Tim Cahill
Australian football legend and all-time top scorer for the Socceroos.
Timothy Filiga Cahill (born 6 December 1979) is an Australian former professional football player who played as an attacking midfielder but also played as a striker on many occasions. A box-to-box midfielder, Cahill became recognised for 'his aggressive and powerful approach and his ability to head the ball in the penalty area'. He is the all time top goalscorer for the Australia national team with 50 goals in 108 caps between 2004 and 2018. He currently works as a pundit for BBC Sport and Sky Sports.
Quick Facts
- Role
- Central; Attacking Midfielder
- Premier league club
- Everton (2004–2012)
- Nationality
- Australian
- National team
- Australia (Socceroos)
- Signature trait
- Exceptional work rate
- long-range shooting
- aerial power
- Defining season
- 2008–09 (Champions League semi-final; FA Cup semi-final heroics)
- Manager at peak
- David Moyes
Lore & Background
Cahill was born in Sydney, Australia, the third of four children. His father is of English and Irish descent, his mother primarily of Samoan ancestry. He left Sydney for England in 1997 and was signed by Millwall on a free transfer from Sydney United. He was part of the Millwall side that won the Football League Second Division title in 2000–01 and was central to Millwall's run to the 2004 FA Cup Final. Before the 2004–05 season, he was transferred to Premier League club Everton. He was named both Everton Player of the Season and Everton Players' Player of the Season in his debut season. In the following year he was named as one of 50 nominees for the Ballon d'Or, becoming the first Everton player in 11 years to be nominated. He was part of the Everton side that reached the 2008–09 FA Cup final. After leaving Everton in 2012, he played for New York Red Bulls, Shanghai Shenhua, Hangzhou Greentown, Melbourne City, Millwall again, and ended his career with Jamshedpur in the Indian Super League.
Reader's Guide
Cahill is known for his adept heading ability and high vertical leap, having scored many of his goals with his head. He is famous for his regular goal celebration of shadow boxing around the corner flag. He was the first Australian to score at a FIFA World Cup, scored in three World Cups (2006, 2010, and 2014), and has scored the most goals by any Australian in the men's World Cup with five goals. In 2007, he became the first Australian player to score at an AFC Asian Cup.
Did You Know?
- Cahill scored the winning goal in the 2004 FA Cup semi-final for Millwall against Sunderland.
- He polled over 100,000 votes to win the FA Cup 'Player of the Round' award for his performance in that semi-final.
- Cahill's mother, Sisifo, took on two jobs to support the family after his father suffered a hip injury.
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