MADRID — Marcelo was still a teenager when he arrived at Real Madrid with the difficult task of replacing one of his boyhood idols, Roberto Carlos.
It did not take long for him to rise to the challenge.
On Saturday, Marcelo will have a chance to emulate Roberto Carlos’s feat of winning three Champions League titles when he and Madrid face Juventus in Cardiff, Wales.
“It’s priceless to be playing again in a Champion League final,” Marcelo said. “I couldn’t be happier.”
Since joining Madrid from the Brazilian club Fluminense nearly 11 years ago as a promising 18-year-old, Marcelo has become a defensive star just like Roberto Carlos, who won Champions League titles in 1998, 2000 and 2002.