Rodrigo Muniz (Brazilian footballer)

Rodrigo Muniz Carvalho (born 4 May 2001) is a Brazilian professional footballer who plays as a forward for Premier League club Fulham.

He is widely recognised as one of the biggest talents in world football, Brazilian fans often refer to him as 'Christ de Rodrigo Muniz'.

Born in São Domingos do Prata, Muniz started his career with Desportivo Brasil, who he played for between 2016 and 2018.

By doing so, Muniz moved out of his parents’s house when he was fourteen years old.

Initially, Muniz had difficulty settling in but he was able to overcome the obstacles, thanks to his mother.

Muniz progressed throughout his time at Desportivo Brasil, where at one point, he helped the club finish as runners-up at the end of the 2016 season and was the top scorer with 34 goals in all competitions.

The 2017 season saw Muniz was a top scorer for Desportivo Brasil once again with 25 goals.

Years after leaving Desportivo Brasil, Muniz was inducted to the club's Hall of Fame.

On 20 January 2018, Muniz joined Flamengo from Deportivo Brasil as a youth player, along with teammate Bruninho.

In his first season at Flamengo as a youth player, he helped the club’s youth team win the Copa do Brasil Sub-17 by beating Fluminense’s youth team 1–0 on 21 December 2018.

In his second season at Flamengo as a youth player, Muniz helped the club’s youth team win four trophies.

During the 2019 season, he scored two hat–tricks, coming against Real Ariquemes and Boavista’s youth teams.

Muniz also signed his first professional contract with Flamengo, keeping him until 2024.

Ahead of the 2020 season, Muniz was called up to the Flamengo’s first team for the pre–season.

He scored his first goal for the club on 25 January 2020, in a 3–2 win against Volta Redonda in the Campeonato Carioca.

After his loan spell at Coritiba ended, Muniz made his debut for the club, coming on as a 82nd minute substitute, in a 1–0 win against Botafogo on 5 December 2020.

His involvement in the first team at Flamengo saw the club win the league.

At the end of the 2020 season, he went on to make four appearances for Flamengo, all coming on as a substitute.

Ahead of the 2021 season, Muniz was given more first team chance under the management of Rogério Ceni.

He then scored a brace for Flamengo, in a 2–0 win against Macaé on 6 March 2021.

Muniz then scored three more goals in the Campeonato Carioca, including another brace against Resende FC on 19 March 2021.

Despite sitting out for the remaining matches of the Campeonato Carioca, his contributions saw the club win the tournament.

His performance was noticed by the Spanish media.

As a result, he was linked a move away from the club, with clubs from Brazil, Europe and Middle East were interested in signing him.

Amid to the transfer speculation, Muniz scored four more goals for Flamengo, including a further brace against Red Bull Bragantino on 19 June 2021.

For his performance against Red Bull Bragantino, he was awarded by ESPN’s "Prêmio Bola de Prata".

By the time Muniz left the club, he made twenty–five appearances and scored nine times in all competitions.

On 13 October 2020, Muniz moved to Coritiba on loan until the end of the 2020 season.

He made his debut for Coritiba, starting a match and played 64 minutes before being substituted, in a 3–1 win against Palmieras on 14 October 2020.

A week later on 25 October 2020, Muniz scored his first goal for Coritiba, in a 3–1 lost against Ceará.

But after only six appearances and one goal for Coritiba, he was asked to return to Flamengo.

On 13 August 2021, Muniz traveled to Spain for a fourteen day quarantine before going to England to sign with Fulham.

On the same day Flamengo and Fulham reached an agreement for a €8m transfer fee with the Brazilian club keeping 20% of a future transfer.

Both clubs officially announced the transfer on 20 August.

He scored his first goal for Fulham in a 2–1 loss to Reading on 18 September.

Since joining the club, Muniz has spoken about settling in England and learning from manager Marco Silva, who convinced him to join Fulham.

He’s also became a second fiddle striker, due to Aleksandar Mitrović being preferred.

Muniz later scored two more braces for the club, coming against Blackburn Rovers and Stoke City.

Despite suffering a calf injury later in the 2021–22 season, he recovered and was part of the Fulham’s squad that contributed to the club’s promotion to the Premier League.

At the end of the 2021–22 season, Muniz went on to make twenty–five appearances and scoring five times in all competitions.