Olimpia Asunción 1990–1999 Santa Cruz joined
Primera División Paraguaya club
Olimpia Asunción's
youth academy at the age of nine, and the player eventually made his first-team appearance in the
1997 Primera División Paraguaya at the age of 15, during the Torneo Clausura on 27 July when he entered the field in the 80th minute for
Alfredo Mendoza in the Paraguayan derby against
Cerro Porteño.
1998 season During the group stages of the
1998 Copa Mercosur, Santa Cruz scored his first goal of the competition in the 11th minute of Olimpia Asunción's 4–2 away victory against Argentine side
Racing Club on 14 October 1998. The club finished in second position of their group with ten points, and advanced to the quarter-finals to face
José Luís Chilavert's
Vélez Sársfield. During the first-leg of the quarter-final match on 27 October, Santa Cruz scored in the 65th minute of Olimpia's 4–3 away victory. were scored against his international teammate Chilavert. Bayern Munich's eyes looked at Santa Cruz for the first time after he scored his double past José Luís Chilavert. The club was later eliminated from the competition at the semi-final stage by
Palmeiras, who would go on to win the tournament. During the
1998 Primera División Paraguaya season, Santa Cruz scored three goals in nine appearances as Olimpia were crowned champions of the league. The club had also reached the knock-out stages of the
1998 Copa Libertadores, where they were eliminated by Argentina's
Colón.
1999 season During the
1999 Primera División Paraguaya season, Santa Cruz scored 4 goals and provided 6 assists in 14 appearances as Olimpia claimed the league title. Santa Cruz participated at the
1999 Copa Libertadores, where Olimpia were drawn in Group 3 with
Cerro Porteño, eventual champions Palmeiras and
Corinthians. In Olimpia first group stage match, against Cerro Porteño on 24 February, Santa Cruz scored a second-half double past
Aldo Bobadilla in the 58th and 89th minutes as his side were defeated 4–3. On 5 March, Santa Cruz played a full 90 minutes in his side's second group stage match, a 4–2 home victory against Palmeiras. Santa Cruz again featured for Olimpia in their third group stage fixture, a 1–1 away draw against Palmeiras on 12 March. In Olimpia's fourth group stage fixture, Santa Cruz featured in the entire match as his side drew 2–2 at home against Cerro Porteño on 17 March. On 26 March, Santa Cruz played a full 90 minutes in Olimpia's 2–1 home defeat against Corinthians in their fifth Copa Libertadores group stage fixture. Olimpia had been 1–0 in front since the 31st minute of the match, before Corinthians would go on to score two goals in the second half. On 16 May 1999, a Bayern Munich delegation composed of
Franz Beckenbauer,
Karl-Heinz Rummenigge,
Uli Hoeneß,
Søren Lerby and
Giovanni Branchinni entered surprisingly into the
Estadio General Pablo Rojas to see a game between
12 de Octubre and Olimpia Asunción, in which Santa Cruz scored and was Man of the Match, making Bayern Munich hurry with the transfer process. The first contacts with Bayern Munich were via telephone and the US$20 million that the Olimpia Asunción president wanted for the transfer was considered by Bayern Munich a very elevated cost. and Olimpia club president
Osvaldo Domínguez Dibb had assessed Santa Cruz to value from around
US$20 million, however Santa Cruz was eventually sold to
Bayern Munich for US$7 million, the transfer fee becoming the record transfer in Paraguayan football. Santa Cruz confessed that his teammates and himself had been mis-treated by Osvaldo Domínguez Dibb after bad performances from the first-team where the players' salaries were not deposited into their bank accounts in order for the players to personally collect it in person from the president and would be threatened by guns and knives. "I remember that we once lost an important regional derby. The president entered the sleeping room where we all spent the night ahead of games and unloaded his gun in the ceiling. That wasn't all though. When a player had put in a bad performance, Osvaldo just strolled up to his car and urinated inside it while the player was standing right next to him. The president always wanted us to come up to him to pick up our monthly wages. If you hadn't played well that month, he stood up and asked 'What is it you want?' while tapping a machine gun on his desk. That always prompted players to wait for their money until they had put in some better performances again."
