Adriano Samaniego

Adriano Samaniego Giménez (born September 8, 1963 in Luque, Paraguay); is a former football striker.

Club

Samaniego started his football career in the youth divisions of Club Olimpia of Paraguay. His debut in the first team squad was in 1981. He played for Olimpia from 1981 to 1985, achieving the top scorer title of the Paraguayan League in 1985 and winning the national championship in 1981, 1982, 1983 and 1985. A serious injury kept him from playing the 1986 FIFA World Cup. After a brief stint in Mexico playing for Necaxa, he returned to Olimpia in 1990 to form the feared attacking trio of 1990 along with Raul Vicente Amarilla and Gabriel "El Loco" González, which led Olimpia to the Copa Libertadores title, Supercopa Sudamericana and Recopa of the same year. Samaniego was also the top scorer of the Copa Libertadores in 1990 with seven goals.

After his success with Olimpia, Samaniego played for Colombian side Junior de Barranquilla between 1991 and 1994, where he won the 1993 national championship, before returning again to Olimpia in 1995. Adriano Samaniego ended his career in 1998 playing for Club Guaraní. He will always be remembered for his speed and his characteristic tremendous left foot shots.

International

Samaniego made his international debut for the Paraguay national football team on October 9, 1985 in a friendly match against Chile (0-0). He obtained a total number of 18 international caps, scoring four goals for the national side.

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