What Mario Fernandez looked like 10 years ago. I disappeared into nightclubs and didn’t think about Russia

Childhood and youth

Mario was born on September 19, 1990 in the city of Sao Caetano do Sul (state of Sao Paulo). He is the 2nd of 4 children in the family of a futsal coach - there is also an older sister, Deborah, who works as a nurse, a younger one, Talita, who is the athlete’s personal manager in Brazil, and a brother, Jonatas.

The father's profession predetermined the boy's sports biography. At the age of 6, he began playing football under the guidance of his parent and quickly achieved success. The celebrity notes that his father treated him objectively - he both praised and criticized him only to the point. Soon my brother joined the training.

Fernandez Jr. was on trial at CSKA in 2014, and this is a rare case for a club to listen to players who are patrons of friends or relatives. According to head coach Leonid Slutsky at that time, only Vagner Love received such an honor.

Mario Fernandez speaks Russian

The army team was not satisfied with Zhonatas’ playing condition, and the striker returned to his homeland. According to some sports websites, he played for the youth team of Corinthians and the senior team of San Caetano. The player then retired due to poor health and now trains children and promotes his own mini-football project.

Mario first played as an attacking midfielder and, as he admits, was a fan of Kaká, even trying to imitate his game. But later the young man was transferred to the center of defense. It was in this position that he began playing in youth teams. His speed and dribbling skills caught the attention of San Cayetano in 2006, which was then in decline after a resounding triumph in the early 2000s. Successfully playing for the once famous team, Fernandez received an offer from Gremio agents.

Biography

Mario Figueira Fernandez is the son of a futsal coach, so as a child he almost started his sports career in this sport. But his father realized in time that his son had a talent ripening that exceeded the ambitions of a futsal player, and took him to the local football club San Caetano[7][8] (the first coach was Marcos de Lima Romeu[9]). At the same time, Fernandez played in the youth and youth teams as a central defender[10]. Among his peers, he stood out for his excellent speed and cool technique - qualities usually not characteristic of central defenders, which was the reason for the observation of Brazilian and foreign teams.[8]

"Gremio"

In 2009, Fernandez signed a 5-year contract with FC Gremio. The player’s transfer cost the buyers $1 million. His debut as a defender of the club took place just 3 months later in a match against Sport Refisi. And 2 months later, the footballer played for the team for the first time in the Brazilian Championship; the match with Botafogo ended in a draw.

In the first season, Mario appeared in 19 games. After he received a red card in one of the meetings, he was transferred from the center to the defensive flank. Nevertheless, the footballer attracted the interest of world famous clubs: Real Madrid, Barcelona and Manchester City.

Paulo Pelaipe (director at Gremio):Real Madrid prati ponuda per Mario Fernandez izminativa denovi no clubo ja odbi ponudata bidejki estimate deca ponudenata price not according to the harm of the game..
Posted by Real Madrid CF — Macedonia on Friday, December 16, 2011

Mario Fernandez as part of Gremio
In December 2011, a transfer offer was received from CSKA. Gremio asked for €20 million. Negotiations were postponed, but resumed in the spring of 2012. Mario had been injured by that time and had undergone surgery, so the army team took a risk by buying a player with a vague prospect. Market mechanisms helped.

Fernandez was owned 50% by the club and another 50% by an American investment fund, which bought him from San Cayetano. Bankers who wanted to earn extra money simply put pressure on the owners of Gremio, and the contract amount was € 15 million. Even the footballer’s personal agent agreed to a share of 8% instead of the generally accepted 10%. On May 4, 2012, representatives of the Russian capital club announced that a contract for 5 years had been signed with the athlete.

CSKA

Shortly after moving to Moscow, the Brazilian footballer made his debut in friendly matches with Torpedo Moscow and Khimki, scoring a goal in both games. During the championship, he played for the first time for the Army team in a meeting with Rostov. In the 2012/2013 season, Fernandez appeared on the field in 28 matches.

