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World Player Of The Week: Edinson Cavani - Napoli
Join Goal.com in saluting another player worthy of global recognition
28-Nov-2011 8:15:00 PM
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Welcome to Goal.com's regular feature: Goal.com World Player of the Week. Each week our worldwide team of editors will put forward a selected candidate, as chosen by Goal.com International, who deserves recognition for achieving something special that matchday. It won't necessarily be the best player in the world - at least not usually - but whoever we nominate will have accomplished something amazing. It might be for a particularly awesome performance or for something praiseworthy off the pitch - either way, the person in question deserves special attention...
Goal.com World Player of the Week #132: Edinson Cavani
Club: Napoli
Country: Uruguay
Age: 24
Role: Striker
Achievement: Inspired Napoli against Manchester City and Atalanta
Napoli gave themselves a great chance of making it through to the last 16 of the Champions League with a 2-1 win against Manchester City last week, and there is no prize for guessing who was at the heart of the triumph.
Heading into the fixture the Italian club were third in Group A behind City but Cavani’s heroics saw them leapfrog Roberto Mancini’s side into second spot and regain control of their own destiny.
Cavani broke the deadlock at the Stadio San Paolo after 17 minutes with a header from close range and doubled their advantage just after the interval when he slotted home an Andrea Dossena pass.
Then on Saturday evening the Uruguay international was on target once again when he struck deep into injury time against Atalanta in their Serie A fixture to rescue a point and earn a 1-1 draw.
Congratulations to Edinson Cavani, Goal.com's 132nd World Player of the Week!
Honourable Mentions
Morgan Amalfitano - Olympique de Marseille
Amalfitano scored his first goal in an OM shirt in a comprehensive 3-0 victory over PSG and delivered an assist for Andre Ayew.
Andre - Atletico Mineiro
The on-loan striker from Dynamo Kiev struck twice to help Atletico Mineiro to a 4-0 victory over Botafogo, ensuring another season of Serie A football for the club in 2012.
Eren Derdiyok - Bayer Leverkusen
Derdiyok was sensational for Bayer Leverkusen over the past week as he scored four goals in two games. He was on target in the German club’s 2-1 win against Chelsea in the Champions League and netted a hat-trick against Hertha Berlin in his side’s 3-3 away draw in the Bundesliga at the weekend.
Olivier Giroud - Montpellier
Giroud netted a hat-trick as la Paillade took over the leadership of Ligue 1 courtesy of a 3-1 away win against Sochaux. While his first goal was scored from the goal-line, his second was a sublime chip from the edge of the box with only three minutes remaining, effectively winning the match for Montpellier. A smart third was added in stoppage time, taking the French striker clear at the top of Le Championnat's scoring charts as Montpellier built a three-point advantage over Paris Saint-Germain.
Mike Hanke - Borussia Monchengladbach
Hanke was the hero for Borussia Monchengladbach as they defeated Koln 3-0, scoring twice and helping them move level on points with Borussia Dortmund at the top of the Bundesliga table.
Zlatan Ibrahimovic - AC Milan
Ibrahimovic scored his 100th and 101st goal in Serie A at the weekend as AC Milan defeated Chievo 4-0 at home to remain just a point behind leaders Juventus. The Sweden striker was also on target against his old club Barcelona in the Champions League last week in the Rossoneri’s 3-2 loss at San Siro.
Goal.com World Player of the Week #132: Edinson Cavani
Club: Napoli
Country: Uruguay
Age: 24
Role: Striker
Achievement: Inspired Napoli against Manchester City and Atalanta
Napoli gave themselves a great chance of making it through to the last 16 of the Champions League with a 2-1 win against Manchester City last week, and there is no prize for guessing who was at the heart of the triumph.
Heading into the fixture the Italian club were third in Group A behind City but Cavani’s heroics saw them leapfrog Roberto Mancini’s side into second spot and regain control of their own destiny.
Cavani broke the deadlock at the Stadio San Paolo after 17 minutes with a header from close range and doubled their advantage just after the interval when he slotted home an Andrea Dossena pass.
Then on Saturday evening the Uruguay international was on target once again when he struck deep into injury time against Atalanta in their Serie A fixture to rescue a point and earn a 1-1 draw.
Congratulations to Edinson Cavani, Goal.com's 132nd World Player of the Week!
Honourable Mentions
Morgan Amalfitano - Olympique de Marseille
Amalfitano scored his first goal in an OM shirt in a comprehensive 3-0 victory over PSG and delivered an assist for Andre Ayew.
Andre - Atletico Mineiro
The on-loan striker from Dynamo Kiev struck twice to help Atletico Mineiro to a 4-0 victory over Botafogo, ensuring another season of Serie A football for the club in 2012.
Eren Derdiyok - Bayer Leverkusen
Derdiyok was sensational for Bayer Leverkusen over the past week as he scored four goals in two games. He was on target in the German club’s 2-1 win against Chelsea in the Champions League and netted a hat-trick against Hertha Berlin in his side’s 3-3 away draw in the Bundesliga at the weekend.
Olivier Giroud - Montpellier
Giroud netted a hat-trick as la Paillade took over the leadership of Ligue 1 courtesy of a 3-1 away win against Sochaux. While his first goal was scored from the goal-line, his second was a sublime chip from the edge of the box with only three minutes remaining, effectively winning the match for Montpellier. A smart third was added in stoppage time, taking the French striker clear at the top of Le Championnat's scoring charts as Montpellier built a three-point advantage over Paris Saint-Germain.
Mike Hanke - Borussia Monchengladbach
Hanke was the hero for Borussia Monchengladbach as they defeated Koln 3-0, scoring twice and helping them move level on points with Borussia Dortmund at the top of the Bundesliga table.
Zlatan Ibrahimovic - AC Milan
Ibrahimovic scored his 100th and 101st goal in Serie A at the weekend as AC Milan defeated Chievo 4-0 at home to remain just a point behind leaders Juventus. The Sweden striker was also on target against his old club Barcelona in the Champions League last week in the Rossoneri’s 3-2 loss at San Siro.
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