Transfer Targets: Oscar Cardozo

The following was submitted by Kevez

Full Name: Óscar René Cardozo

Born: 20th May 1983, Juan Eulogio Estigarribia, Paraguay

Height: 1m 94cm

Position: Striker

Current Club: Benfica

Former Club: Club Atlético 3 de Febrero (PAR), Club Nacional (PAR), Club Atlético Newell's Old Boys (ARG)
Squad Number: 7

Club Career: 181 appearances, 106 goals

International Record: Paraguay, 29 caps, 4 goals at full international level

Did You Know? Cardozo is nicknamed "Tacuara" which in Guarani, a Paraguayan Indian language, means "big cane."

First Impressions

Cardozo is a big, strong centre forward who is excellent in the air and possesses a fairly good touch, technique and movement for a big guy. He has a habit of getting himself into the right areas and although he does miss some chances that he should really convert, he has an excellent strike rate at club level. Cardozo is an expert penalty and free kick taker.

Do We Need Him?

My opinion is that given as Craig Bellamy seems to play as a left winger these days we only really have Carlos Tevez and Emmanuel Adebayor as serious striking options which means that we really need more striking options if we are serious about challenging on all fronts. I fully expect Jo, Valeri Bojinov, Felipe Caicedo and Robinho to all be shown the door this summer and Roque Santa Cruz always seems to be injured or trying to get himself match fit which is not really of much use to us. Of course we have a pressing need for players in other positions but I can seriously see 1 if not 2 strikers being signed this summer as a welcome addition to our main 2 forwards as successful teams usually require 3 to 4 strikers to see them through a long, tough season.

The Likely Cost

Benfica are rumoured to have paid around €11.1 million for Cardozo in June 2007 – They acquired 100% of the player which has taken care of any previous co-ownership issues. Benfica are rumoured to not be in the best financial state so a bid of around £12 - £18 million should be more than enough to acquire the player.

Chances Of Success?

I think that we’re going to need another big striker as an alternative to Adebayor and despite wanting to see Santa Cruz succeed there must be some doubt whether that will actually happen given his awful luck with injuries. Cardozo has usually been something of an understudy to Santa Cruz at international level but there is no doubt that he would give better value for money as he seems to be a lot less susceptible to injuries and probably has a better all-round set of skills. Seeing that Cardozo’s agent seems to have been giving encouraging signs to the press today I’d rate this one as about 8/10.

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