Romel Oswaldo Morales Ramírez (born 23 August 1997) is a professional footballer who plays as a forward for Malaysia Super League club Terengganu FC, on loan from Johor Darul Ta'zim. Born in Colombia, he plays for the Malaysia national team.
Club career Morales started playing football at Churta-Millos football school in Bogotá. He then moved to River Plate at 14 years of age.
Banfield In 2014, Morales moved to Argentinian club Banfield. He made his professional debut on 20 March 2016, replacing Walter Erviti in 1–1 draw against River Plate at the Más Monumental Stadium in Buenos Aires.
PKNS After six years in Argentina, Morales decided to continue his career in Malaysia, where he signed with PKNS. He made his debut on 3 February 2018, in a 2–2 draw against Terengganu II.
Melaka United On 12 November 2019, Melaka United announced the signing of Morales for the following 2020 Malaysia Super League season.
Kuala Lumpur City Morales joined Malaysia Super League club Kuala Lumpur City in January 2021. He was part of the team that won the 2021 Malaysia Cup and emerged as the top scorer of the competition with 10 goals. Morales was also part of the squad where the club reached the 2022 AFC Cup Final.
International career After a five-year stay in the country, on 19 December 2023, Morales was naturalised as a Malaysian citizen. He made his official debut against Jordan during the group stage at the 2023 AFC Asian Cup held in Qatar. He scored his first goal for Malaysia on 25 January 2024 in a 90+14th stoppage time equalizer in the 3–3 draw against South Korea.
On 8 September 2024, Morales scored the only goal of the 2024 Merdeka Tournament final against Lebanon which ended Malaysia's 14 year title drought.
Career statistics Club
+ Appearances and goals by club, season and competitionClubSeasonLeagueCupLeague CupContinentalTotalDivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsPKNS2018Malaysia Super League2136283–3582019Malaysia Super League2273062–319Total431092145006617Melaka United2020Malaysia Super League1130010–123Kuala Lumpur City2021Malaysia Super League225001110–33152022Malaysia Super League1851042723082023Malaysia Super League2081100–219Total6018111512727326Johor Darul Ta'zim2024–25Malaysia Super League191065310028162025–26Malaysia Super League0010000010Total19107531002916Career total1333811833187216859
International
+ Appearances and goals by national team and yearNational teamYearAppsGoalsMalaysia202472202562Total134
International goals Senior
No. Date Venue Opponent Score Result Competition 1. 25 January 2024 Al Janoub Stadium, Al Wakrah, Qatar 3–3 3–3 2023 AFC Asian Cup 2. 8 September 2024 Bukit Jalil National Stadium, Bukit Jalil, Malaysia 1–0 1–0 2024 Pestabola Merdeka 3. 14 October 2025 2–1 5–1 2027 AFC Asian Cup qualification 4. 3–1
Honours Club Kuala Lumpur City Malaysia Cup: 2021 AFC Cup runner-up: 2022
Johor Darul Ta'zim Malaysia Super League: 2024–25 Malaysia FA Cup: 2024 Malaysia Cup: 2024–25 Malaysia Charity Shield: 2024, 2025
Malaysia Pestabola Merdeka: 2024
Individual FAM Football Awards – Best Foreign Player: 2021 Malaysia Cup top scorer: 2021 (10 goals)
See also List of Malaysia international footballers born outside Malaysia
References
External links