 Vágner Love withCSKA Moscow, 2009 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Personal information | ||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Vágner Silva de Souza | |||||||||||||||||||
| Date of birth | (1984-06-11)11 June 1984 (age 41) | |||||||||||||||||||
| Place of birth | Rio de Janeiro, Brazil | |||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 1.72 m (5 ft 8 in)[1] | |||||||||||||||||||
| Position | Forward | |||||||||||||||||||
| Team information | ||||||||||||||||||||
Current team | Retrô | |||||||||||||||||||
| Number | 9 | |||||||||||||||||||
| Youth career | ||||||||||||||||||||
| 2001–2003 | Palmeiras | |||||||||||||||||||
| Senior career* | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) | |||||||||||||||||
| 2002–2004 | Palmeiras | 56 | (39) | |||||||||||||||||
| 2004–2011 | CSKA Moscow | 158 | (79) | |||||||||||||||||
| 2009 | →Palmeiras (loan) | 12 | (5) | |||||||||||||||||
| 2010 | →Flamengo (loan) | 19 | (19) | |||||||||||||||||
| 2012–2013 | Flamengo | 46 | (22) | |||||||||||||||||
| 2013 | CSKA Moscow | 11 | (6) | |||||||||||||||||
| 2013–2015 | Shandong Luneng | 31 | (19) | |||||||||||||||||
| 2015–2016 | Corinthians | 45 | (16) | |||||||||||||||||
| 2016 | Monaco | 12 | (4) | |||||||||||||||||
| 2016–2018 | Alanyaspor | 42 | (33) | |||||||||||||||||
| 2018–2019 | Beşiktaş | 18 | (6) | |||||||||||||||||
| 2019–2020 | Corinthians | 49 | (7) | |||||||||||||||||
| 2020–2021 | Kairat | 36 | (14) | |||||||||||||||||
| 2022 | Midtjylland | 9 | (1) | |||||||||||||||||
| 2022–2023 | Sport Recife | 62 | (23) | |||||||||||||||||
| 2024 | Atlético Goianiense | 21 | (7) | |||||||||||||||||
| 2024–2025 | Avaí | 41 | (5) | |||||||||||||||||
| 2025– | Retrô | 10 | (1) | |||||||||||||||||
| International career‡ | ||||||||||||||||||||
| 2003 | Brazil U20 | 6 | (4) | |||||||||||||||||
| 2004–2007 | Brazil | 20 | (4) | |||||||||||||||||
Medal record
| ||||||||||||||||||||
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 17:43, 31 August 2025 (UTC) ‡ National team caps and goals as of 20 September 2015 | ||||||||||||||||||||
Vágner Silva de Souza (born 11 June 1984), known asVágner Love, is a Brazilian professionalfootballer who plays as aforward forSérie C clubRetrô. He is a forward who has been described byWorld Soccer Magazine as possessing "mobility, flair, awareness and powerful shooting".[2]
The second name Love was given to Vágner while playing forPalmeiras as he was known for his playboy lifestyle.[3]
Over two spells, Vágner Love scored 117 goals across 241 official games in eight seasons atCSKA Moscow. He won 14 honours in the Russian capital, scoring in their win in the2005 UEFA Cup Final to become the youngest player to score in a UEFA Cup final.
Vágner Love scored four goals in 20 games for theBrazil national team, winning theCopa América in2004 and2007.
Vágner Love started his career withPalmeiras. In the 2003 season, he helped them to return to theSérie A, the nation's top-flight division, by scoring 19 goals and finishing as Serie B's top scorer.
In August 2004, Vágner Love was bought byRussian Premier League clubCSKA Moscow, where he joined fellow Brazilian creative midfielderDaniel Carvalho, who had transferred before start of the season. Upon his arrival, Vagner Love had an immediate impact; in his debut on 4 August 2004 againstNeftchi, he came on as a sub and scored a goal.[4] In the last qualifying round against Scottish club Rangers, Vagner Love scored goals in both legs as CSKA won 3-2 on aggregate and qualified to theChampions League group stage. He also scored 9 goals in the remaining 12 league games, including braces againstRotor Volgograd (3-0),[5]Alania Vladikavkaz (1-4)[6] andFC Moscow (1-4)[7] as the team finished second in a close title race against cross-city rivalsLokomotiv, losing by just one point. He also played in every Champions League group stage game and scored one goal againstPSG. In December 2004, CSKA finished third in the group and was relegated to theUEFA Cup knockout stage, where he scored three goals.
