Murilo (footballer, born December 1995)

Murilo Henrique de Araujo Santos (born 2 December 1995), commonly known as Murilo, is a Brazilian professional footballer who plays as a left-back for Malaysia Football League club Johor Darul Ta'zim.

Career

After a junior career in Portugal, a country which citinzeship Murilo also holds, Murilo moved back to Brazil to play in the Brazilian Serie D, and joined the ranks of Rio Ave F.C. After his short tenure in Brazil, he returned to Europe to join Spanish fifth division CD Cultural Areas in 2016. From there, he joined Ourense CF, where he played for four years. in 2020, Murilo was spotted by scouts and was offered a contract by Veikkausliiga side SJK Seinäjoki.

During the 2020 Veikkausliiga season, he appeared in ten matches. During the following 2021 season, Murilo broke through, appearing in 25 of 27 Veikkausliiga matches. Murilo recorded eight assists and one goal in all competitions as SJK placed third.

On 5 November 2021, Murilo signed a two-year contract with HJK. During the 2022 season, Murilo recorded 19 matches and 5 assists in the league. He also scored a vital free-kick goal in the first round of 2022–23 UEFA Champions League qualifying against FK Rīgas Futbola Skola, which tied the leg, which HJK went on to win on penalties, one of which Murilo scored. HJK ended up qualifying for the Europa League, however, Murilo only played in the first match, against Real Betis, coming on as a sub in the 76th minute.

Murilo returned to SJK ahead of the 2023 season. Despite not scoring in the 2023 season, Murilo provided ten assists in total for his team. On 2 January 2024, it was announced that Murilo will leave the club.

On 23 January 2024, Murilo moved to Malaysia to signed a contract with Johor Darul Ta'zim in the Malaysian Football League.

Career statistics

As of 25 October 2023

Honours

HJK Helsinki

• Veikkausliiga: 2022

References