Douglas Luiz

Douglas Luiz Soares de Paulo (born 9 May 1998), known as Douglas Luiz, is a Brazilian professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for Serie A club Juventus and the Brazil national team.

Douglas Luiz is a product of the Vasco da Gama academy; he was signed by Manchester City in 2017, but never played a competitive match during his time at the club, due to work permit difficulties, and was subsequently loaned out to La Liga side Girona twice. Aston Villa signed Luiz in July 2019 where he spent five seasons, ultimately helping the side qualify for the UEFA Champions League for the first time in over 40 years in 2024; he subsequently signed for Juventus. He is an Olympic champion, winning gold at the 2020 Summer Olympics men's football final.

Vasco da Gama
Douglas Luiz was born in Rio de Janeiro and joined Vasco da Gama's youth setup in 2013, aged 14, after being approved in a number of tests held in Itaguaí. In July 2016, he was promoted to the first team by manager Jorginho due to Marcelo Mattos' injury.

Douglas Luiz made his first team debut on 27 August 2016, coming on as a second-half substitute for Fellype Gabriel in a 2–2 away draw against Tupi for the Campeonato Brasileiro Série B championship. In his first start three days later, he scored his team's only goal in a 2–1 loss at Vila Nova.

Douglas Luiz remained a starter for the Cruz-maltino until the end of the year, as his side achieved promotion to Campeonato Brasileiro Série A. In the meantime, he also extended his contract until 2019, on 26 September 2016.

Douglas Luiz made his debut in the main category of Brazilian football on 14 May 2017, starting in a 4–0 away loss against Palmeiras. His first goal in the division occurred on 10 June, as he netted his team's second in a 2–1 home win against Sport.

Manchester City
Douglas Luiz completed a move to Manchester City on 15 July 2017, signing a five-year contract.

On 1 August, he was loaned to La Liga side Girona FC for his first season with the club. Douglas Luiz made his debut for the Catalans on 26 August 2017, replacing Portu in a 1–0 home win against Málaga CF.

On 31 August 2018, Douglas Luiz was again loaned to Girona due to the UK Home Office denying him a work permit.

Aston Villa
Douglas Luiz signed for Aston Villa on 25 July 2019, subject to a work permit. His work permit was granted, and he officially became an Aston Villa player on 7 August. On 17 August, Douglas Luiz scored his first goal for Aston Villa against AFC Bournemouth; Villa would eventually lose the game 2–1. In August 2022, Luiz scored directly from a corner in the third round of the 2022–23 EFL Cup against Bolton Wanderers, and repeated the feat the following week in a Premier League fixture against Arsenal.

In October 2022, after rumoured transfer interest from Arsenal, following the end of the transfer window - Luiz agreed a new "long-term" contract with Aston Villa. On 23 May 2023, Luiz was voted both Supporter's Player of the Season and Player's Player of the Season at the club's end of season awards. In the 2023–24 season, he managed to record ten goals and ten assists in 53 appearances in all competitions.

Juventus
On 30 June 2024, Douglas Luiz joined Serie A side Juventus for a €50 million fee, plus €1.5 million in add-ons, signing a five-year contract with the Italian club. As part of a separate transaction, Samuel Iling-Junior and Enzo Barrenechea joined Aston Villa on permanent deals. The transfer was in part attributed to Aston Villa's need to comply with Profit and Sustainability Rules (PSR), which forced them to sell one of their key players.

International career
Douglas Luiz appeared for Brazil at the youth level at the 2017 South American U-20 Championship and the 2019 Toulon Tournament, winning the latter.

On 19 November 2019, he made his senior international debut in a friendly match against South Korea, which Brazil won 3–0.

On 9 June 2021, Douglas Luiz was named to the Brazil squad for the 2021 Copa América. Brazil finished the tournament as runners-up to Argentina.

On 7 August 2021, Luiz won a gold medal as part of the Brazil football team at the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo.

Douglas Luiz was called up for 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification matches against Colombia and Argentina on 16 and 21 November 2023, respectively.

In June 2024, Luiz was called up for the 2024 Copa America.

Personal life
From 2021 to 2022, Douglas was in a relationship with Juventus forward Alisha Lehmann; they reunited in 2024.

Honours
Aston Villa
 * EFL Cup runner-up: 2019–20

Brazil U23
 * Olympics Gold Medal: 2020
 * Toulon Tournament: 2019

Brazil
 * Copa América runner-up: 2021

Individual
 * Campeonato Carioca Team of the Year: 2017
 * Toulon Tournament Best Player: 2019
 * Toulon Tournament Best XI: 2019
 * Aston Villa Supporter's Player of the Season: 2022–23
 * Aston Villa Player's Player of the Season: 2022–23