At the end of the football season in Russia, Vagner Love was linked with a move toCorinthians due tohomesickness and having trouble adjusting to life in Moscow. However, CSKA refused to sell or loan him.
On 18 May 2005, at the age of 20 years, 341 days, Vágner Love scored the final goal in CSKA's 3–1 victory overSporting CP in the2005 UEFA Cup Final at theEstádio José Alvalade inLisbon, making him the youngest player to score in a UEFA Cup final.[8]
He won his second trophy with the Russian club later that month, as CSKA won the2004–05 Russian Cup. Later that year, the Brazilian striker scored seven times to help his club win the2005 Russian Premier League title. On 24 November, he scored twice in a 2-1 victory againstLevski Sofia, but CSKA were later eliminated from theUEFA Cup group stages.[9]
On 11 March 2006, Vagner participated in the match as CSKA beat crosstown rivalSpartak to win the2006 Russian Super Cup. CSKA's second trophy of 2006 was the Russian Cup, with Vagner scoring in the 3-0 victory against Spartak. CSKA won back-to-back league titles with their2006 league title, with Vagner scoring nine goals, including a hattrick on 18 November 2006 againstLuch-Energia. Despite winning three trophies, Vagner did not score in theChampions League group stage, as CSKA finished third and dropped to the UEFA Cup. He finished the 2006 season with 15 goals in 38 appearances, improving on his previous season total while playing less matches.
Vagner scored and won back-to-backRussian Super Cup titles as CSKA beat Spartak 4-2 to start the2007 season. Vagner was the club's top scorer in the league, scoring 13 goals as CSKA finished third in the2007 league season. Despite Vagner's good performances, CSKA had a poor season, being knocked out from the Russian Cup in the sixth round and from the UEFA Cup in the round of 32, also finishing last in their Champions League group, with Vagner scoring three goals in the group stage.
He won his thirdRussian Cup at the beginning of 2008, scoring during the match and also in the penalty shootout in the final againstAmkar Perm.
He was the top scorer in the2008 season (the first top scorer from outside the former Soviet Union), scoring 20 goals, including hat tricks against Spartak (5-1) andRubin Kazan (4-0), as well as four goals against FC Moscow (4-1).[10] He was also the top scorer of the2008–09 UEFA Cup, with 11 goals in 8 games, including a hat-trick in a 4-3 away victory againstAS Nancy, despite CSKA's elimination from the competition at the round of 16 stage, losing 2-1 on aggregate at the hands of eventual championShakhtar Donetsk.[11][12]
On 31 May 2009, he won his fourth Russian Cup with the club. In the semi-finals, he scored an important goal and then his penalty in the shootout against Dynamo Moscow to help CSKA progress to the finals. He played in the final against Rubin Kazan as his club won 1-0 with a last minute goal fromEvgeni Aldonin.
On 28 August 2009, Vágner Love was signed by his former club Palmeiras on a one-year loan deal until 31 July 2010.[13] CSKA press spokesman Sergei Aksenov claimed that Vágner Love left Russia due to "urgent family problems demand(ing) his presence at home in Brazil".[14][15]
Vágner Love had a respectable return of 5 goals in 12 games for Palmeiras, but his loan spell was ended prematurely after suffering an attack by Palmeiras fans outside a bank in São Paulo on 1 December 2009, just days after scoring in the 37th round of the Brazilian championship, a 3-1 victory against Atletico-MG.[16][17] This incident, combined with his desire to play for his childhood teamFlamengo, led to his spell at the club being ended early on 14 January 2010, with the player stating the primary reason for the move being that he felt unsafe in São Paulo.[18]
On 15 January 2010, the day after his loan was terminated with Palmeiras, Vágner Love officially signed a short-loan deal with reigning Brazilian championsFlamengo until July 2010.[19][20] He made his Flamengo debut againstBangu in theCampeonato Carioca on 23 January 2010, scoring two goals.