Bayern Munich 1999–2000 season Santa Cruz debuted for Bayern Munich in the
1999–00 Bundesliga season in a 2–0 loss against
Bayer Leverkusen on 22 August 1999. Six days later, he scored his first league goal in the 40th minute of a 1–0 win against
SpVgg Unterhaching on 28 August. He made his first appearance in the
1999–2000 UEFA Champions League on 15 September in a 2–1 victory over
PSV. His first goal in the Champions League came on his fifth appearance in the competition as Bayern lost 2–1 against PSV, as was substituted onto the field on 26 minutes for
Paulo Sérgio and scored with a right-footed shot on 51 minutes. Santa Cruz finished the season with nine goals in 48 matches.
2000–01 season Prior to the start of the
2000–01 Bundesliga season, Santa Cruz scored in a semi-final 4–1 win against
1. FC Kaiserslautern in the
2000 DFB-Ligapokal on 30 July. During the final, he was substituted off the field for Carsten Jancker after just 46 minutes as Bayern Munich defeated
Hertha BSC 5–1 on 1 August. Santa Cruz scored his first goal of the season, eight minutes after being substituted on for
Alexander Zickler on the 11th minute, in a 3–0 away win to
VfL Bochum on 19 August. On 19 September, in his first appearance of the
2000–01 Champions League, he was substituted onto the field after 46 minutes and then substituted off the field after 73 minutes. Four days later, he scored the winning goal in a 2–1 away victory to
1. FC Köln on 23 September. After suffering from an injury, he returned to action on 17 December to score the first goal of the game after 15 minutes in a 3–1 away win to Hertha BSC, he played 89 minutes of the match before being substituted off. He then missed the following nine games, where on his return he scored Bayern Munich's first goal after six minutes of the game in a 1–1 draw to
Borussia Dortmund on 7 April. He missed a large amount of the Champions League, he made his return where he was brought onto the field for
Giovane Élber on 65 minutes in the second-leg quarter-final 2–1 win against
Manchester United on 18 April. Due to injuries he was reduced to only 19 league appearances for the season, having scored five goals, as Bayern Munich claimed both the Bundesliga and the
UEFA Champions League titles, where he was an un-used substitute during the
final on 23 May. Santa Cruz finished the season with six goals in 28 matches.
2001–02 season Having already been overlooked by Bayern for striker Giovane Élber, the signing of striker
Claudio Pizarro for the
2001–02 Bundesliga season would also limit his appearances, as Santa Cruz would regularly be substituted on to replace Pizarro or Élber. On 8 September, he scored his first goal of the 2001–02 season in round five, the second goal in a 2–0 away win to Borussia Dortmund. He played 79 minutes of the game before being substituted. On 23 October, he scored a brace in a 3–1 home win against
Feyenoord during a
2001–02 Champions League group stage fixture as Bayern finished on top of Group H. He would be in the starting XI for the following two matches, where the second game saw him replaced after 42 minutes of the first half due to an injury. On 27 November, Bayern Munich defeated
Boca Juniors 1–0 in the
2001 Intercontinental Cup, though he was not included in the squad. He returned to the first-team in a 5–1 away loss against
Schalke 04 on 26 January, where he played the full 90 minutes. During the second group stage phase of the Champions League, he headed in a goal in the 81st minute from a
Bixente Lizarazu cross in a 1–0 win against
Boavista on 26 February. Bayern Munich were knocked out in the quarter-finals to Real Madrid as Santa Cruz made ten appearances in the competition. Santa Cruz finished the season with nine goals in 38 matches.