The first year on Russian football fields turned out to be extremely traumatic for the legionnaire. Due to his broken nose in the match with Tyumen, Mario was forced to play in a mask for some time. In other matches he suffered an ankle injury and a head injury. And in the final of the championship game with Kuban, Fernandez suffered the most serious injury: doctors diagnosed a tear of the medial ligament and damage to the posterior horn of the meniscus. CSKA won the championship, but the footballer was unable to join the celebration due to illness and rehabilitation.

The legionnaire was able to return to play only in the 2nd half of the next season. During the same period, he scored the first goal for CSKA (a meeting with Saratov Sokol in the 1/8 finals of the Russian Cup). In the summer of 2017, the defender’s contract was extended until 2022.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Mario Fernandes (@_mario_fernandes02_)

Mario Fernandez as part of CSKA
At the end of the 2018 World Cup, interest in the athlete flared up with renewed vigor. Fernandez's cost rose to €20 million, and CSKA did not agree to start negotiations if the contract specified a lower amount. Two Manchester clubs were eyeing the defender - United and City, Valencia and Inter, Bayern, Chelsea and Napoli. But the player’s agent said that Mario remains with the “red-blues”.

March 2021 was marked by a new professional achievement for the player: he was recognized as the author of the best goal in the Russian Premier League (RPL).

RPL matches are also broadcast in the footballer’s homeland. Brazilian commentator on the Band channel Fabio Piperno spoke about Mario's achievements. In his opinion, if Fernandez played for the Brazilian national team now, he would be its main player.

In December 2020, Mario extended his contract with CSKA until 2024. According to the athlete, he wants the army club to be the last in his professional career. The player’s salary remained the same: according to media reports, the player receives € 2.2 million per year.

National team

Mario Fernandez was not involved in the games for the Brazilian national team, despite being invited twice. The first call took place even before the move to CSKA. In 2011, the footballer was supposed to take part in the Rock Cup match between Brazil and Argentina, but spent the entire game on the bench. There was no more chance to play for the national team at that time: he was late for the flight flying to the venue of the next game.

The press wrote that Mario then “hung out” in a nightclub and had too much alcohol. The athlete himself claimed that problems in his personal life were to blame. And only after a while, in a friendly conversation with compatriot Fabio da Silva, he admitted that the journalists, in general, were not mistaken.

In 2014, the defender took part in a friendly match between the national teams of Brazil and Japan. But since such games are not considered official, Fernandez still had the opportunity to gain a foothold in any of the teams, which he took advantage of.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Mario Fernandes (@_mario_fernandes02_)

Mario Fernandez as part of the Russian national team
In 2016, by decree of Russian President Vladimir Putin, Mario was given Russian citizenship, which allowed him to qualify for a place in the national team. This step was approved by the family, but not everyone in Brazil appreciated it. Pavel Pogrebnyak and Roman Pavlyuchenko are negative about the naturalization of foreign players, and not only Fernandez. The latter believes that only those born and raised in the country should play in the national team.

Fernandez's debut in the national team in jersey number 2 took place on October 7, 2021: in the 64th minute of a friendly match with the South Korean team, the defender replaced Alexander Samedov on the field. As Mario dreamed, he was included in the Russian national team for the 2021 World Cup. By the first match, the athlete promised journalists that he would learn the Russian anthem.

Throughout the group stage, there were no complaints about Fernandez's performance. For the first time in many years, Russia reached the 1/8 finals, where it met with the titled Spain. It was a difficult match that will remain in the memory of the fans for a long time. Stanislav Cherchesov's defensive tactics did not disappoint. Mario stood firmly guarding the Russian penalty area.

Mario Fernandez scored against Croatia

Everything was decided in a penalty shootout, in which Igor Akinfeev became a real hero of the country: the goalkeeper saved 2 out of 5 shots. Russia reached the quarter finals for the first time in history. Russian fans were looking forward to the match with the Croats. Denis Cheryshev put the Russians ahead with a shot into the top corner, the opponents responded with 2 goals, and only Fernandez's header against Croatia brought the Russians to the penalty kicks, where Croatia turned out to be more accurate.