Vágner Love performed very well playing for Flamengo, scoring 23 goals in 26 matches. His successful strike partnership withAdriano was dubbed by fans as "Império do Amor", or "The Love Empire", in reference to Adriano's nickname "The Emperor" and Vágner Love's artistic surname. The presence of midfielderDejan Petković in Flamengo's squad made supporters start the year with high expectations—it was widely believed that the Serbian's passing and free-kick abilities, coupled with Adriano's and Vagner's prolific scoring, would produce a top team. However, the team failed to advance past the quarter-finals in the2010 Copa Libertadores,[21] and finished in the bottom half of the table in theSérie A. Shortly after, Adriano revealed he wanted to try playing in Italy again,[22] and Flamengo could not convince CSKA to extend Vágner Love's loan, thus dismantling the once-promising "Love Empire".
In July 2010, Vagner returned to CSKA. He scored two goals in the Europa League group stages, but was unable to make an impact in the later rounds, playing both legs as CSKA lost toFC Porto 3-1 on aggregate.[23] On 11 May 2011, in the Russian Cup semi-finals, Vagner Love scored a goal to tie the match at 3-3 against rivals Spartak, and then scored in the penalty shootout to help his club qualify for the final.[24] In the final less than two weeks later, he won his fifth Russian Cup with the club, playing in the 2-1 victory overAlania Vladikavkaz.
On 25 January 2012, he officially signed with Flamengo.[25][26] He scored 13 goals in 36 appearances in the2012 Brazilian Championship,[27] and two goals in the2012 Copa Libertadores, one of them being a game winner in a home victory overEmelec.[28]
After a change of presidency, on 12 January 2013, Flamengo did not pay his pendencies[check spelling] of rights with CSKA, and Vágner Love had to leave the club, returning to Russia after a one-year absence.[29] On 16 January, he was "re-presented" in Moscow and signed a three-year contract extension.[30] He continued his goal scoring record with CSKA on his return to the club, and propelled the club to the Premier League title in2013 after a goalless draw withKuban Krasnodar on 18 May, the club's first league title since 2006.[31]
On 24 July 2013, Vágner Love transferred toChinese Super League sideShandong Luneng[32] in a reported €12 million transfer.[33]
On 8 February 2015, Vágner Love rescinded his contract with Shandong Luneng and signed withCorinthians in Brazil.[34] He went on to become the top scorer of the club during the national championship as Corinthians went on to win theSérie A that year.
On 13 January 2016,Ligue 1 clubMonaco announced the signing of Vágner Love on an 18-month deal for a €1 million transfer fee.[35] On 20 March, he opened the scoring in an eventual 2–0 win againstParis Saint-Germain, the Parisian club's first home defeat since May 2014.[36]
On 30 August 2016, TurkishSüper Lig clubAlanyaspor reached an agreement withMonaco for the transfer of Love.[37] On 31 August 2016, he was officially presented after passed the medical.[38] Having failed to score in his first seven appearances for the club, Love scored 23 goals in 20 matches that followed to earn theGolden Boot award.[citation needed]
On 26 January 2018, TurkishSüper Lig clubBeşiktaş reached an agreement withAlanyaspor for the transfer of Love.[39]
