Edinson Cavani

Verified Timeline

Lore & Background

Cavani began his career playing for Danubio in Montevideo, where he played for two years, before moving to Italian side Palermo in 2007. In 2010, Cavani signed for Napoli, who signed him on an initial loan deal before buying him for a total fee of €17 million. He helped them win the Coppa Italia in 2012 and established himself as one of the best players in Serie A, finishing as the Serie A top scorer in the 2012–13 season. In mid-2013, Cavani joined French club Paris Saint-Germain for a reported €64 million, at the time the most expensive signing in French football history, and went on to be one of their most important players. Although Cavani was frequently deployed on the left wing in a 4–3–3 due to Zlatan Ibrahimović's presence, he scored decisive goals in the 2014 Coupe de la Ligue final and the 2015 and 2016 Coupe de France final. After Ibrahimović left in 2016, Cavani returned to a centre-forward role. Despite PSG losing the Ligue 1 title in 2016–17, he scored 35 league goals and was named Ligue 1 Player of the Year. In 2017–18, he became the club's all-time top goalscorer at the time and finished as the league's top goalscorer for a second consecutive season as PSG reclaimed the Ligue 1 title. In total, he won six Ligue 1 titles. In 2020, Cavani signed with Manchester United before signing for Valencia in 2022 and Boca Juniors in the following year. Cavani scored on his Uruguay debut against Colombia in 2008, and went on to earn 136 caps and score 58 international goals, only behind strike partner Luis Suárez among Uruguayan internationals. He participated in ten major international tournaments: four FIFA World Cups (2010, 2014, 2018 and 2022), five Copas América (2011, 2015, 2016, 2019 and 2021), and one FIFA Confederations Cup (2013). Cavani scored at the 2010 World Cup to help Uruguay to fourth place in the tournament, and in 2011 was part of the Uruguay squad that won a record fifteenth Copa América title. He finished as the CONMEBOL 2018 World Cup qualification top scorer with ten goals. He was awarded the Golden Foot in 2018 for his achievements in football.

In Their Own Story

The rain slicked the pitch at the Stadio Diego Armando Maradona, the roar of the crowd drowning out the thunder. Cavani stood over the ball, chest heaving, eyes locked on the goal. With one touch to control and another to curl the shot past the despairing keeper, he rose into the air, arms spread wide in celebration. The stadium erupted, a sea of blue and white rising as if to lift their hero off their feet.

Reader's Guide

On 18 September 2011, Cavani scored a hat-trick against Milan in Napoli's 3–1 home win in Serie A.

Did You Know?

• Cavani is nicknamed "El Matador" (The Bullfighter).
• He is one of the few players to have scored 100 goals in two of Europe's big five leagues.
• Cavani finished as the Serie A top scorer in the 2012–13 season.
• He became PSG's all-time top goalscorer in 2017–18.
• Cavani is Uruguay's second-highest international goalscorer, behind Luis Suárez.