Fernando Couto Facts for Kids

In this Portuguese name, the first or maternal family name is Silva and the second or paternal family name is Couto.

Quick facts for kids
Fernando Couto

Couto in 2011

Personal information

Full name

Fernando Manuel Silva Couto

Date of birth

2 August 1969 (age 55)

Place of birth

Espinho, Portugal

Height

1.84 m

Playing position

Centre back

Youth career

1980–1985

Espinho

1985–1986

Lourosa

1986–1988

Porto

Senior career*

Years

Team

Apps^†

(Gls)^†

1988

Porto

(0)

1988–1989

Famalicão

(1)

1989–1990

Académica

(2)

1990–1994

Porto

106

(19)

1994–1996

Parma

(4)

1996–1998

Barcelona

(0)

1998–2005

Lazio

145

(9)

2005–2008

Parma

(1)

Total

438

(36)

National team

1989

Portugal U20

(0)

1989–1990

Portugal U21

(1)

1990–2004

Portugal

110

(8)

Teams managed

2012–2014

Braga (assistant)

Honours

FIFA U-20 World Cup

Men's football
Representing Portugal
UEFA European Championship
	2004 Portugal
Bronze	2000 Belgium-Netherlands
Winner	1989 Saudi Arabia

Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only.

† Appearances (Goals).

Fernando Manuel Silva Couto (born 2 August 1969) is a famous Portuguese former footballer. He played as a centre back, which is a defensive position in football.

Fernando Couto had a long career, playing professionally for 21 years. He played for many top clubs in Portugal, Spain, and Italy. He played 12 seasons in Italy alone. He played in almost 600 official matches. He won many titles, including "the double" (winning two major competitions in one season) in each country. He also won three UEFA trophies, which are big European club competitions.

For his country, Couto played for the Portugal national team in 110 games. He took part in the 2002 World Cup and three European Championships.

Club Career
International Career
- Major Tournaments
How He Played
Trophies and Awards
- Orders
Images for kids
See also

Club Career

Fernando Couto was born in Espinho, a town near Porto. He joined FC Porto's youth team when he was 17 years old. On 2 June 1988, he played his first game for the main team. This was in the Primeira Liga, Portugal's top league. He played the whole game, which Porto won 1–0. This was his only game that season for the national champions.

After that, he left Porto for a short time. He played one year each for F.C. Famalicão and Académica.

Returning to Porto

Couto came back to Porto in 1990. He became a very important defender for the team. During his four years there, Porto won six major titles.

After his successful time at Porto, he moved to Italy. He joined Parma AC in 1994. In his first season, he scored four goals in 27 games. This was his best goal-scoring season. He also helped Parma win the UEFA Cup that year. They beat another Italian team, Juventus FC, in the final.

Playing in Spain

In the summer of 1996, Couto signed a four-year contract with FC Barcelona in Spain. He moved there with his former Porto teammate Vítor Baía. The famous English manager Bobby Robson was also at Barcelona. Luís Figo, another Portuguese star, was already playing for the club.

Couto played regularly in his first year at Barcelona. The next coach, Louis van Gaal, used him less often. But Couto still played in one of the two European finals that Barcelona won. This was the UEFA Cup Winners' Cup in 1997.

Time in Italy with Lazio

After two seasons at Barcelona, Couto left and joined SS Lazio in Rome in June 1998. He played in 22 matches in his first year. He helped Lazio finish second in the league. He also played for one minute in the final of the last Cup Winners' Cup in 1999. Lazio won that final 2–1 against RCD Mallorca.

Couto continued to play regularly for Lazio in the following seasons. In 2005, when he was 36, Couto returned to Parma. He had played there 11 years earlier. He played regularly for two more seasons. In 2007–08, he played only 17 matches. His contract ended, and he decided to stop playing football.

After Retirement

In June 2010, two years after he stopped playing, Couto became the general manager at S.C. Braga. Later, he became the assistant manager for the 2012–13 season. He left this role in February 2014.

International Career

When he was playing for Famalicão in the third division, Couto played four matches for the Portugal U20 team. Portugal won the 1989 FIFA World Youth Championship that year. He was part of a special group of players called the "Golden Generation" of Portuguese football.

He played his first game for the senior national team on 19 December 1990. This was a friendly game against the United States. Portugal won 1–0.

Major Tournaments

Couto was always a first-choice player for Portugal. He played in UEFA Euro 1996, where he scored the only goal against Turkey. Portugal reached the quarter-finals that year. He also played in UEFA Euro 2000 and the 2002 FIFA World Cup. In the last two tournaments, he often played alongside his former Porto teammate Jorge Costa. Portugal left the 2002 World Cup after the group stage.

On 11 October 2003, Couto became the first Portuguese player to reach 100 international games. He played a total of 110 games for his country. He was chosen as captain for UEFA Euro 2004, which was held in Portugal. He started the first game against Greece. However, he was later replaced by Ricardo Carvalho on the bench. Portugal reached the final of the tournament but lost to Greece.

How He Played

Many people think Fernando Couto was one of Portugal's greatest defenders. He usually played as a centre-back. At Porto, he was known for being a strong and physical defender. He had an aggressive style and was good at tackling. He was also very good at heading the ball. He could quickly start attacks after winning the ball back.

When he played in Italy, he learned to play in different ways. Under his Parma manager Nevio Scala, he sometimes played as a "man-marking" centre-back. This meant he would closely follow one opposing player. He could also play as a "sweeper," which is a defender who plays behind the main defensive line.