On 25 January 2019, Love returned to Corinthians on a deal until the end of 2020 after rescinding his contract with Beşiktaş.[40] He rescinded his contract in June 2020.[41]
On 8 July 2020,Kazakhstan Premier League clubFC Kairat announced the signing of Vágner Love on a six-month contract, with the option to extend it.[42]On 3 November 2020, Love scored Kairat's first goal, in a 3–1 win overOrdabasy, to clinch their firstKazakhstan Premier League title since2004.[43] On 5 November 2020, Kairat extended their contract with Vágner Love until the end of the 2021 season.[44]
On 20 January 2022, Love signed an agreement to joinMidtjylland on a free transfer, with a contract lasting until the end of the 2021/22 season.[45] On 22 May 2022 Midtjylland confirmed, that Love was one out of seven players, whose contracts had come to an end, and therefore would leave the club.[46]
On 26 July 2022, Love returned to Brazil after two years, joiningSérie A sideSport Recife until the end of the year.[47]
On 6 January 2023, the forward renewed his contract with the club for another season.[48][49]
On 5 January 2024, Love signed a one-year contract withrecently-promoted Série A clubAtlético Goianiense.[50]
Vágner Love earned his first call up for theBrazil national football team for the2004 Copa América, in a squad without the main stars to give them rest after the end of the 2003–04 season.[51] He made his debut as a substitute in the 4–1 win againstCosta Rica, which was his single appearance as Brazil went on to win the competition.[52]
He did not make the final 23-man squad for the2006 FIFA World Cup in Germany. Following the tournament, Vágner Love was named in new managerDunga's first squad for the national team[53] and scored his first goal for theSeleção in the same year, againstWales.[54]
The following year, he was included in Brazil's squad for the2007 Copa América. On 7 July 2007, he scored the final goal in a 6–1 win againstChile in the quarter-finals of the competition.[55] He played his last match for the national team in that year, againstUruguay. Over the course of his international career, he amassed 20 caps and scored 4 goals.
| Club | Season | League | State league[a] | National cup[b] | Continental | Other | Total | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Palmeiras | 2002 | Série A | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – | – | – | 2 | 0 | |||
| 2003 | Série B | 29 | 19 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 2 | – | 1[c] | 1 | 33 | 22 | ||
| 2004 | Série A | 11 | 8 | 12 | 12 | 7 | 6 | – | – | 30 | 26 | |||
| Total | 42 | 27 | 14 | 12 | 8 | 8 | – | 1 | 1 | 65 | 48 | |||
| CSKA Moscow | 2004 | Russian Premier League | 12 | 9 | – | 0 | 0 | 9[d] | 4 | 0[e] | 0 | 21 | 13 | |
| 2005 | 21 | 7 | – | 7 | 0 | 14[f] | 7 | 1[g] | 0 | 43 | 14 | |||
| 2006 | 23 | 9 | – | 7 | 4 | 7[d] | 2 | 1[e] | 0 | 38 | 15 | |||
| 2007 | 23 | 13 | – | 1 | 0 | 3[d] | 3 | 1[e] | 1 | 28 | 17 | |||
| 2008 | 26 | 20 | – | 1 | 1 | 6[d] | 8 | – | 33 | 29 | ||||
| 2009 | 13 | 3 | – | 3 | 1 | 4[f] | 3 | 1[e] | 0 | 21 | 7 | |||
| 2010 | 15 | 9 | – | 0 | 0 | 5[h] | 2 | 0[e] | 0 | 20 | 11 | |||
| 2011–12 | 25 | 9 | – | 5 | 1 | 9[i] | 1 | 1[e] | 0 | 40 | 11 | |||
| Total | 158 | 79 | – | 24 | 7 | 57 | 30 | 5 | 1 | 244 | 117 | |||
| Palmeiras (loan) | 2009 | Série A | 12 | 5 | 0 | 0 | — | 0[j] | 0 | — | 12 | 5 | ||
| Flamengo (loan) | 2010 | Série A | 5 | 4 | 14 | 15 | — | 10[j] | 4 | — | 29 | 23 | ||
