28 Facts About Fernando Cavenaghi

Fernando Cavenaghi played as a striker who was efficient in front of goal with either foot and from any range.

Fernando Cavenaghi spent most of his career with River Plate in three separate spells, playing 210 games and scoring 112 goals, while winning honours including the 2014 Copa Sudamericana and the 2015 Copa Libertadores.

Fernando Cavenaghi had short spells in Spain, Brazil, Mexico and Cyprus, finishing as the Cypriot First Division's top scorer as APOEL won it in his final year as a professional.

Fernando Cavenaghi was part of the Argentina under-20 team that won the 2003 South American Youth Championship, finishing as its top scorer with eight goals.

Fernando Cavenaghi earned four caps for the senior team in 2008.

In July 2004, Fernando Cavenaghi moved abroad for the first time, joining Spartak Moscow for a fee of US$12 million, then a record for a Russian team.

Fernando Cavenaghi failed to adapt to Russian football, and was frozen out of the team following the arrival of manager Vladimir Fedotov in April 2006, whom he publicly criticised for his tactics.

On 22 January 2007, Fernando Cavenaghi was sold to French club Bordeaux.

Fernando Cavenaghi scored six goals in 13 total games for the Balearic club, all in the form of braces against Real Sociedad in La Liga, and Sporting Gijon and Almeria in the Copa del Rey.

In July 2011, after leaving his contract at Bordeaux a year early, Fernando Cavenaghi returned to River Plate.

Fernando Cavenaghi was appointed captain of the club, who had been relegated.

Fernando Cavenaghi scored 19 goals in 37 league matches that season, including a notable performance against Gimnasia de Jujuy where he scored four goals.

Fernando Cavenaghi returned to Spain in August 2012 by signing for Villarreal, who themselves had fallen into the Segunda Division.

Fernando Cavenaghi totalled 19 appearances and four goals for the "Yellow Submarine", but cut his stay short in January 2013 Cavenaghi when he signed for Pachuca of the Mexican Liga MX.

In early 2014, Fernando Cavenaghi joined River Plate for the third time.

Fernando Cavenaghi would wear his number 9 throughout his 3rd stay.

Fernando Cavenaghi was the second-highest scorer in Argentina's Primera Division 2015 with 11 goals.

On 25 August 2015, Fernando Cavenaghi moved back to Europe signing a two-year contract with Cypriot First Division club APOEL FC.

Fernando Cavenaghi scored in each of his first seven league appearances, totalling twelve goals in that sequence.

Fernando Cavenaghi helped APOEL to win the Cypriot First Division title, and despite playing his last match on 10 February 2016, missing the last three months of the season due to his injury, he won the top goalscorer award with 19 goals in only 18 league appearances.

Fernando Cavenaghi appeared in 26 matches and scored 23 goals in all competitions with APOEL, before a serious knee injury forced him to mutually terminate his contract with the club on 2 April 2016, as his recovery from the knee surgery was estimated to take more than eight months to complete.

In October, Fernando Cavenaghi was again called up by Tocalli for the squad at the 2003 FIFA U-20 World Cup in the United Arab Emirates.

Fernando Cavenaghi scored a golden goal again in the quarter-finals against the United States in Abu Dhabi.

Argentina finished fourth and Fernando Cavenaghi was one of four top scorers with four goals apiece, though the Golden Shoe award went to Eddie Johnson of the United States.

Fernando Cavenaghi had then the fifth better goal average in River Plate history, very close to Alfredo Di Stefano, but he missed the 2004 Summer Olympics, won by Bielsa's team.

Fernando Cavenaghi would get just four more caps, saying that "at my best moment in France, I was called up to a few games, but Messi, Aguero and Higuain were already there and it was very difficult to find a place among these players".

Fernando Cavenaghi is the oldest of four brothers to Edgardo Fernando Cavenaghi and Monica Ferrero and has been a River Plate fan since his infancy.

Fernando Cavenaghi married his wife, Soledad Gaynor, in 2007 and had his first child, Benjamin, on 2 October 2008.