Unfortunately, the defender missed his penalty, sending the ball wide of the goal. According to the football player, he asked for forgiveness from his colleagues in the locker room, but was unable to change the result. Despite the loss and the unfortunate mistake, experts and fans recognized Mario as the most useful player in the national team and performing a colossal amount of work.

In March 2021, Mario was called up to the Russian national team for the qualifying matches for the 2022 World Cup.

In May, the football player was confirmed in the national team for Euro 2020, which was postponed to June 2021 due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Statistics

Club

As of July 25, 2021

Russian team

Accessed June 28, 2021

Total: 32 matches / 5 goals; 19 wins, 3 draws, 10 losses.

Personal life

In 2009, few imagined that Fernandez would move to another continent. After signing a contract with Gremio and moving to another city, he disappeared. Found on the 4th day in Sao Paulo, at my uncle's house. As Mario explained, it was the first time he found himself far from his parents and experienced severe homesickness. Subsequently, the young player was examined by psychologists for a month, and his relatives moved to Porto Alegre to be close. The father left the family even earlier, but relatives do not like to talk about this.

Fernandez is considered to have a sweet tooth. With a height of 187 cm, his ideal weight is 81 kg, but varies depending on his diet. Representatives of Gremio obliged him to eat at the base, since he was not accustomed to cooking, was fond of fast food and chocolates, and was beginning to lose shape.

Mario considers himself unromantic. His ex-girlfriend Sarah Beltram, whom the footballer called his wife in an interview, did not want to move to Russia. According to the ex-sports director of CSKA Anton Evmenov, the player became a father when he was still playing for Gremio - his previous girlfriend gave birth to a child. The Army team was worried about how parting with her and the story with the plane would affect the defender’s mood and performance on the field. But he behaved confidently and, most importantly, Leonid Slutsky liked him.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Mario Fernandes (@_mario_fernandes02_)

Mario Fernandez with his wife Mariana
In 2021, Mario met his girlfriend Mariana Schott de Freitas. They met in the summer. Maryana accompanies the celebrity at all football matches and provides moral support before the game. On December 19, 2020, the football player married his beloved.

Most of all, the family is happy with how his second homeland has changed the athlete: he does not touch alcohol at all, he has become calm and peaceful. The player is Brazilian by nationality, prefers Evangelical Christianity, and he came to church already in the Russian Federation.

At the end of his career, Mario does not mind staying in the Russian Federation. “Why not, everything is great in Russia,” the footballer said in an interview. The Fernandez couple decided that Maryana should also obtain Russian citizenship.

Previously, Mario was active on Instagram, where he posted photos taken both in training and outside the football field. However, he then deleted the account. Now fans have to be content with news from the Internet and official sources.

