Óscar Cardozo

Óscar René Cardozo Marín (born 20 May 1983), best known as Tacuara (Guarani for Guadua), is a Paraguayan professional footballer who plays as a striker for Club Libertad and the Paraguay national team.

Cardozo commenced his professional career with modest Club Atlético 3 de Febrero of Ciudad del Este, participating in the División Intermedia championship in 2003 and forming a partner ship with striker Roberto Gamarra.

In Round 1 of the 2003 season, Cardozo scored in a 1–1 home draw against Cerro Corá.

In the following fixture, he scored in a 2–0 home victory against Sportivo Iteño on 11 May.

Two weeks later, he netted in a 3–0 home victory against River Plate Asunción on 25 May.

Cardozo would not score again until Round 11, where the player scored the only goal in a 1–0 away victory for 3 de Febrero against Cerro Porteño de Presidente Franco on 13 July.

The following week, Cardozo would again score against Cerro Corá in a 1–1 away draw on 27 July.

On 10 August, Cardozo scored his first double in a 2–0 home victory against Nacional Asunción.

On 7 May, Cardozo would score the only goal for 3 de Febrero as they were defeated 3–1 away against River Plate Asunción on 16 August.

In the following fixture, Cardozo would again score, this time in a 1–1 home draw against Presidente Hayes on 23 August.

On 30 August, Cardozo scored in a 5–1 away thrashing against Colegiales, which totaled to five consecutive goals in four matches.

Cardozo's last league goal would come in Round 21, when the player netted in a 2–1 away victory against Deportivo Recoleta on 27 September.

3 de Febrero had finished in 2nd place of the División Intermedia table and were drawn into promotion play-off fixtures.

On 12 October, Cardozo scored in 3 de Febrero's 4–2 victory against River Plate Asunción and one week later would score against Cerro Corá in his side's 2–0 victory on 19 October.

Cardozo again scored in the following play-off fixture, a 3–2 victory against General Caballero Zeballos Cué on 25 October.

Having won three qualifying promotion play-off fixtures successfully, 3 de Febrero ultimately faced Club Tacuary in a promotion-relegation play-off, which saw the latter win 4–2 on aggregate.

Cardozo scored his first goal of the 2004 División Intermedia season in a 1–0 away victory against Cerro Corá in Round 6 on 2 May, with 3 de Febrero continuing an undefeated run.

One week later, Cardozo scored a double against Sportivo San Lorenzo in a 2–0 home victory on 7 May.

In the following round, 3 de Febrero suffered their first defeat of the season after 8 eight rounds in a 1–0 away defeat against General Caballero, however, consistent results continued as Cardozo scored in a 1–1 draw in the Superclásico of Alto Paraná against Cerro Porteño PF one week later on 23 May.

Cardozo then joined Nacional Asunción during the 2004 season.

Cardozo went on to participate in the second half of the 2004 season for Club Nacional Asunción, participating in the Torneo Clasura.

In 2004, he moved to the top level with Asunción's Club Nacional, where he quickly established himself as the team's top scorer, scoring 17 overall goals in his last season.

Before signing with Nacional Asunción, Cardozo had played in 12 out of 3 de Febrero's 18 league matches, scoring 6 goals, which ultimately saw the club finish in first position of the División Intermedia, with 34 points and having lost just two league matches, and gain promotion to the 2005 Paraguayan Primera División season.

In 2006 and 2009, he was named Paraguayan Footballer of the Year.

Cardozo is the son of Rosa María, who claimed that "Óscar has been a very good son and has managed to help us and take us away from poverty".

His father is Arnaldo and his parents have five children.

Cardozo arrived at Argentina and Newell's Old Boys in the second half of the 2006–07 season for a transfer fee of $1.2 million, joining compatriots Diego Gavilán, Santiago Salcedo and Justo Villar.

As a result of his performances, he was voted the 2006 Paraguayan Footballer of the Year.

Known for his powerful left-foot shot and free-kick skills, he first gained attention whilst playing for Newell's Old Boys, which led to a move to Benfica in 2007.

Nicknamed "Tacuara" (from "Takuára" – Big cane in Guarani), Cardozo gained more than 50 caps for Paraguay, representing the nation at the 2007 Copa América, 2010 FIFA World Cup and 2019 Copa América.

On 21 June 2007, Cardozo officially signed for Portuguese club Benfica, after being bought for an approximate €9.1 million for 80% of his playing rights – this made him the second most expensive signing in the club's history, only surpassed by Simão for whom the club paid €13 million in 2001.

Cardozo finished his first season with 22 official goals, but Benfica came out empty in silverware.

On 22 February 2008, he scored a last-minute goal against 1. FC Nürnberg for the campaign's UEFA Cup (2–2 away draw, 3–2 aggregate win), thereby keeping his promise of surpassing the 20-goal mark.

In 2008–09 Cardozo scored 17 goals, all in the league, including the equalizer against Porto on 30 August 2008.

He scored nearly 200 official goals for the Portuguese club and won eight major titles, including the 2010 national championship, where he also was the top scorer, and the domestic treble in the 2013–14 season.

He then spent two years with Trabzonspor in Turkey before joining Olympiacos.

He netted 11 goals in only 16 games in the Apertura, but his team could only finish 18th in the tournament, and 13th overall.

Cardozo scored his 5th league goal of the season in a 2–1 home victory against Cerro Corá in Round 15 on 9 July.

3 de Febrero had been on a 9-game undefeated streak, which ultimately lasted until Round 18, the last match of the season against Cerro Porteño PF which they narrowly lost 4–3 on 31 July.

The match saw Cardozo score his 6th league goal of the season and his final goal as a 3 de Febrero player.