Paolo Cannavaro

Cannavaro was born in Naples on 26 June 1981.[2] He is the younger brother of the retired football defender Fabio Cannavaro.[3] His nephew Christian is also a footballer, who currently plays as a midfielder for Serie B side Benevento and previously played for Paolo's former club Sassuolo.[4][5]

As a youngster, Cannavaro played for Italy under-21 national football team on 18 occasions between 2002 and 2004, notably representing the Italy under-21 side at the 2002 UEFA European Under-21 Championship, where they reached the semi-finals. He followed in the footsteps of his older brother by earning his first and only call up for the Italian national senior team under manager Roberto Donadoni, on 13 October 2007, for a friendly match in Florence against South Africa on 17 October, although he did not make an appearance during the match.[1][12][13]

A tall, reliable, experienced, dedicated, and physically strong defender, Cannavaro was known in particular for his ability in the air.[14][15][16] A talented defender, although tactically he was capable of playing in a four-man back-line, he was not particularly quick, therefore, due to his elegance on the ball, technique, vision, awareness, and passing ability, he performed best as a ball-playing centre-back in a three-man defensive line, and was known for his ability to create chances or start attacking plays from the back after winning back possession; he was also capable of playing as a right-back, although this was not his preferred position.[15][16][17][18][19] His main defensive skills were his anticipation, marking ability, tackling, concentration, and strong mental attributes.[18][20][21] In spite of his reserved character, he was also known for his leadership qualities.[17][18][22]

Following his retirement from professional football in December 2017, Paolo joined his brother, manager Fabio Cannavaro, on the technical staff at Chinese Super League club Guangzhou Evergrande.[10][11]

In December 2012, Cannavaro was handed a 6-month ban for failing to report an attempt of match fixing by then Napoli goalkeeper Matteo Gianello.[23] On 17 January 2013, the ban was revoked by the FIGC after appeal and Napoli's two-point deduction was reversed.[24][25]

In February 2015, Paolo Cannavaro, his brother Fabio, and his sister-in-law Daniela, were respectively handed 6-month, 10-month, and 4-month prison sentences for breaching orders and entering Fabio's residence after it had been seized by authorities in 2009, amid an investigation into fraudulent activity and tax evasion; all three have appealed and will have their sentences suspended until the final judgement has been made.[26][27]

In November 2017, following the Italy national football team's failure to qualify for the 2018 FIFA World Cup, he drew criticism in the media over a controversial Instagram post, in which he blamed Italy missing out on the upcoming tournament on the influx of non–Italian footballers in Serie A over the previous 15 years.[28]

In July 2018, Cannavaro and former Napoli footballers Pepe Reina and Salvatore Aronica were subject to a hearing by the Italian Football Federation over links to the Esposito brothers, high-ranking members of the Camorra.[29]

• Paolo Cannavaro on Instagram
• Lega Serie A Profile
• AIC Profile (in Italian)
• Paolo Cannavaro at TuttoCalciatori.net (in Italian)
• FIGC Profile (in Italian)