Excerpt characterizing Figueira Fernandez, Mario

The military council, at which Prince Andrei was not able to express his opinion, as he had hoped, left a vague and alarming impression on him. He did not know who was right: Dolgorukov and Weyrother or Kutuzov and Langeron and others who did not approve of the attack plan. “But was it really impossible for Kutuzov to directly express his thoughts to the sovereign? Can't this really be done differently? Is it really necessary to risk tens of thousands and my, my life for the sake of court and personal considerations?” he thought. “Yes, it’s very possible they’ll kill you tomorrow,” he thought. And suddenly, at this thought of death, a whole series of memories, the most distant and most intimate, arose in his imagination; he remembered the last farewell to his father and wife; he remembered the first times of his love for her! He remembered her pregnancy, and he felt sorry for both her and himself, and in a nervously softened and excited state he left the hut in which he had stood with Nesvitsky and began to walk in front of the house. The night was foggy, and moonlight mysteriously broke through the fog. “Yes, tomorrow, tomorrow! - he thought. “Tomorrow, perhaps, everything will be over for me, all these memories will no longer exist, all these memories will no longer have any meaning for me.” Tomorrow, maybe, even probably, tomorrow, I foresee it, for the first time I will finally have to show everything that I can do.” And he imagined the battle, its loss, the concentration of the battle on one point and the confusion of all the commanders. And now that happy moment, that Toulon, which he had been waiting for so long, finally appears to him. He firmly and clearly speaks his opinion to Kutuzov, Weyrother, and the emperors. Everyone is amazed at the correctness of his idea, but no one undertakes to carry it out, and so he takes a regiment, a division, pronounces a condition so that no one will interfere with his orders, and leads his division to the decisive point and alone wins. What about death and suffering? says another voice. But Prince Andrei does not answer this voice and continues his successes. The disposition of the next battle is made by him alone. He holds the rank of army duty officer under Kutuzov, but he does everything alone. The next battle was won by him alone. Kutuzov is replaced, he is appointed... Well, and then? another voice speaks again, and then, if you are not wounded, killed or deceived ten times before; Well, then what? “Well, then,” Prince Andrei answers himself, “I don’t know what will happen next, I don’t want and can’t know: but if I want this, I want fame, I want to be known to people, I want to be loved by them, then It’s not my fault that I want this, that this alone is what I want, this alone is what I live for. Yes, for this alone! I'll never tell anyone this, but oh my God! What should I do if I love nothing but glory, human love? Death, wounds, loss of family, nothing scares me. And no matter how dear and dear many people are to me - my father, sister, wife - the most dear people to me - but, no matter how scary and unnatural it seems, I will give them all now for a moment of glory, triumph over people, for love for to myself people whom I do not know and will not know, for the love of these people,” he thought, listening to the conversation in Kutuzov’s yard. In Kutuzov's yard the voices of the orderlies were heard; one voice, probably the coachman, teasing the old Kutuzovsky cook, whom Prince Andrei knew, and whose name was Titus, said: “Titus, what about Titus?” “Well,” answered the old man. “Titus, go thresh,” said the joker. “Ugh, to hell with it,” a voice rang out, covered by the laughter of the orderlies and servants. “And yet I love and treasure only the triumph over all of them, I treasure this mysterious power and glory that floats above me here in this fog!” That night Rostov was with a platoon in the flanker chain, ahead of Bagration’s detachment. His hussars were scattered in chains in pairs; he himself rode on horseback along this line of chain, trying to overcome the sleep that was irresistibly pushing him over. Behind him he could see a huge expanse of our army’s fires burning dimly in the fog; ahead of him was foggy darkness. No matter how much Rostov peered into this foggy distance, he saw nothing: sometimes it turned gray, sometimes something seemed black; then lights seemed to flash where the enemy should be; then he thought that it was only shining in his eyes. His eyes closed, and in his imagination he imagined first the sovereign, then Denisov, then Moscow memories, and again he hastily opened his eyes and close in front of him he saw the head and ears of the horse on which he was sitting, sometimes the black figures of the hussars when he was six steps away I ran into them, and in the distance there was still the same foggy darkness. "From what? It’s