first and smallest positive integer of the infinite sequence of natural numbers. This fundamental property has led to its unique uses in other fields, ranging from science to sp ...

* Uruguayan Liguilla Cup: 1997 Uruguay *

FIFA World Youth Championship The FIFA U-20 World Cup is the biennial football world championship tournament for FIFA members' men's national teams with players under the age of 20. The competition has been staged every two years since the inaugural tournament in 1977 when i ...

runner-up:

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Zalayeta, Marcelo African diaspora in Uruguay Uruguayan men's footballers Uruguayan expatriate men's footballers Uruguayan expatriate sportspeople in Italy Uruguayan expatriate sportspeople in Spain Uruguayan expatriate sportspeople in Turkey Expatriate men's footballers in Italy Expatriate men's footballers in Spain Expatriate men's footballers in Turkey Uruguay men's under-20 international footballers Uruguay men's international footballers 1997 FIFA Confederations Cup players 1999 Copa América players Danubio F.C. players Peñarol players Empoli FC players Juventus FC players AC Perugia Calcio players SSC Napoli players Bologna FC 1909 players Kayserispor footballers Men's association football forwards Uruguayan Primera División players Serie A players Serie B players La Liga players Süper Lig players 1978 births Living people Sevilla FC players Footballers from Montevideo