2002–03 season Santa Cruz made his first appearance of the
2002–03 season on matchday 9 in a 1–0 away win against
Hansa Rostock, where he was substituted on to the field for Claudio Pizarro in the 76th minute. The striker scored his first goal of the
2002–03 Champions League in a 2–1 loss against
Deportivo La Coruna on 29 October; he was substituted onto the field for
Hasan Salihamidžić in the 46th minute and scored in the 77th minute. Bayern, however, finished bottom of their group with just two points. His first goal of the 2002–03 season came in a 2–1 home win against Borussia Dortmund on 9 November. One week later, he scored the only goal in a 1–0 win against
VfL Wolfsburg on 16 November. In the following match, he scored Bayern Munich's second goal in a 2–0 win against 1. FC Kaiserslautern on 23 November. This was the first time that he had scored a goal in three consecutive games for Bayern Munich. Two weeks later, he scored a brace in a 3–0 away victory to
VfB Stuttgart on 7 December. Due to injury, the Paraguayan was reduced to only 14 league appearances for the 2002–03 season as Bayern Munich finished on top of the
2002–03 Bundesliga table with 75 points. Bayern Munich defeated 1. FC Kaiserslautern 3–1 to claim the
2002–03 DFB-Pokal on 31 May, Santa Cruz was not included in the squad. Santa Cruz finished the season with eight goals in 19 matches.
2003–04 season Giovane Élber transferred to
Lyon, but Bayern Munich signed Dutch striker
Roy Makaay which provided more competition between Santa Cruz and Claudio Pizarro for the 2003–04 Bundesliga season. He made his first appearance of the 2003–04 in round five in a 3–2 loss to VfL Wolfsburg on 13 September 2003. One week later, he scored his first goal of the season in a 3–3 draw against Bayer Leverkusen on 20 September 2003. Santa Cruz scored his first goal of the
2003–04 UEFA Champions League in a 1–1 draw against
Anderlecht on 30 September. Bayern Munich reached the knock-out stages where they were eliminated against Real Madrid. He had made 29 league appearances, having surpassed the number of appearances he made during his first-season before facing injury. Bayern Munich eventually finished second of the Bundesliga table with 68 points, six points shy of
Werder Bremen. Santa Cruz finished the season with nine goals in 41 matches.
2004–05 season Prior to the start of the
2004–05 season, Santa Cruz played a full 90-minute in Bayern Munich's 3–2
2004 DFB-Ligapokal final win against Werder Bremen on 2 August. His first appearance of the 2004–05 season came in round 1 in a 2–0 away win against
Hamburger SV, he was replaced by
Mehmet Scholl in the 60th minute. He featured in the following two matches, although due to an injury sustained, he made his fourth and final league appearance for the 2004–05 season on matchday 34 in a 3–1 away win against VfB Stuttgart on 21 May 2005; he was substituted onto the field for
Bastian Schweinsteiger in the 77th minute. He did not participate in the
2004–05 Champions League, where Bayern Munich were eliminated by
Chelsea during the quarter-final stages. Bayern were crowned champions of the
2004–05 Bundesliga season with 77 points, and qualified for the
2005–06 Champions League. The club also claimed the
2004–05 DFB-Pokal in a 2–1 win against Schalke 04 on 28 May 2005, although Santa Cruz did not take part in the match, where in his absence was striker
Paolo Guerrero. Upon Santa Cruz's return from injury, he played the full 90 minutes of Bayern's 2–1
2005 DFL-Ligapokal semi-final defeat against VfB Stuttgart on 26 July. Santa Cruz finished the season with five goals in seven matches for the first team and two goals in five matches for the reserve team.
