Argentine footballer
Federico Fernandez
(
Latin American Spanish:
[feðe??iko
fe??nandes]
; born 21 February 1989) is an Argentine professional
footballer
who plays as a
centre-back
for
Estudiantes
.
Fernandez began his career at
Estudiantes de La Plata
, where he reached the final of the
Copa Sudamericana
and won the
Copa Libertadores
, before moving to
Napoli
in 2011. He was used sparingly by the
Serie A
club, and spent time on loan at
Getafe
, before joining
Swansea City
in 2014.
Fernandez made his full international debut in 2009 and has since earned over 30 international caps, scoring three goals. He was part of the Argentine squad which reached the
2014 FIFA World Cup Final
.
Biography
[
edit
]
Federico has Italian origins: his maternal great-grandfather was a native of
Lacedonia
, in the
Province of Avellino
.
[3]
As a result, he has an Italian passport.
[4]
Club career
[
edit
]
Estudiantes
[
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]
Fernandez made his league debut for
Estudiantes de La Plata
on 14 September 2008 during the
2008 Apertura
tournament in a 1?0 defeat to
Velez Sarsfield
. He played two games in Estudiantes' run to the final of
Copa Sudamericana 2008
.
[
citation needed
]
Fernandez scored his first goal with the squad in an away match against
Lanus
on 2 May 2009, following an assist by teammate
Juan Sebastian Veron
. Later that year, Estudiantes won the
2009 Copa Libertadores
, although Fernandez's only contributions were two substitute appearances against
Defensor Sporting Club
in the quarter-finals.
[
citation needed
]
Napoli
[
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]
Fernandez was signed by
Serie A
club
Napoli
in December 2010 for a reported fee of about €2.5 million.
[5]
Due to his lack of a
European Union
passport, however, he arrived in Italy only in July 2011.
[6]
On 2 November 2011, Fernandez scored his first two goals for Napoli, against
Bayern Munich
in a
Champions League
group stage away tie.
[7]
Both headers came after Napoli had conceded three times in the first half, although Napoli lost the match 3?2.
[8]
Having only made nine appearances across all competitions for Napoli
that season
, on 31 January 2013 Fernandez was loaned to Spanish
La Liga
club
Getafe
for the
remainder of the campaign
, bolstering the club's defence following the sale of
David Abraham
to
1899 Hoffenheim
.
[9]
Fernandez played the full 90 minutes of the
2014 Coppa Italia Final
, which Napoli won 3?1 against
Fiorentina
.
[10]
Swansea City
[
edit
]
On 20 August 2014, it was announced that Fernandez had signed for
Premier League
side
Swansea City
on a four-year contract for €10 million.
[11]
Six days later, he made his debut for the club, playing the entirety of a 1?0 win over
Rotherham United
in the second round of the
League Cup
.
[12]
His first Premier League appearance for Swansea was on 13 September, replacing
Jordi Amat
at half-time in a 4?2 defeat away to
Chelsea
.
[13]
Fernandez was given a straight red card for a foul on
Philippe Coutinho
in added time at the end of Swansea's
League Cup fourth-round
match against
Liverpool
at
Anfield
on 28 October; minutes later,
Dejan Lovren
scored the winner to knock Swansea out of the tournament.
[14]
Two days later, however,
the FA
rescinded the red card on appeal from Swansea, thus avoiding a three-match ban for Fernandez.
[15]
On the opening day of the 2015?16 season, he scored an own goal vs Chelsea, in a match that ended 2?2 at Stamford Bridge.
[16]
He scored his first goal for Swansea on 19 March 2016 in a 1?0 victory over
Aston Villa
at the
Liberty Stadium
.
[17]
Newcastle United
[
edit
]
On 9 August 2018, Fernandez joined
Newcastle United
on a two-year contract. The move reunited him with
Rafael Benitez
, his manager when both were at
Napoli
.
[18]
He scored his first Premier League goal on 2 November 2019 in a 3–2 away win at
West Ham United
. His second Newcastle goal came in a 2–1 Premier League home win against
Southampton
.
On 7 July 2021, Fernandez signed a contract extension with
Newcastle United
.
[19]
Elche
[
edit
]
On 1 September 2022, Fernandez signed a one-year contract with
Elche
.
[20]
He left the club in December, after just one match.
[21]
Al-Duhail
[
edit
]
On 4 February 2023, Fernandez joined Qatari side
Al-Duhail
.
[22]
International career
[
edit
]
In January 2009, Fernandez was selected to join the
Argentina under-20
squad for the
2009 South American Youth Championship
in Venezuela.
[
citation needed
]
Fernandez made his debut for the
Argentina senior team
against
Ecuador
in April 2011. He established himself as a regular in defence during Argentina's successful
FIFA World Cup qualification campaign
under head coach
Alejandro Sabella
.
[23]
In June 2014, Fernandez was named in Argentina's squad for the
2014 World Cup
.
[24]
He made his
World Cup
debut in Argentina's 2?1 win against
Bosnia and Herzegovina
at the
Maracana Stadium
, playing the full match in defence.
[25]
Personal life
[
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]
Fernandez has a wife, Florencia, and two daughters - Valentina and Victoria.
[26]
Career statistics
[
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]
Club
[
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]
- As of match played 4 December 2021
[27]
International
[
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]
Appearances and goals by national team and year
[28]
National team
|
Year
|
Apps
|
Goals
|
Argentina
|
2011
|
5
|
1
|
2012
|
9
|
1
|
2013
|
9
|
0
|
2014
|
9
|
1
|
Total
|
32
|
3
|
- Scores and results list Argentina's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Fernandez goal.
[28]
Honours
[
edit
]
Estudiantes
Napoli
Argentina
References
[
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]
External links
[
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]