very possible,” Rostov thought, “that the sovereign, having met me, will give an order, like any officer: he will say: “Go, find out what’s there.” Many people told how, quite by accident, he recognized some officer and brought him closer to him. What if he brought me closer to him! Oh, how I would protect him, how I would tell him the whole truth, how I would expose his deceivers,” and Rostov, in order to vividly imagine his love and devotion to the sovereign, imagined an enemy or deceiver of the German whom he enjoyed not only killed, but hit him on the cheeks in the eyes of the sovereign. Suddenly a distant cry woke up Rostov. He shuddered and opened his eyes. "Where I am? Yes, in a chain: slogan and password – drawbar, Olmütz. What a shame that our squadron will be in reserves tomorrow... - he thought. - I’ll ask you to get involved. This may be the only opportunity to see the sovereign. Yes, it won't be long until the shift. I’ll go around again and when I return, I’ll go to the general and ask him.” He adjusted himself in the saddle and moved his horse to once again ride around his hussars. It seemed to him that it was brighter. On the left side one could see a gentle illuminated slope and the opposite, black hillock, which seemed steep, like a wall. On this hillock there was a white spot that Rostov could not understand: was it a clearing in the forest, illuminated by the moon, or the remaining snow, or white houses? It even seemed to him that something was moving along this white spot. “The snow must be a spot; spot – une tache,” thought Rostov. “That’s not good for you...” “Natasha, sister, black eyes. On... tashka (She will be surprised when I tell her how I saw the sovereign!) Natashka... take tashka...” “Straighten that, your honor, otherwise there are bushes,” said the voice of a hussar, past whom Rostov was passing, falling asleep. Rostov raised his head, which had already dropped to the horse’s mane, and stopped next to the hussar. A young child's dream irresistibly beckoned him. “Yeah, I mean, what was I thinking? - not forget. How will I speak to the sovereign? No, that’s not it – it’s tomorrow. Yes Yes! On the car, step on... stupid us - who? Gusarov. And the hussars with mustaches... This hussar with a mustache was riding along Tverskaya, I also thought about him, opposite Guryev’s very house... Old man Guryev... Eh, glorious little Denisov! Yes, all this is nonsense. The main thing now is that the sovereign is here. The way he looked at me, and I wanted to say something to him, but he didn’t dare... No, I didn’t dare. Yes, this is nothing, but the main thing is not to forget that I thought the right thing, yes. On - the car, we are - stupid, yes, yes, yes. This is good". - And he again fell with his head on the horse’s neck. Suddenly it seemed to him that they were shooting at him. "What? What? What!... Ruby! What?...” Rostov spoke, waking up. The moment he opened his eyes, Rostov heard in front of him, where the enemy was, the drawn-out cries of a thousand voices. His horses and the hussar standing next to him pricked their ears to these screams. At the place from which the screams were heard, one light came on and went out, then another, and along the entire line of French troops on the mountain, lights were lit, and the screams became more and more intensified. Rostov heard the sounds of French words, but could not make out them. There were too many voices buzzing. All you could hear was: ahhh! and rrrrr! - What is this? What do you think? - Rostov turned to the hussar standing next to him. - After all, this is with the enemy? The hussar did not answer. - Well, don't you hear? – After waiting quite a long time for an answer, Rostov asked again. “Who knows, your honor,” the hussar answered reluctantly. - Should there be an enemy in the area? - Rostov repeated again. “It may be him, or it may be so,” said the hussar, “it’s a night thing.” Well! shawls! - he shouted at his horse, moving under him. Rostov's horse was also in a hurry, kicking the frozen ground, listening to the sounds and looking closely at the lights. The screams of voices grew stronger and stronger and merged into a general roar that could only be produced by an army of several thousand. The fires spread more and more, probably along the line of the French camp. Rostov no longer wanted to sleep. The cheerful, triumphant cries from the enemy army had an exciting effect on him: Vive l'empereur, l'empereur! [Long live the Emperor, Emperor!] was now clearly heard by Rostov. - It’s not far, it must be beyond the stream? - he said to the hussar standing next to him. The hussar only sighed, without answering, and cleared his throat angrily. Along the line of hussars the tramp of a horse riding at a trot was heard, and from the night fog the figure of a hussar non-commissioned officer suddenly appeared, appearing like a huge elephant. - Your honor, generals! - said the