2005–06 season Santa Cruz started in Bayern Munich's 3–0 home win against
Borussia Mönchengladbach on the open day of the
2005–06 season on 5 August. He first appeared in the
2005–06 Champions League in a 1–0 home win against
Club Brugge on 27 September, where he was substituted onto the field for Paolo Guerrero in the 72nd minute. He would make just one more appearance in the competition, as Bayern Munich were eliminated by
Milan at the round of 16. He scored his first goal of the season on matchday 8 in a 2–0 home win against VfL Wolfsburg on 1 October. In the following match, he scored after 19 minutes in a 1–1 away draw against Schalke 04 on 15 October. In Bayern's 4–0 win against
MSV Duisburg one week later, on 22 October, he scored his side's third goal in the 59th minute. He encountered an injury which reduced him to just 13 Bundesliga appearances for the season. During this period of injury recovery, he spent some time with
Bayern Munich II in the
Regionalliga Süd. He returned to the first-team on matchday 29 in a 3–0 away loss to Werder Bremen on 8 April, where he was substituted onto the field for Claudio Pizarro in the 80th minute. Bayern claimed the
2005–06 DFB-Pokal when they defeated
Eintracht Frankfurt 1–0 at the
Olympic Stadium on 29 April, however Santa Cruz did not take part in the match. He scored his fourth and final goal of the 2005–06 season in a 3–1 home win against VfB Stuttgart on 3 May. During the
2006 DFL-Ligapokal, he featured in Bayern's 0–0 semi-final draw against Schalke 04 on 2 August, where he was substituted onto the field in the 77th minute for
Lukas Podolski. Bayern eventually won the match 4–1 in a
penalty shoot-out as he converted his side's third spot kick. Three days later, he played a full 90 minutes of the final where Bayern lost 2–0 against Werder Bremen on 5 August 2006. Bayern claimed the 2005–06 Bundesliga and qualified for the
2006–07 Champions League. Santa Cruz finished the season with three goals in 19 matches for the first team. He also made an appearance for the reserve team. He scored his first goal of the
2006–07 season in a 3–0 away win against
Energie Cottbus on 12 May. he finished the 2006–07 Bundesliga season with two goals in 26 league appearances, as Bayern finished in fourth position with 60 points. The club had also been eliminated in the third round of the
2006–07 DFB-Pokal. After eight years with Bayern, he stated to the club's director of football,
Uli Hoeneß, that he needed a change of scenery and opted for a transfer to
Real Betis, he also received offers to go to
Italy and England. Bayern asked for an affordable price for him but at the time it was too high for Real Betis and he eventually signed for
Blackburn Rovers in July 2007. Santa Cruz finished the season with four goals in 38 matches.
Blackburn Rovers 2007–08 season Santa Cruz agreed to a four-year deal with Blackburn on 28 July 2007. The club agreed to pay Bayern Munich £3.5 million for the player, where he was presented with the number nine shirt. The striker made his debut in the
2007–08 Premier League on the opening day of the season in a 2–1 away win against
Middlesbrough on 11 August, where he was substituted onto the field for the injured
Benni McCarthy in the 60th minute and after just three touches of the ball scored an equaliser in the 63rd minute. Two weeks later, he scored for Blackburn after 16 minutes in a 1–1 draw against
Everton on 25 August. He celebrated his 26th birthday and his first full Rovers start when he scored in a 1–0 away first-leg win against
MYPA in the
2007–08 UEFA Cup qualifying rounds on 16 August. He scored his first
hat-trick for Blackburn in a 5–3 loss to
Wigan Athletic on 15 December, Blackburn had been losing 3–0 before he had brought the sides level with his three goals. This hat-trick meant that he became the first player in over ten years in English football to score a hat-trick for the losing side, since
Dwight Yorke's hat-trick on 30 September 1996 for
Aston Villa in their 4–3 away loss to
Newcastle United. During the
2007–08 League Cup, he scored a brace in a 3–2 loss against
Arsenal. Two weeks later, he scored a brace in a 2–2 draw against
Manchester City on 27 December. On 12 January 2008, he was named
Premier League Player of the Month for December 2007. The Paraguayan scored a 90th minute consolation goal for Blackburn in their 3–1 away loss to
Liverpool on 13 April. One week later, he scored in a 1–1 draw against Manchester United on 19 April. In the following match, he went on to score in a 1–0 victory against
Portsmouth and then two goals in a 3–1 win against
Derby County which totalled to five goals in four consecutive matches. Santa Cruz finished the season with 19 goals in 37 league appearances, finishing as the league's fourth top goal-scorer behind
Cristiano Ronaldo (31 goals),
Fernando Torres (24 goals) and
Emmanuel Adebayor (24 goals), as Blackburn claimed seventh spot on the
2007–08 Premier League table with 58 points. He was also voted as
Blackburn's Player of the Season.
