Franco Cervi

Franco Emanuel Cervi (Spanish pronunciation: [ˈfɾaŋko emaˈnwel ˈseɾβi]; 26 May 1994) is an Argentine professional footballer who plays as a left winger or left wing-back for La Liga club Celta de Vigo and the Argentina national team.

Franco Cervi

Cervi playing for Benfica in 2016
Personal information
Full name	Franco Emanuel Cervi
Date of birth	(1994-05-26) 26 May 1994 (age 29)
Place of birth	San Lorenzo, Argentina
Height	1.65 m (5 ft 5 in)
Position(s)	Left winger/left wing-back
Team information
Current team	Celta
Number	11
Youth career
2001–2014	Rosario Central
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
2014–2016	Rosario Central	42	(5)
2016–2021	Benfica	114	(11)
2021–	Celta	35	(4)
International career^‡
2018–	Argentina	4	(1)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 22:05, 25 August 2023 (UTC) ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 20 November 2018

Club career

Rosario Central

A product of Rosario Central's youth system, Cervi made his league debut on 9 November 2014 against Estudiantes in a 1–0 home win. He replaced Hernán Encina after 66 minutes.^[1] On 14 February 2015, he scored his first league goal against Racing Club.^[2]

On 25 February 2016, Cervi made his debut in the Copa Libertadores against Nacional. He scored his first international goal in a 3–1 win against River Plate.^[3]

Benfica

On 15 September 2015, Cervi signed a six-year contract with Portuguese champions Benfica with a release clause of €60 million.^[4][5] He continued to play for Rosario Central until May 2016 and joined Benfica on 24 June for the pre-season.^[6] On his debut for Benfica, he scored the opening goal in a 3–0 win over Braga in the Supertaça Cândido de Oliveira, on 7 August 2016, and was elected best player on pitch.^[7]

On 29 December, Cervi became the first Benfica player to score in all Portuguese competitions in the same season – Supertaça, Primeira Liga, Taça de Portugal and Taça da Liga respectively. In addition, he also scored in the UEFA Champions League.^[8]

Celta de Vigo

On 5 July 2021, Cervi joined Celta de Vigo.^[9]

International career

Cervi was selected in Argentina's 35-man provisional squad for the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro,^[10] however he did not make the final 18-man squad for the tournament.

Cervi made his international debut for Argentina in a 3–0 friendly win over Guatemala on 8 September 2018.^[11]

Personal life

Cervi, who is of Italian descent, possesses an Italian passport.^[12]

Career statistics

Club

As of match played 7 March 2020^[13][14]

Appearances and goals by club, season and competition

Club	Season	League			National cup		League cup		Continental		Other		Total
		Division	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
Rosario Central	2014	Argentine Primera División	3	0	0	0	—		0	0	—		3	0
	2015		27	5	4	0	—		0	0	—		31	5
	2016		12	0	0	0	—		10	2	—		22	2
	Total		42	5	4	0	—		10	2	—		56	7
Benfica	2016–17	Primeira Liga	26	2	6	1	1	1	7	2	1^[a]	1	41	7
	2017–18		31	3	2	1	0	0	3	0	1^[a]	0	37	4
	2018–19		20	4	2	0	2	0	14	1	—		38	5
	2019–20		16	2	5	1	0	0	6	1	0	0	27	4
	Total		93	11	15	3	3	1	30	4	2	1	143	20
Career total			135	16	19	3	3	1	40	6	2	1	199	27

1. Appearance in the Supertaça Cândido de Oliveira

International

As of 20 November 2018^[14]

Appearances and goals by national team and year

National team	Year	Apps	Goals
Argentina	2018	4	1
Total		4	1

Scores and results list Argentina's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Cervi goal.

List of international goals scored by Franco Cervi^[15]

No.	Date	Venue	Opponent	Score	Result	Competition
1	11 October 2018	Prince Faisal bin Fahd Stadium, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia	Iraq	4–0	4–0	Friendly

Honours

Benfica^[14]

• Primeira Liga: 2016–17, 2018–19
• Taça de Portugal: 2016–17^[16]
• Supertaça Cândido de Oliveira: 2016,^[7] 2017

Individual

• 2016 Supertaça Cândido de Oliveira: Best Player^[7]

References

1. "Estudiantes vs. Rosario Central - 9 November 2014 - Soccerway". soccerway.com. Retrieved 28 June 2015.
2. "Racing Club vs. Rosario Central - 14 February 2015 - Soccerway". soccerway.com. Retrieved 28 June 2015.
3. "River Plate vs. Rosario 1 - 3". soccerway.com. Retrieved 31 December 2015.
4. ""I'm very happy to come to such a big club"". S.L. Benfica. 23 September 2015. Retrieved 6 July 2016.
5. "Oficial: Franco Cervi assina pelo Benfica" [Official: Franco Cervi signs for Benfica]. Maisfutebol (in Portuguese). 14 September 2015. Retrieved 29 June 2016.
6. [Looking forward for this new phase to start]. S.L. Benfica (in Portuguese). 24 June 2016. Archived from the original on 24 June 2016. Retrieved 6 July 2016.
7. "Supertaça: Cervi eleito melhor em campo" [Super Cup: Cervi elected best player on pitch]. Maisfutebol (in Portuguese). 7 August 2016. Retrieved 19 October 2016.
8. [Cervi achieved unprecedented feat at Luz]. A Bola (in Portuguese). 31 December 2016. Archived from the original on 1 January 2017. Retrieved 31 December 2016.
9. "Franco Cervi becomes RC Celta's first signing 2021/22". Celta Vigo. 5 July 2021. Retrieved 5 July 2021.
10. "Lista preliminar para Río", AFA, 24 May 2016
11. "Argentina vs. Guatemala - 8 September 2018 - Soccerway".
12. "Franco Cervi, non il solito funambolo argentino" [Franco Cervi, not the usual Argentine tightrope walker]. Sportreview (in Italian). 15 September 2015. Retrieved 18 February 2019.
13. at ForaDeJogo (archived). Retrieved 12 January 2017.  
14. Franco Cervi at Soccerway. Retrieved 2 January 2017.  
15. "Cervi, Franco". National Football Teams. Retrieved 15 October 2018.
16. "Benfica conquista 26.ª Taça de Portugal e 11.ª 'dobradinha'" [Benfica conquer 26th Taça de Portugal and 11th 'dobradinha']. Jornal de Negócios (in Portuguese). 28 May 2017. Retrieved 28 May 2017.

External links

 

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Franco Cervi.

• Franco Cervi at BDFutbol