Fernando Forestieri facts for kids
Forestieri training at Watford in 2014
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| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Fernando Martin Forestieri | ||
| Date of birth | 15 January 1990 | ||
| Place of birth | Rosario, Argentina | ||
| Height | 1.72 m | ||
| Playing position | Forward, winger | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 2003 | Newell's Old Boys | ||
| 2003–2006 | Boca Juniors | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps† | (Gls)† |
| 2006 | Genoa | 1 | (1) |
| 2007–2009 | Siena | 19 | (1) |
| 2009–2010 | Vicenza | 19 | (5) |
| 2010–2011 | Málaga | 19 | (1) |
| 2011 | Empoli | 19 | (3) |
| 2011–2012 | Bari | 28 | (2) |
| 2012–2015 | Watford | 84 | (20) |
| 2015–2020 | Sheffield Wednesday | 128 | (40) |
| 2020–2022 | Udinese | 23 | (3) |
| 2022– | Johor Darul Ta'zim | 40 | (34) |
| National team | |||
| 2006–2007 | Italy U17 | 8 | (5) |
| 2007–2008 | Italy U19 | 14 | (4) |
| 2008–2010 | Italy U20 | 2 | (0) |
| 2011–2012 | Italy U21 | 2 | (0) |
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Fernando Martin Forestieri (born 15 January 1990) is a professional footballer. He plays as a forward or winger for Johor Darul Ta'zim. Fernando was born in Argentina. He also played for Italy's youth national teams.
Contents
Fernando's Football Journey
Fernando Forestieri was born in Rosario, Argentina. His parents were Italian. He started his football career in 2003 with Newell's Old Boys. Later that year, when he was just 13, Boca Juniors signed him. They paid $50,000 for the young talent.
When his parents moved back to Italy, Fernando left Boca. He joined Genoa at age 16.
Playing for Genoa
In January 2006, Genoa signed Forestieri to a three-year contract. Boca Juniors tried to keep him but could not. In March, Boca questioned how the transfer happened. They refused €300,000 from Genoa and took the case to the AFA.
That summer, Fernando played friendly matches for Genoa. In one game, Torino's president, Urbano Cairo, saw him play. He offered €500,000 for Forestieri, but Genoa said no.
On 8 November 2006, Forestieri played his first official game for Genoa. It was a Coppa Italia match against Empoli, which Genoa lost. He made his Serie B league debut on 13 January 2007. He scored a goal for Genoa in a 2–1 loss to Pescara. He then played regularly for Genoa's youth team. They won the 2007 International Viareggio trophy.
Time at Siena and Vicenza
On 25 July 2007, Siena announced they signed Forestieri from Genoa. This was part of a deal for other players. He made his Serie A debut on 26 September. He came on as a substitute against Atalanta. On 13 January 2008, Forestieri scored his first goal for Siena. It was against Internazionale in a 3–2 loss.
In January 2009, he was loaned to Vicenza in Serie B. He scored 5 goals in 19 games there.
Moving to Udinese and Other Loans
In July 2009, Forestieri moved to La Liga club Málaga on loan. He was sold to Udinese in a shared ownership deal on 28 July. He scored his only goal for Málaga on 20 December 2009. It was in a 2–1 win against Mallorca.
In summer 2010, he stayed with Udinese's youth team. In January 2011, he was sent to Serie B club Empoli.
On 15 July 2011, Bari signed him. Bari had just been relegated to Serie B. Udinese bought him completely from Genoa on 7 July.
Playing for Watford
On 31 August 2012, Watford signed Forestieri on loan from Udinese. He scored his first goal against Huddersfield Town on 29 September. Three days later, he was sent off against Charlton Athletic. Watford's goalkeeper, Manuel Almunia, said Forestieri reminded him of Lionel Messi. He believed Fernando had a bright future. Forestieri scored his second Watford goal against Leicester City in November. This goal helped Watford win 2–1.
On 14 January 2013, Fernando signed a permanent five-and-a-half-year deal with Watford. He scored his first goals as a permanent Watford player against Sheffield Wednesday on 5 March 2013. He scored two goals in an emotional 2–1 win. Forestieri was seen crying and kissing the Watford badge after the game. Three weeks later, he scored another two goals against Burnley on 29 March 2013.
Time at Sheffield Wednesday
After the 2014–15 season, Forestieri's time at Watford changed. He scored only 5 goals in 25 games. With many manager changes, he found himself playing less. Other clubs in the Championship became interested in him. These included Leeds, Reading, and Sheffield Wednesday.
On 29 August 2015, Sheffield Wednesday signed Forestieri. He signed a four-year deal for about £3,000,000. He became the 14th player signed by the Owls that summer. He made his debut for Wednesday on 12 September in a 3–1 loss to Burnley. He was Wednesday's top goal scorer that season with 15 goals.
Forestieri won the Player of the Year award for the 2015–16 season. On 9 January 2017, he extended his contract with Sheffield Wednesday until summer 2020. On 24 June 2020, it was announced he would leave the club on 30 June.
Back to Udinese
On 8 September 2020, Forestieri returned to Udinese. He signed a two-year deal. During the 2021–22 season, he played 6 times, scoring 2 goals and assisting once. He scored a great free-kick goal against Genoa in November 2021. However, he had limited chances to play. Fernando left Udinese in December 2021 by agreement. He scored 4 goals in 27 games during his second time at the club.
