Fernandes as a Leicester City player |
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| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Gelson Tavares Fernandes[1] | ||
| Date of birth | 2 September 1986 | ||
| Place of birth | Praia, Cape Verde | ||
| Height | 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) | ||
| Playing position | Midfielder | ||
| Club information | |||
| Current club | Saint-Étienne | ||
| Number | 26 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 1995–2004 | Sion | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps† | (Gls)† |
| 2004–2007 | Sion | 99 | (1) |
| 2007–2009 | Manchester City | 43 | (3) |
| 2009– | Saint-Étienne | 33 | (0) |
| 2010–2011 | → Chievo (loan) | 29 | (2) |
| 2011 | → Leicester City (loan) | 18 | (1) |
| National team‡ | |||
| 2006–2007 | Switzerland U21 | 4 | (0) |
| 2007– | Switzerland | 34 | (2) |
| * Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 3 September 2011. † Appearances (Goals). |
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Gelson Tavares Fernandes (born 2 September 1986 in Praia) is a Swiss footballer,[2] who currently plays as a midfielder for AS Saint Etienne. He also plays for the Swiss national team.
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Fernandes signed for Manchester City from Sion on 14 July 2007 for an undisclosed fee, believed to be around €6 million (£4.2 million), which would make his sale the second highest transfer in the history of the Swiss League. Following his signing, Sven-Göran Eriksson commented that he thought Fernandes was the "best young player in Switzerland."[3] He made his debut in the 0–0 draw against Portsmouth.
He scored his first goal in a 2–0 victory against Newcastle United on 2 January 2008, after coming on as a substitute for Stephen Ireland. It took just 40 seconds for Fernandes and Kelvin Etuhu to combine for the former to finish from the edge of the box. Gelson scored his second goal in the 1–3 loss to Arsenal at the City of Manchester Stadium. Vedran Ćorluka took advantage of a Gaël Clichy defensive error, who slipped in a pass into the six-yard box for Gelson to tuck home. The goal was not enough to secure any points for Manchester City, but showed the City fans that he was also capable of having an eye for goal like fellow youth midfielder, Michael Johnson.
At the start of the 2008–09 season, Fernandes had his number changed from number 28 to number 19. The number 28 shirt was taken by Daniel Sturridge. Fernandes has since scored twice in the 2008–09 season with goals against Brighton & Hove Albion and the final goal in the 6–0 win against Portsmouth. Fernandes made 59 appearances for City, scoring four times, but he was increasingly used as a substitute after Mark Hughes took over as manager.
On 9 July 2009, Fernandes moved on trial to Saint-Étienne. He passed a medical to complete a £2 million move to Saint-Étienne.[4] He signed a two-year contract[5] and moved on a undisclosed fee.[6] He made his league debut on 8 August 2009 in a 0–2 loss to Nice.
On 30 August 2010, it was announced that Gelson Fernandes would be going out on loan with an option to purchase to Chievo Verona.[7]
On 4 August 2011, Championship club Leicester City signed Fernandes on a season long loan, subject to international clearance.[8] He made his debut for the club in a 1-0 away win over Coventry City on 6 August 2011,[9] scoring his first goal in a 2-2 draw against Nottingham Forest on 20 August.[10]. On the 4th January it was announced that Gelsons loan deal with Leicester had been cancelled by mutual consent
Fernandes was captain of the Switzerland U-21 that played against the England U-21 side in their Euro 2007 qualifying match.
He made his first full international appearance for Switzerland against the Netherlands on 22 August 2007. He has since continued to be a regular for Switzerland, playing in their friendly defeat to England at Wembley in February 2008. He also played in all three of the Swiss side's Euro 2008 fixtures. On 28 March 2009, Fernandes scored his first goal for Switzerland, heading in a corner to seal a 2–0 win against Moldova. He scored his first 2010 World Cup goal for Switzerland against Spain on 16 June 2010, which Switzerland went on to win 1–0.[11] After this, he was considered as a national hero in Switzerland. Unfortunately, Switzerland did not advance to the Round of 16 and Spain went on to win the World Cup.
| Goal | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 28 March 2009 | Zimbru Stadium, Chişinău, Moldova | Moldova | 0–2 | 0–2 | 2010 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 2 | 16 June 2010 | Moses Mabhida Stadium, Durban, South Africa | Spain | 0–1 | 0–1 | 2010 FIFA World Cup |
Fernandes arrived in Switzerland with his mother at the age of five from the Cape Verde islands, the family settling in Sion.[12]
According to former Manchester City teammate Micah Richards, he is fluent in five languages:[13] English, French, German, Spanish, and Italian. He can also speak Portuguese, the official language of his birthplace, Cape Verde. He is the cousin of Portuguese footballer Manuel Fernandes.[14]
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