| Flamengo | 2012 | Série A | 36 | 13 | 10 | 9 | — | 5[j] | 2 | — | 51 | 24 | ||
| CSKA Moscow | 2012–13 | Russian Premier League | 9 | 5 | – | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | – | 12 | 6 | ||
| 2013–14 | 2 | 1 | – | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1[e] | 0 | 3 | 1 | |||
| Total | 11 | 6 | – | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 15 | 7 | |||
| Shandong Luneng Taishan | 2013 | Chinese Super League | 10 | 6 | – | 0 | 0 | – | – | 10 | 6 | |||
| 2014 | 21 | 13 | – | 7 | 4 | 5[k] | 5 | – | 33 | 22 | ||||
| Total | 31 | 19 | – | 7 | 4 | 5 | 5 | – | 43 | 28 | ||||
| Corinthians | 2015 | Série A | 31 | 14 | 14 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 3[j] | 0 | — | 50 | 16 | |
| Monaco | 2015–16 | Ligue 1 | 12 | 4 | — | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 13 | 4 | ||
| Alanyaspor | 2016–17 | Süper Lig | 28 | 23 | – | 0 | 0 | – | – | 28 | 23 | |||
| 2017–18 | 14 | 10 | – | 2 | 1 | – | – | 16 | 11 | |||||
| Total | 42 | 33 | – | 2 | 1 | – | – | 44 | 34 | |||||
| Beşiktaş | 2017–18 | Süper Lig | 10 | 3 | – | 1 | 0 | 2[d] | 1 | – | 13 | 4 | ||
| 2018–19 | 8 | 3 | – | 0 | 0 | 8[h] | 4 | – | 16 | 7 | ||||
| Total | 18 | 6 | – | 1 | 0 | 10 | 5 | – | 29 | 11 | ||||
| Corinthians | 2019 | Série A | 28 | 5 | 15 | 1 | 8 | 1 | 10[l] | 4 | – | 59 | 11 | |
| 2020 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 1 | – | 1[j] | 0 | – | 7 | 1 | ||||
| Total | 28 | 5 | 21 | 2 | 8 | 1 | 11 | 4 | – | 62 | 12 | |||
| Kairat | 2020 | Kazakhstan Premier League | 14 | 7 | — | 0 | 0 | 2[h] | 3 | — | 16 | 10 | ||
| 2021 | 22 | 7 | — | 6 | 5 | 12[m] | 5 | 2[n] | 0 | 42 | 17 | |||
| Total | 36 | 14 | — | 6 | 5 | 14 | 8 | 2 | 0 | 58 | 27 | |||
| Midtjylland | 2021–22 | Danish Superliga | 9 | 1 | — | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 9 | 1 | ||
| Sport Recife | 2022 | Série B | 17 | 7 | — | — | — | — | 17 | 7 | ||||
| 2023 | 33 | 11 | 12 | 5 | 3 | 2 | — | 11[o] | 5 | 59 | 23 | |||
| Total | 50 | 18 | 12 | 5 | 3 | 2 | — | 11 | 5 | 76 | 30 | |||
| Atlético Goianiense | 2024 | Série A | 6 | 1 | 15 | 6 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 23 | 7 | |
| Avaí | 2024 | Série B | 24 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 24 | 3 | |
| 2025 | 4 | 0 | 13 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 17 | 2 | |||
| Total | 28 | 3 | 13 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 41 | 5 | |||
| Career total | 555 | 252 | 113 | 53 | 67 | 29 | 120 | 60 | 15 | 6 | 870 | 400 | ||
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| Brazil | 2004 | 1 | 0 |
| 2005 | 0 | 0 | |
| 2006 | 3 | 1 | |
| 2007 | 16 | 3 | |
| Total | 20 | 4 | |
| No. | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 5 September 2006 | White Hart Lane,London, England |  Wales | 1–0 | 2–0 | Friendly |
| 2 | 27 March 2007 | Råsunda Stadium,Solna, Sweden |  Ghana | 1–0 | 1–0 | Friendly |
| 3 | 7 July 2007 | Estadio José Antonio Anzoátegui,Puerto La Cruz, Venezuela |  Chile | 6–1 | 6–1 | 2007 Copa América |
| 4 | 17 October 2007 | Maracanã Stadium,Rio de Janeiro, Brazil |  Ecuador | 1–0 | 5–0 | 2010 FIFA World Cup qualification |
Palmeiras
CSKA Moscow
Shandong Luneng
Corinthians
Kairat
Sport
Avaí
Brazil
Individual
Awards | |||||||
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Brazil squads | |||||||||||||
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