Marquinhos
Centre-Back · Paris Saint-Germain · Brazil
About Marquinhos
Marquinhos is one of the finest centre-backs of his generation, the linchpin of Paris Saint-Germain's defence since 2013. Calm, intelligent and technically exceptional, he became PSG's captain in 2020 and has won 11 Ligue 1 titles and two Champions Leagues. He also captains Brazil.
Marquinhos's story
Zona Norte Roots
Born Marcos Aoás Corrêa on 14 May 1994 in São Paulo's north zone, he was the baby of the family, known at home as Mocote. He started out as a goalkeeper at the local club Saci, then joined the Corinthians youth system aged eight in 2002. His mother worked at the Salesian school in Santana where he studied, and his former sports director Adalberto Barbosa remembers a playful, popular boy who always won medals in sprints, long jump and high jump, and loved going in goal when the team needed a keeper. His father Marcos filmed his youth matches, his sister Riama edited the footage into DVDs and his older brother Luan sold them to parents at training grounds, so the whole family helped raise money while keeping a close eye on him.
Corinthians to Roma
At one youth tournament he scored a free-kick from his own half in a 4-0 win over Barcelona's youth side, and an early call-up to Brazil's under-17s followed. He debuted for Corinthians in 2012 and played 14 games, as an unused substitute in their Copa Libertadores final win. Corinthians sent him to Roma on loan that July, aged 18, amid doubts about his slight build, and he made 30 appearances in 2012-13. He wore "Marcos" on his shirt to avoid confusion with a teammate called Marquinho, and Zdeněk Zeman paired him with Leandro Castán for his pace. Nicolás Burdisso called him a "little Thiago Silva" that August. He calls Corinthians "the club of my heart", and told UOL in March 2026 that a return there is his preferred next step after PSG, where his contract runs to June 2028.
Paris Arrival
Paris Saint-Germain signed him in 2013 for a reported €31m, aged 19, joining Thiago Silva, the role model he had named at Roma. Former Brazil international Alex helped him settle in the city. He made 32 appearances and scored five goals in his first season, a campaign that brought the Ligue 1 title and the Coupe de la Ligue. Of average height for a defender, he has said he learned to compensate with strength and timing from Claude Makélélé. His first daughter was born on 1 November 2017, after Carol Cabrino went into labour while he was playing Anderlecht at the Parc des Princes.
Captain and Champion
Marquinhos took the armband from Thiago Silva on 15 September 2020. Having lost the 2019-20 Champions League final with PSG, he has since lifted the trophy twice and won 11 Ligue 1 titles. Reports have described him as the players' voice to the club's board and a go-between with the ultras, while teammates are said to call him "Kaiser Franz" after Beckenbauer. He had reached 523 games and 43 goals for the club by 30 May 2026.
The Man Behind the Armband
Marquinhos has described himself as patient, and says he took spells out of position at right-back as a sign of the coach's trust. He calls the hardest part of captaincy criticising teammates without hurting them, and says Thiago Silva helped prepare him to take over. He speaks good French, and is close to the Brazilians at the club, who share his language and food. In 2018 he called Silva calm but not to be messed with when irritated, and Kylian Mbappé humble, reserved and close to his family. Before the 2025 UEFA Super Cup he said he wanted his name to remain in PSG's history, and that Gianluigi Donnarumma would always belong to it too. During the 2026 World Cup his wife and children rented a house in the United States to be near him, and he spent a day off with them in New Jersey.
Olympic Gold and Beyond
He won Olympic gold with Brazil at Rio 2016 and the 2019 Copa América, and has played at the 2018, 2022 and 2026 World Cups. His penalty hit the post in the 2022 shoot-out defeat by Croatia. He has 109 caps and seven goals for Brazil.
Did you know?
- 🏆 Marquinhos has won the Trophée des Champions 10 times with PSG, in 2014, 2015, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2022, 2023, 2024 and 2025.
- 🌍 He scored in the final of the 2014 Toulon Tournament, putting Brazil's under-21s 3-2 up in a 5-2 win over France.
- 👨👩👧 He married Carol Cabrino in a civil ceremony in June 2016, a year after announcing their engagement following a proposal under the Eiffel Tower. They have three children.
- 📰 In January 2014 The Observer named him one of the ten most promising young players in Europe, praising his temperament to remain undaunted and the talent to succeed.
- ☕ Back in São Paulo he visits the Padaria Leão XIII bakery near his family's office for a toasted bread roll and a strong milky coffee, a habit he learned from his father. During the 2022 World Cup its staff wore number 4 shirts with his name on Brazil's match days.
- 🗣️ In a 2018 interview he called PSG goalkeeper Kevin Trapp "the most Brazilian German in the world", and said Ángel Di María loves teasing the Brazilians in the dressing room.
- ⚽ His first Brazil goal came in a 5-0 friendly win over El Salvador on 11 September 2018. His first competitive goal followed in a 5-0 win over Bolivia in 2022 World Cup qualifying on 9 October 2020.
- 🇧🇷 He first captained Brazil on 10 October 2017, in a 3-0 win over Chile at Allianz Parque.
- 🏥 With his wife and Ander Herrera he joined a Paris Saint-Germain Foundation visit to children at the hospital in Poissy-Saint-Germain-en-Laye.
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