2008–09 season Following a successful 2007–08 campaign, there was much transfer speculation surrounding Santa Cruz at the start of the
2008–09 Premier League. However, he signed a four-year contract with Blackburn in August to end the speculation. Prior to the start of the 2008–09 season, Blackburn signed Roque's younger brother,
Julio, who had arrived from
Paraguayan Primera División side
Cerro Porteño. He scored his first goal of the 2008–09 season in round 1 in a 3–2 away victory against Everton on 16 August. His second goal of the season came on 27 September in a 2–1 away win against Newcastle United. During the fourth round of the
2008–09 Football League Cup, he scored in Blackburn's 2–1 win against
Sunderland on 12 November, he was substituted onto the field for
Andy Haworth in the 62nd minute and scored in the 65th minute. During an away fixture against Portsmouth in December 2008, Santa Cruz's front door was forced open and his house was raided by three men who held his wife, Giselle, at knifepoint to her throat. His children were forced into a downstairs room while the robbers searched the house upstairs with his wife as she was forced her to hand over thousands of pounds worth of jewellery. Santa Cruz's house was less than a mile from Liverpool winger
Jermaine Pennant's mansion, which was attacked by ram-raiders the day before. On 6 December, he scored in Blackburn's 3–1 loss against Liverpool. He became a target for Manchester City following their takeover by the billionaire
Abu Dhabi United Group. In January 2009, they had bids of £12 million and £16 million rejected by Blackburn, with the club stating it would take £25 million for them to even consider selling their star striker. On 2 February 2009, City failed to meet the reported £25 million asking price. During the fifth round of the
2008–09 FA Cup, he scored within 90 seconds to give Blackburn the lead in their 2–2 draw against
Coventry City on 14 February. He scored his fourth and final goal of the 2008–09 season in a 2–1 away loss against Manchester United on 21 February. On 20 April, there were rumours that he was planning to leave Rovers after the 2008–09 season, less than 12 months after signing a new deal with the Premier League club, although he denied these rumours, saying that they were "lost in translation". Blackburn finished on the
season in 15th position of the Premier League table with 41 points; Santa Cruz scored just 4 goals in 20 league appearances.
Manchester City 2009–10 season On 21 June 2009, it was reported that Santa Cruz was undergoing a medical at Manchester City ahead of a proposed summer transfer worth £17.5 million on a four-year deal. Confirmation that the deal had been completed was released later that same day. The move to Manchester City reunited Santa Cruz with his former manager at Blackburn,
Mark Hughes. Santa Cruz debuted for Manchester City in the
2009–10 Premier League season in a 3–1 home victory against
West Ham United on 28 September, where he was substituted onto the field for
Shaun Wright-Phillips in the 81st minute. Santa Cruz scored his first goal for Manchester City in a 5–1
League Cup win against
Scunthorpe United on 28 October. He scored his first league goals for Manchester City, a brace in a 4–3 home victory against Sunderland on 19 December, a game which proved to be Mark Hughes' last game at the club. Santa Cruz's appearances, however, were limited when
Roberto Mancini took over as manager, due to a succession of injuries coupled with a lack of form. He scored his third and final league goal for the 2009–10 season in a 2–1 away victory against
Fulham on 21 March. Santa Cruz had made only 19 league appearances as Manchester City finished the season in fifth position, where they qualified for the
2010–11 UEFA Europa League.
2010–11 season Roberto Mancini continued to leave out Santa Cruz during the
2010–11 season, and he made it clear that he wanted to leave. Mark Hughes, who by then was manager of Fulham, had insisted on signing him, but a transfer never materialized. From September 2010 to January 2011, he had made just one league appearance, a 0–0 draw against
Birmingham City on 13 November where he had been substituted onto the field for
James Milner in the 66th minute. He had also made one
League Cup appearance in a 2–1 away loss to
West Bromwich Albion on 22 September. In December, he received a loan offer from
Serie A outfit
Lazio for the remainder of the season, though it was rejected as he preferred a permanent move away from Eastlands.
Loan to Blackburn On 14 January 2011, Santa Cruz returned to Blackburn on loan for the remainder of the
2010–11 season. After Santa Cruz passed his medical, he said, "When Blackburn showed an interest in me, it was very easy to decide," to BBC Radio Lancashire. His first game for Blackburn was in a 2–0 away loss against Chelsea at
Stamford Bridge on 15 January, where he was substituted onto the field in the 46th minute for
Nikola Kalinić. He made one appearance for Blackburn in a 3–1
FA Cup loss against Aston Villa on 29 January. He made nine appearances for Blackburn, as they finished in 15th position of the Premier League.
