Famous People from Paraguay: Famous Paraguayan Footballers/Soccer Players
In this Country Profile
The following Paraguayan athletes dedicated themselves in promoting and inspiring people about football, one of the most well-loved sports in the world.
Arsenio Erico
Arsenio Erico is considered the best Paraguayan footballer of all time. During the early 1930s, Erico was part of the Paraguayan Red Cross football team that was on tour in Argentina in order to gather funds for the Chaco War. Because of his good performances during the friendly matches in the mentioned tour, Club Atlético Independiente of Argentina signed him. He made his debut for Independiente on May 5, 1934. Erico scored 293 goals in Argentine football during his career. Although Erico never played an official game for Paraguay, he did score 56 goals in 26 unofficial matches between 1933 and 1934. Arsenio Erico had a brief career as a football coach after retiring from professional football. He managed the club where he started his career as a footballer, Nacional and also had a brief stint in Club Sol de América where he led the team to a second place finish in the 1957 Paraguayan league.
José Luis Chilavert
Paraguayan football star José Luis Chilavert played as a goalkeeper. He was a three-time IFFHS World’s Best Goalkeeper award winner. Chilavert was also known for his skills as a free kick specialist, and often took penalties. He scored 62 goals in his professional career, many of them crucial, including eight in international matches. Four of his international goals were scored during Paraguay’s qualification for the 2002 FIFA World Cup. His pioneering of this expertise in his position made him the highest scoring professional goalkeeper ever, until surpassed by Brazilian keeper Rogerio Ceni.
Roque Santa Cruz
Roque Luis Santa Cruz Cantero is a Paraguayan footballer who plays for Premier League side Blackburn Rovers as a striker on loan from Manchester City and the Paraguay national football team. Santa Cruz made a name for himself at the 1999 FIFA World Youth Championship, where he scored three goals for a surprising Paraguay team. His performance there led to a call-up to the full Paraguay national team for the Copa América at the age of 17. Santa Cruz made his senior debut at age 17 for Paraguay at Copa América leading his national team in scoring with three goals. He also scored a total of seven goals in the 2002 and 2006 World Cup qualification rounds, and appeared in the 2002 FIFA World Cup, where he scored one goal while helping his team advance to the elimination rounds. Santa Cruz was in doubt for the 2006 World Cup as he was recovering from a serious knee injury. However, he recovered in time for the start of the tournament and played all three group stage matches for Paraguay. Santa Cruz was one of Paraguay’s top scorers (three goals) in the 2010 FIFA World Cup Qualifiers.
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