Giovanni Hernández
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Giovanni Andrés Hernández Soto | ||
| Date of birth | 17 June 1976 | ||
| Place of birth | Cali, Colombia | ||
| Height | 1.72 m (5 ft 8 in) | ||
| Playing position | Playmaker | ||
| Club information | |||
| Current club | Deportivo Independiente Medellín | ||
| Number | 10 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 1986–1993 | Boca Juniors de Cali | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps† | (Gls)† |
| 1993–1995 | Once Caldas | 28 | (11) |
| 1995–1996 | América de Cali | 57 | (2) |
| 1996–1999 | Independiente Medellín | 111 | (20) |
| 2000–2003 | Deportivo Cali | 132 | (30) |
| 2003–2006 | Colón de Santa Fe | 124 | (14) |
| 2007-2008 | Colo-Colo | 39 | (13) |
| 2008–2012 | Atlético Junior | 153 | (33) |
| National team‡ | |||
| 1995–2009 | Colombia | 46 | (5) |
| * Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 18 May 2012. † Appearances (Goals). | |||
Giovanni Andrés Hernández Soto (Spanish pronunciation: [xjoˈβannj herˈnandeθ soˈto], born 17 June 1976) is a Colombian footballer that currently plays for Liga Postobón side Deportivo Independiente Medellin as a playmaker.
He played for América de Cali, Independiente Medellín, Deportivo Cali, Colón de Santa Fe, Colo-Colo, Atletico Junior and now he is back to Deportivo Independiente Medellin. He is famous for his technical ability to create plays, and ability to create goals out of free kicks.
History
Early career
Giovanni Hernández made his professional debut as a 17-year-old with Once Caldas. At the time his quality and promise were so apparent, that he was nicknamed el niño del millon de dolares. The million dollar kid. In 1995 he played for America de Cali. He scored 5 goals during this season. He continued to play for America de Cali during the 1996 Copa Libertadores where he scored 2 goals. Although America de Cali made it to the final match, Hernández only played the home game. He played with America de Cali the following year, and then he played for Independiente Medellín during 1998. At the end of that year, he was bought by Deportivo Cali. He played for Deportivo Cali in the 1999 Copa Libertadores as a bench warmer, but after a few goals, he was brought on to the starting team for the 2001 season, where he scored 13 goals.
Deportivo Cali
In 2001, Giovanni Hernández made his biggest leap from being a small club player to a big National Team player. He was called up alongside with his teammate Jairo Patino to the Colombian national team for the Copa America 2001. He played several games and started goal scoring in Colombias 3-0 route of Peru and struck again when Colombia beat Chile. After Colombia won the Copa America, he continued to play with Deportivo Cali and the Colombian national team in several high profile qualifiers. Colombia did not qualify for the 2002 FIFA World Cup but did qualify for the 2003 Confederations Cup where Giovanni was called up again. Giovanni shone scoring 5 goals in 5 games he was considered the best of the best at the tournament and although Colombia lost in the semifinals it was all the better for the stars career. In 2003, Giovanni Hernández also played alongside of now famous teammates Elkin Murillo and Jairo Patino to form one of the strongest midfield sides ever to grace Deportivo Cali in the 2003 Copa Libertadores but they did not make it past quarterfinals.
Colón
In the Second half of 2003 Giovanni Hernández was sold to Argentine club Colon de Santa Fe and ended up scoring a goal and an assist in his first game. He quickly became one of the favorites in the Argentine league racking up a total of 12 goals that season. He played in the 2003 Gold Cup with a lacklustre performance, not scoring a single goal. In 2004, Giovanni Hernández continued playing for his club Colon de Santa Fe, although he had a bad year at the Colombian national team. To make things worse, the Colombian national team began World Cup qualifiers with a loss 2-1 in Colombia to Brazil. Three days later they lost 4-0 to Bolivia in Bolivia, and a month later 1-0 to Venezuela in Colombia. This time was known as the great meltdown to Colombian national team supporters. In the second half of 2004, the whole Argentine league sagged as Giovanni Hernández was only able to score 6 goals in the league and many big famous clubs had bad performances from stars as unknowns took the cup. Despite this Giovanni Hernández future looks bright at the beginning of 2005 Boca Juniors, 5 time Copa Libertadores Champion, offered 5 million dollars for the Colombian player. Colon de Santa Fe wanted 8 million dollars for the player which would be one of the biggest sales ever inside the Argentine league. Colon de Santa Fe would not let Giovanni go; much to his dismay Giovanni later was quoted by newspapers saying he was unhappy with the decision and felt like he was being forced by the club to stay where he is.
Colo-Colo
Before the 2007 Apertura in Chile, Giovanni joined Chilean club Colo-Colo. He was a vital part of the team that would eventually win the championship. Giovanni was the second leading scoring on the team with seven goals. After a three-year absence from the Colombian national team, Giovanni was recalled for an August 22 match versus Mexico
Junior
Giovanni goes back to Colombia to play for Junior de Barranquilla with the pressure of being the most expensive transaction made by the team of Barranquilla and also the pressure that he carries because he was brought to save Junior from its actual situation that is to fail to second division. Giovanni led the team to the playoffs and helped to keep the team in the first division. He was of vital importance in obtaining the title in 2010.[citation needed]
International career
International goals
| Goal | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 23 July 2001 | Estadio Centenario, Armenia, Colombia |  Peru | 2–0 | 3–0 | Copa América |
| 2 | 20 June 2003 | Stade de Gerland, Lyon, France |  New Zealand | 3–1 | 3–1 | Confederations Cup |
| 3 | 22 June 2003 | Stade Geoffroy-Guichard, Saint-Etienne, France |  Japan | 0–1 | 0–1 | Confederations Cup |
| 4 | 28 June 2003 | Stade Geoffroy-Guichard, Saint-Etienne, France |  Turkey | 1–1 | 1–2 | Confederations Cup |
| 5 | 30 April 2008 | Estadio alfonso lopez, bucaramanga, Colombia |  Venezuela | 3–2 | 5–2 | Exhibition game |
Honours
Club
- América de Cali
- Copa Libertadores (1): Runner–up 1996
- Colo-Colo
- Torneo de Apertura (1): 2007
- Torneo de Clausura (1): 2007
- Junior
- Torneo de Apertura (1): 2010
- Torneo Finalización (1): 2011
International
- Copa América (1): 2001
External links
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