2011–12 season Loan to Real Betis In August 2011, after being linked with moves to
Leeds United and
Celtic, Santa Cruz was loaned to Real Betis for the
2011–12 La Liga season after completing a medical on 27 August. He debuted for Betis in a 1–0 win against
Mallorca on 10 September 2011, where he was substituted onto the field in the 75th minute for
Jorge Molina. He scored his first goals for Betis, a
brace, in a 4–3 win against
Real Zaragoza on 22 September. He made his debut in the
2011–12 Copa del Rey in a 1–0 way loss against
Córdoba on 13 December. His third league goal came in a 2–0 away win against
Atlético Madrid, where he had been substituted onto the field for
Beñat in the 72nd minute and scored his side's second goal in the 90th minute on 18 December. In December, Brazilian
Série A outfit
Cruzeiro had made a bid for Santa Cruz and had also offered Manchester City their highly rated 17-year-old youngster,
Léo Bonatini, as part of the deal. He admitted that he was aware of interest from Cruzeiro, but stated that the challenge of consolidating his club's position in La Liga was more important than moving on to pastures new. He scored his first goal of 2012 in a 2–0 home victory against
Sporting de Gijón on 8 January. One week later, he was substituted onto the field for
Ireney in the 46th minute at the
Camp Nou in a 4–2 loss against
Barcelona on 15 January, where he scored in the 52nd minute with a right-footed shot to level the scores at 2–2. Having not scored for over two months, Santa Cruz scored his sixth league goal in a 1–1 home draw against
Racing de Santander on 25 March. Several days later, it was reported that he had expressed his desire to remain at Betis for the next season, citing his love to the fans and the club. On 7 April, he scored his seventh league goal in a 3–1 home win against
Villarreal. After notching seven league goals in 33 La Liga appearances, he announced his desire to stay with Betis after being deemed surplus to requirements at Manchester City.
Transfer speculation On 17 June 2012, it was reported again that Mark Hughes, at that point managing
Queens Park Rangers, was keen on signing Santa Cruz for the
2012–13 season. On 6 July 2012, it was reported that he was close to signing with Betis on a permanent deal but had hit problems due to his elevated wage demands. On 13 July 2012, it was reported that
Argentine Primera División club
Newell's Old Boys had expressed their interest in signing him after the club employed former
Paraguay national team head coach
Gerardo Martino as the first-team manager for the 2012–13 season. Martino stated that he would be the club's number 9 if they were to sign him. It was also reported that Colón and Santa Cruz's former club Olimpia Asunción were also chasing him. On 20 July, it had been reported that Santa Cruz was again linked with a move to QPR after he hinted that he could join up with ex-manager, Hughes. On 21 July, it was reported that he had admitted that he would prefer to join a team in the north-west of England as he sought an exit from Manchester City. On 31 July 2012, it was reported that Middlesbrough had failed in bid to sign Santa Cruz when it was understood that their offered deal had been swiftly rejected. Santa Cruz had made surprise appearances for Manchester City during the club's pre-season tour and friendlies. On 31 July 2012, he scored in the 53rd minute of a 2–1 friendly loss against
Oldham Athletic when he rounded goalkeeper
Alex Cisak with ease and scored after a loose ball fell kindly. On 5 August 2012, he played 73 minutes in the city's 4–0 friendly victory over
Limerick. On 10 August 2012, it was reported that Werder Bremen had been wheedled to within an inch of making a bid for him. It was also reported that he had had finally poised to agree deal with Bremen in order to leave Manchester City, and that according to Bremen's club general manager
Klaus Allofs, they had been targeting a seasoned striker who can make a difference to their team.
