Óscar Cardozo

Óscar Cardozo

Cardozo with Trabzonspor in 2014
Personal information
Full name	Óscar René Cardozo Marín
Date of birth	(1983-05-20) 20 May 1983 (age 33)
Place of birth	Juan Eulogio Estigarribia, Paraguay
Height	1.93 m (6 ft 4 in)
Playing position	Striker
Club information
Current team	Olympiacos
Number	9
Youth career
	Club 24 de Junio
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
2003–2004	3 de Febrero	34	(20)
2004–2006	Nacional Asunción	63	(22)
2006–2007	Newell's Old Boys	33	(21)
2007–2014	Benfica	175	(112)
2014–2016	Trabzonspor	50	(25)
2016–	Olympiacos	22	(3)
National team‡
2006–	Paraguay	49	(9)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 30 April 2017. ‡ National team caps and goals correct as of 15 October 2013

Óscar René Cardozo Marín (Spanish pronunciation: [ˈoskaɾ reˈne karˈðoso maˈɾin]; born 20 May 1983) is a Paraguayan professional footballer who plays as a striker for Greek club Olympiacos and the Paraguay national team.

Known for his powerful left-foot shot and free-kick skills, he first gained attention whilst playing for Newell's Old Boys, which led to a move to Benfica in 2007. He scored nearly 200 official goals for the Portuguese club and won eight major titles, including the 2010 national championship, where he also was the top scorer, and the domestic treble in the 2013–14 season. He then spent two years with Trabzonspor in Turkey before joining Olympiacos.

Nicknamed "Takuára" (Big cane in Guarani), Cardozo gained more than 45 caps for Paraguay, representing the nation at the 2007 Copa América and the 2010 FIFA World Cup. In 2006 and 2009, he was named Paraguayan Footballer of the Year.

Cardozo is the son of Rosa María, who claimed that "Óscar has been a very good son and has managed to help us and take us away from poverty". His father is Genaro and his parents have five children. Cardozo's family had pigs, horses, they planted tobacco and fixed electrical posts on the road in an attempt to make a living. His family lived in a poor area and had no car. Cardozo's father gave him permission to try his luck in football because the sale of pigs and tobacco was not making enough money to survive on. Cardozo's mother stated that their family no funds to buy football boots or get a ball for their son, that he would play in the fields with a ball which his friends brought over and that he had to go to training on a horse. It was not until his switch from Newell's Old Boys to Benfica in Portugal that let him lift his family out of poverty. His mother claimed, "He started saving money to buy a house for the entire family — but never told me what he was doing. One day he just arrived and told me he was going to show me our new house. I was speechless. I cuddled him and I burst into tears. Oscar bought a normal four-bedroom house — but the difference is that this house has a football pitch. He has a big heart. He has given us everything we needed."