Fernando Luiz Roza

Fernando Luiz Roza Biography

Known for his box to box style and ferocious long-range strikes, Fernando Luiz Roza, or Fernandinho, is a Brazilian defensive midfielder who currently plays for Premier League side Manchester City.

Fernandinho was born on 4 May 1985 in Londrina, Brazil. His style of play is mixed with defensive abilities and a superb passing range which brings a lot of goal scoring opportunities.

He shoots from long range as well and brings composure to any team he plays.

Background

Fernandinho’s footballing career began at Atletico Paranaense, a Brazilian club from 2002 to 2005.

His talent drew the attention of Ukrainian club Shakhtar Donetsk, who bought him in the year 2005 for a reported fee of 7 million pounds.

The career at Shakhtar proved to be a major one for him as that caused a move to Premier League giants Manchester City for a fee of 34 million pounds. This is where Fernandinho’s career started to shift gears and helped him become the player that he is today.

He has represented the following teams - Brazil, Atletico Paranaense, Shakhtar Donetsk and Manchester City.

Debut

Fernandinho made his club debut in 2002 for Brazilian club Atletico Paranaense. He made 72 appearances for them and scored 14 goals in the league. The club were runners up in the league and the cup when Fernandinho was playing.

In 2011, Fernandinho made his international debut for Brazil. He had played for the Brazilian U20 team before making it to the national team.

Rise to Glory

Fernandinho’s career at Shakhtar provided him with just the right amount of exposure to make him the best Brazilian player to have played in the Ukrainian Premier League.

In his time at the club, he won six league titles, four domestic cups, and the 2008-09 UEFA Cup. He made a total of 281 appearances, scored 50 goals and made 52 assists.

He played a crucial role in defence, making runs back whenever a counterattack sprung up.

In 2013, Premier League side Manchester City acquired the Brazilian for a fee of 34 million pounds, which included a four million waiver.

He won the league title with them in the 2013-14 season under Manuel Pellegrini’s reign. This was a year after rivals Manchester United had won the league.

Since then, Fernandinho has been a regular and a crucial part of the eleven. His goals are a beautiful sight for anyone football fan to feast on, which were mostly long-range screamers and volleys.

He has made 218 appearances in all competitions for Manchester City and has scored 20 goals and proved 21 assists.

Fernandinho has been vital in dropping back after attacks, making crucial tackles and interceptions, and helping restart attacks.

Under current manager Pep Guardiola, Fernandinho seems to have become a better player by undergoing different transformations.

He is a part of the current Manchester City squad that looks set to take the title away from the other contenders.

The Brazilian’s international career, however, was not much of a success. He has been in and out of the team since his debut in 2011 and has made only 41 appearances.

He underperformed in major tournaments and has given way to other players such as Oscar and Paulinho.