A consistent, elegant, intelligent, composed and complete goalkeeper, Marchegiani is regarded as one of the best goalkeepers of his generation. He was known in particular for his agility, positional sense, reactions, and his speed when rushing off his line, as well as his efficient technique, reliable handling, movement, and his ability to read the game; in particular, he stood out throughout his career for his outstanding ability to come out and claim crosses and high balls. In addition to his shot-stopping abilities, he was also remembered for his professionalism, as well as his dedication. In spite of his reserved character, he was a resolute goalkeeper, who inspired confidence in his defenders. Although he was not particularly adept or confident with the ball at his feet following the establishment of the back-pass rule, and did not have a particularly powerful or deep goal kick, he possessed excellent vision, and later worked to improve this aspect of his game throughout his career. He was also effective at stopping penalties: in his career, he stopped 18 penalties in Serie A from 69 attempts in 422 appearances between 1988 and 2005, with a career save percentage of 26.1%; he has saved the fourth–highest number of penalties in Serie A history. During the 2003–04 season, he saved five spot kicks.