2012–13 season: Loan to Málaga against
Zenit Saint Petersburg On 31 August 2012, Santa Cruz returned to Spain and Andalusia, this time signing for
Málaga on a season-long loan. Santa Cruz was reunited with Argentine centre back and good friend
Martín Demichelis, with whom he had played with at Bayern Munich. His first league appearance for the
2012–13 season came in a 3–1 home victory against
Levante on 16 September 2012. Wearing the number 24, Santa Cruz was substituted onto the field in the 69th minute for
Javier Saviola. Two days later, Santa Cruz featured as a second-half substitute in Málaga's 3–0
Champions League home victory against
Zenit Saint Petersburg on 18 September. The encounter was his first UEFA Champions League competition return following several seasons, since the
2006–07 edition with Bayern Munich. On 7 October 2012, Santa Cruz scored his first league goal for Málaga in a 2–1 away defeat against Atlético Madrid. On 31 October, he scored a brace in a 4–3 away win against
Cacereño in Malaga's first
2012–13 Copa del Rey fixture. He scored his first league double in a 3–2 home victory against Real Madrid on 22 December 2012. Santa Cruz had entered the field in the 65th minute of the match for Javier Saviola and netted both goals in the 73rd and 76th minutes of the fixture. On 13 March 2013, Santa Cruz scored Málaga's second goal in their 2–0 Round of 16 UEFA Champions League home victory against
Porto. His goal gave Málaga a 2–1 aggregate scores and sent the club directly into the quarter-finals of the competition, where they would face Borussia Dortmund and be eliminated. Santa Cruz had totaled eight league goals in 31 La Liga appearances as Málaga concluded in sixth position and qualified for the
2013–14 UEFA Europa League play-off round, however, the club was banned by UEFA from participating due to violations of
UEFA Financial Fair Play Regulations.
Málaga 2013–14 season On 11 July 2013, it was confirmed that Santa Cruz would stay with Málaga on a permanent three-year contract. He was issued the number 9 shirt for the
2013–14 La Liga season following the departure of Javier Saviola. Santa Cruz affirmed that he was happy to be staying at the club and the factor of family stability came into his decision as he was able to leave his children enrolled in the same school. Santa Cruz first appearance of the season came in a 1–0 away defeat against Valencia on 17 August 2013. Two weeks later, Santa Cruz scored his first league goal in a 2–2 away draw against
Sevilla on 1 September 2013. His first appearance in the
2013–14 Copa del Rey was in a 3–3 home draw against
Osasuna on 8 December 2013. Santa Cruz scored his last goal of the 2013–14 La Liga season in a 2–0 home victory against Villarreal on 21 April 2014. He scored Málaga's first goal in the sixth minute of the match. Santa Cruz concluded the season with six league goals as Málaga avoided relegation by six points.
2014–15 season Santa Cruz made his
2014–15 La Liga season debut in a 1–0 home victory against
Athletic Bilbao on 23 August, playing in the entire 90 minutes of the fixture. On 17 September 2014, it was announced that Santa Cruz would be one of Málaga's two team captains. On 4 October, Santa Cruz scored his first goal of the 2014–15 season in a 2–1 home victory against
Granada. He scored a double in a 4–1 home victory against
Deportivo de La Coruña on 18 December 2014 in the
2014–15 Copa del Rey. Santa Cruz played in his last match for Málaga on 21 December 2014 in a 2–1 away victory against
Elche. The player was in the starting line-up and was substituted off of the field in the 51st minute for
Nordin Amrabat. Concluding the fixture, Málaga club president Abdullah bin Nasser Al Thani used his
Twitter account in order to say goodbye to the Paraguayan striker, saying, "Thank you very much Roque Santa Cruz. You will always be in our hearts. I wish you every success."
Cruz Azul On 20 December 2014, it was revealed by Santa Cruz's agent, Aproniano Santa Cruz (his father), that the player would join Mexican club
Cruz Azul for the 2015 Clausura. It was then confirmed that Santa Cruz would travel to Mexico on 22 December 2014 after playing his final league fixture for Malaga the day before, that the signing itself would cost around €2 million and Santa Cruz's agent assured that it would be a two-year contract. Cruz Azul doubled his previous annual salary of €900,000 per year. On 10 January 2015, Santa Cruz debuted for Cruz Azul in the
2014–15 Liga MX season in a 1–0 away victory against
Pachuca, being substituted off of the field after 82 minutes for
Ismael Valadéz. One week after his debut, Santa Cruz was substituted off of the field after just 14 minutes of the first half in a 1–0 home victory against
Santos Laguna on 17 January with reports that he had suffered muscle pain in the outer thigh. It was later reported that he would be sidelined for three weeks. Upon his return, Santa Cruz scored his first league goal for Cruz Azul in a 2–1 home victory against
Tijuana in March 2015. Three weeks later, he scored a double in a 2–0 home victory against
Tigres UANL. He scored in the fourth minute of the match and then netted a penalty in the 14th minute to defeat the side who eventually finished in first place of the 2014–15 Clausura Championship. Before departing Cruz Azul, his last goal was in a 1–0 away victory against
UNAM in early May 2015.
