The Uzbekistan Football Association is holding talks with 2006 Ballon d’Or winner Fabio Cannavaro about taking charge of the national side, Championat.asia reports. Should the negotiations end successfully, the legendary defender will become head coach of Uzbekistan’s team.
Earlier candidates for the role included Paulo Bento, Joachim Löw and Fatih Terim.
Who is Fabio Cannavaro?
Born on September 13, 1973 in Naples, Italy, Cannavaro played as a central defender and built an illustrious career at club and international level.
He featured for:
- Napoli (1992–1995)
- Parma (1995–2002), where he won the UEFA Cup (1999), the Coppa Italia (1999, 2002) and the Italian Super Cup (1999)
- Inter (2002–2004)
- Juventus (2004–2006, 2009–2010), where he twice won Serie A titles*
- Real Madrid (2006–2009), lifting La Liga in 2007 and 2008
- Al Ahli in the UAE (2010–2011)
*Juventus’ league titles were later annulled due to the Calciopoli scandal.
With the Italian national team, Cannavaro earned 136 caps and scored twice. As captain, he led Italy to World Cup glory in 2006, the same year he received the Ballon d’Or and was named FIFA World Player of the Year. Notably, he remains the only defender of the 21st century to claim the prestigious award.
Coaching Career
After retiring, Cannavaro turned to management. He coached in the UAE, China and Saudi Arabia, worked with China’s national team and later managed Benevento, Udinese and Dinamo Zagreb.
If the deal goes through, Cannavaro would become the first Ballon d’Or laureate in history to take charge of Uzbekistan’s national team.
At present, Cannavaro is out of work and has expressed his desire to continue his coaching career in Europe. While considering the Uzbek role, he is also weighing up offers from Italy and Polish side Pogon Szczecin. Meanwhile, he has already rejected renewed interest from the Chinese national team, adding intrigue to speculation about his next move.
