Vagner Love

A professional football player from Brazil, Vagner Silva de Souza, also known as Vagner Love, plays as a striker. Love began his playing career in 2002, when he turned out for the Palmeiras first team. He led the team back to Serie A by helping them win the 2003 Serie B title. Love scored 27 goals in 40-odd league games for the club. His performance blew many European teams away, as they raced for his signature at the end of the 2004 season.

Eventually, Love signed with CSKA Moskva in 2004, playing over 150 games for the club and scoring almost 80 goals in 8 seasons with the team. He won two Russian Premier League titles in 2005 and 2006 as well as five Russian Cups in 2005, 2006, 2008, 2009 and 2011. Love also led CSKA to three Russian Super Cup triumphs but the UEFA Cup triumph was the crowning glory in his career.

Love was named the Russian Premier League Player of the Year for 2008, the year when he led the scoring charts as well. Towards the end of his CSKA stint, Love came back to Brazil on loan moves. His first loan move was in 2009, when he returned to Palmeiras to play 12 games and score 5 goals. In 2010, he returned to Flamengo, scoring 4 goals in five games. Eventually, that was enough to convince Flamengo to sign Love when his deal with CSKA ended in 2011.

At the international level, Love was a part of the Brazilian Under-23 national team in 2003, scoring 4 goals in five games. He was part of the 2004 and 2007 Copa America winning Brazilian national team, winning 21 caps in all and scoring four goals.

Love has won the top-scorer award in six different competitions throughout his career, including the most important one in the UEFA Cup.