Loan to Málaga On 26 August 2015, Santa Cruz returned to former club Málaga after agreeing to a one-year loan deal. On 3 December 2015, he scored in a 2–1 away loss against
Mirandés in a
Copa del Rey fixture. The game was his second since returning from injury and his first appearance in the squad's starting XI. Santa Cruz scored his first league goal of the season in a 1–1 away draw against
Las Palmas on 10 January 2016. The fixture was his fourth league appearance and the first time he would be in the starting line-up for a league match. Several days later, one of the directors of Santa Cruz's former club Olimpia,
Ricardo Tavarelli (also the player's brother in-law), announced that he had spoken with Santa Cruz in relation to the player's possible return to the club.
Olimpia Asunción On 6 June 2016, Santa Cruz arrived in Paraguay for vacation and was greeted by many fans of Olimpia at the airport. He stated to the press that his "wish is to be at Olimpia, it's my house, I left from here". against
Boca Juniors on 23 June 2016. His league debut came in a 4–0 victory at home against
Deportivo Capiatá on 30 July 2016. Santa Cruz was substituted onto the field in the second half for
Fredy Bareiro in the 66th minute, assisting
Julián Benítez in scoring his side's third goal two minutes later, then ultimately scoring a goal himself in the 90th minute. The player then missed his side's next two league fixtures, including the
Superclásico against Cerro Porteño, and upon returning he scored again in a 4–3 come back victory against
Nacional on 20 August. Santa Cruz was labelled 'Roque-Mania' by
newspaper Versus, who described the 2018 and 2019 seasons as when his return to Olimpia Asunción reached its top, following four consecutive domestic titles under the coaching of
Daniel Garnero. Upon his departure from the club in 2021, Santa Cruz left Olimpia Asunción as its second-highest scorer behind
Mauro Caballero, with 91 goals.
Libertad In September 2021, a transfer for Santa Cruz to Libertad to be able to play the semi-finals of the
Copa Sudamericana was announced, but the transfer attempt failed. On 27 December 2021, the 40-year-old Santa Cruz was officially revealed as Club Libertad's signing, announced through
Twitter by the club. His signing was at the wish of
Horacio Cartes. Before he departed Olimpia Asunción, who was in debt with him, Santa Cruz changed part of the debt payment into an investment of bonds. Following his signing, Santa Cruz was the subject of criticism by Olimpia Asunción fans. Within the first 24 hours of announcing Santa Cruz as Libertad's signing, he lost thousands of Social Media followers who were Olimpia Asunción fans. The transfer was officially complete in January of Paraguay's 2022 summer transfer window. On 5 July 2022, Santa Cruz scored after an outstanding solo effort in the second leg of the Copa Libertadores round of 16 against Brazilian side
Atletico Paranense, becoming, at the age of 40 years and 320 days, the oldest-ever player to score in the Copa Libertadores knock-out stage and the third oldest overall behind
Óscar Aguirregaray and
Zé Roberto. However, they were knocked out with an equalizer in stoppage time. Two years later, on 7 May 2024, he scored the equalizer in a 1–1 draw with
Deportivo Táchira in the
2024 Copa Libertadores group stage, becoming, at the age of 42 years and 265 days, the second-oldest goalscorer in the competition's history, only behind Zé Roberto, who was 57 days older when he scored in 2017, as well as the third-oldest goalscorer in international club tournaments in South America, only behind Roberto and
Richard Pellejero, who scored a brace in the
2019 Copa Sudamericana, aged 43 years and 31 days. However, according to the
IFFHS, he reached that milestone on 15 May 2025, during a 1–1 away draw against
São Paulo in the
Copa Libertadores. ==International career==