Playing in Malaysia
In January 2022, Forestieri left Udinese and moved to Asia. He joined Malaysian team Johor Darul Ta'zim on a two-year contract. He won his first club trophy soon after. JDT beat Kuala Lumpur City 3–0 to win the Piala Sumbangsih (Charity Shield). Forestieri scored one of the goals in his debut game.
On 13 March 2022, he scored his first hat-trick for the club. This was in a Malaysia FA Cup match against BRM F.C.. JDT won the game 10–0. On 11 May 2022, he helped JDT win against Negeri Sembilan. He scored an amazing goal in the 90+10th minute, which was almost the last touch of the match.
Forestieri signed a new contract with the club on 6 February 2024. This was before the 2024–25 Malaysia Super League season began.
International Matches
Fernando Forestieri was asked to play for Argentina's under-17 team. However, he chose to play for Italy instead. He was called up for Italy's U-17, U-19, and U-20 football teams. On 13 April 2011, he played his first game for the Italy U-21 team. It was a friendly match against Russia.
How Fernando Plays
Fernando Forestieri is a skilled and adaptable player. He can play as a trequartista (an attacking midfielder). He can also be a second striker or a winger in a 4–3–3 formation. He is fast and great at dribbling and shooting. He can beat defenders one-on-one.
Throughout his career, he has learned to play well in many different positions. He has played as an attacking midfielder, a winger on both sides, and sometimes as a forward. This makes him a very useful player in attack. He is also good at taking penalties and has a strong shot from far away.
Because he has a low center of gravity, he can easily get past defenders. His coach, Jos Luhukay, often played him as a right winger or a wide midfielder at Sheffield Wednesday. This was usually in a 4-2-3-1 or 4–4–2 formation. Sometimes, he played as a second forward in a 4-4-2. This allowed him to connect plays around a taller, stronger striker.
Career Statistics
| Club | Season | League | National cup | League cup | Continental | Other | Total | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Genoa | 2006–07 | Serie B | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | — | — | — | 1 | 1 | |||
| Siena | 2007–08 | Serie A | 17 | 1 | 0 | 0 | — | — | — | 17 | 1 | |||
| 2008–09 | Serie A | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | — | 2 | 0 | ||||
| Total | 20 | 2 | 0 | 0 | — | — | — | 20 | 2 | |||||
| Vicenza | 2008–09 | Serie B | 19 | 5 | 0 | 0 | — | — | — | 19 | 5 | |||
| Málaga | 2009–10 | La Liga | 19 | 1 | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | 20 | 1 | |||
| Udinese | 2010–11 | Serie A | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | 1 | 0 | |||
| Empoli | 2010–11 | Serie B | 19 | 3 | 0 | 0 | — | — | — | 19 | 3 | |||
| Bari | 2011–12 | Serie B | 28 | 2 | 2 | 0 | — | — | — | 30 | 2 | |||
| Watford | 2012–13 | Championship | 14 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 15 | 3 | ||
| Watford | 2012–13 | Championship | 14 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 3 | 0 | 17 | 5 | |
| 2013–14 | Championship | 28 | 7 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 0 | — | — | 32 | 8 | |||
| 2014–15 | Championship | 24 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 26 | 5 | |||
| 2015–16 | Premier League | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 1 | 0 | |||
| Total | 165 | 31 | 8 | 1 | 4 | 0 | — | 3 | 0 | 180 | 32 | |||
| Sheffield Wednesday | 2015–16 | Championship | 39 | 15 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 39 | 15 | ||
| 2016–17 | Championship | 37 | 12 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 38 | 12 | |||
| 2017–18 | Championship | 10 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 11 | 5 | |||
| 2018–19 | Championship | 25 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 27 | 6 | |||
| 2019–20 | Championship | 17 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 19 | 2 | |||
| Total | 128 | 40 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 0 | — | — | 134 | 40 | ||||
| Udinese | 2020–21 | Serie A | 19 | 1 | 2 | 1 | — | — | — | 21 | 2 | |||
| 2021–22 | Serie A | 4 | 2 | 2 | 0 | — | — | — | 6 | 2 | ||||
| Total | 23 | 3 | 4 | 1 | — | — | — | 27 | 4 | |||||
| Johor Darul Ta'zim | 2022 | Malaysia Super League | 18 | 13 | 4 | 3 | 7 | 4 | 6 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 36 | 22 |
| 2023 | Malaysia Super League | 20 | 19 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 31 | 22 | |
| 2024–25 | Malaysia Super League | 2 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 3 | |
| Total | 40 | 34 | 8 | 5 | 9 | 6 | 11 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 70 | 47 | ||
| Career total | 376 | 110 | 23 | 7 | 16 | 6 | 11 | 1 | 5 | 1 | 431 | 125 | ||
Trophies and Awards
Team Awards
Johor Darul Ta'zim
- Malaysia Super League: 2022, 2023
- Malaysia FA Cup: 2022, 2023, 2024
- Malaysia Cup: 2022, 2023
- Malaysia Charity Shield: 2022, 2023, 2024
Individual Awards
- PFA Fans' Player of the Month Award: March 2016
- Malaysia FA Cup Top Scorer: 2022
See also
In Spanish: Fernando Forestieri para niños
