Clubs: Club Nacional de Football, Plaza Colonia, São Paulo FC, Fenerbahçe SK

• Lugano won the Uruguayan championship with Nacional as a teenager before establishing himself as one of South America's most promising young defenders with São Paulo.

• Spent four years with the Brazilian club, peaking in 2005 when he helped them to a treble of Campeanato Paulista, Copa Libertadores and FIFA Club World Cup in Tokyo, where they defeated Liverpool FC 1-0 in the final.

• Left for Europe in 2006, joining Fenerbahçe on a four-year contract, and won the Turkish title in his first season before helping the Istanbul outfit into a club-best UEFA Champions League quarter-final in his second – both under Brazilian coach Zico.

• First capped by Uruguay on 4 February 2003, he became a regular during the qualifying campaign for the 2006 FIFA World Cup and helped La Celeste to the 2007 Copa América semi-finals.

• Captained Uruguay to the 2010 World Cup semi-finals, starting six of the seven games but missing the last-four defeat by the Netherlands through injury; won his 50th cap in October 2010 in a 7-1 friendly victory in Indonesia.