non-commissioned officer, approaching Rostov. Rostov, continuing to look back at the lights and shouts, rode with the non-commissioned officer towards several horsemen riding along the line. One was on a white horse. Prince Bagration with Prince Dolgorukov and his adjutants went to see the strange phenomenon of lights and screams in the enemy army. Rostov, having approached Bagration, reported to him and joined the adjutants, listening to what the generals were saying. “Believe me,” said Prince Dolgorukov, turning to Bagration, “that this is nothing more than a trick: he retreated and ordered the rearguard to light fires and make noise in order to deceive us.” “Hardly,” said Bagration, “I saw them on that hill in the evening; If they left, they left there. Mr. Officer,” Prince Bagration turned to Rostov, “are his flankers still standing there?” “We’ve been standing there since the evening, but now I don’t know, Your Excellency.” Order, I will go with the hussars,” said Rostov. Bagration stopped and, without answering, tried to make out Rostov’s face in the fog. “Well, look,” he said, after a pause. - I’m listening s. Rostov gave spurs to his horse, called out to non-commissioned officer Fedchenka and two more hussars, ordered them to follow him and trotted down the hill towards the continued screams. It was both scary and fun for Rostov to travel alone with three hussars there, into this mysterious and dangerous foggy distance, where no one had been before. Bagration shouted to him from the mountain so that he should not go further than the stream, but Rostov pretended as if he had not heard his words, and, without stopping, rode further and further, constantly being deceived, mistaking bushes for trees and potholes for people and constantly explaining his deceptions. Trotting down the mountain, he no longer saw either ours or the enemy’s fires, but heard the cries of the French louder and more clearly. In the hollow he saw in front of him something like a river, but when he reached it, he recognized the road he had passed. Having ridden out onto the road, he held his horse back, undecided: to ride along it, or to cross it and ride uphill through a black field. It was safer to drive along the road that became lighter in the fog, because it was easier to see people. “Follow me,” he said, crossed the road and began to gallop up the mountain, to the place where the French picket had been stationed since the evening. - Your Honor, here he is! - one of the hussars said from behind. And before Rostov had time to see something suddenly blackened in the fog, a light flashed, a shot clicked, and the bullet, as if complaining about something, buzzed high in the fog and flew out of earshot. The other gun did not fire, but a light flashed on the shelf. Rostov turned his horse and galloped back. Four more shots rang out at different intervals, and bullets sang in different tones somewhere in the fog. Rostov reined in his horse, which was as cheerful as he was from the shots, and rode at a walk. “Well then, well again!” some cheerful voice spoke in his soul. But there were no more shots. Just approaching Bagration, Rostov again put his horse into a gallop and, holding his hand at the visor, rode up to him. Dolgorukov still insisted on his opinion that the French had retreated and only set up the fires to deceive us. – What does this prove? - he said as Rostov drove up to them. “They could have retreated and left the pickets. “Apparently, not everyone has left yet, prince,” said Bagration. – Until tomorrow morning, tomorrow we’ll find out everything. “There’s a picket on the mountain, your Excellency, still in the same place where it was in the evening,” Rostov reported, bending forward, holding his hand to the visor and unable to contain the smile of amusement caused in him by his trip and, most importantly, by the sounds of bullets. “Okay, okay,” said Bagration, “thank you, Mr. Officer.” “Your Excellency,” said Rostov, “allow me to ask you.”

Mario Fernandez now

Now, according to the portal transfermarkt.ru, the football player’s value is € 16 million.

In the 2020/2021 season, Mario took part in the RPL, Russian Cup and UEFA Europa League games and scored 2 goals for the team.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Mario Fernandes (@_mario_fernandes02_)

Mario Fernandez suffered a thoracic spine injury
on June 16, 2021, during a group match with the Finnish national team at Euro 2020 as a result of a horse fight for the ball, Fernandez landed unsuccessfully on his back. The athlete left the field on a stretcher. After the examination, the preliminary diagnosis of a thoracic spine injury, as well as a concussion, were not confirmed, and after 5 days Fernandez returned to the general group.

Philip Kirkorov, who attended the training session of the Russian national team, confused Magomed Ozdoev with Fernandez, and in response, Ozdoev called Kirkorov Nikolai Baskov.