Marco Verratti is a diminutive Italian midfielder renowned for his close control, balance and ability to escape pressure in the tightest spaces. Plucked from the lower leagues of Italian football by Paris Saint-Germain, he became the metronome of their midfield for over a decade, orchestrating play with quick, incisive passing.
A serial title winner in France and a European champion with Italy at the 2020 continental tournament, he was long regarded as one of the most technically accomplished holding playmakers of his era.