Junior Fernandes facts for kids
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Fernandes with Dinamo Zagreb in 2016
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| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Antenor Junior Fernandes da Silva Vitoria | ||
| Date of birth | 10 April 1988 | ||
| Place of birth | Tocopilla, Chile | ||
| Height | 1.84 m (6 ft 0 in) | ||
| Position(s) | Forward | ||
| Team information | |||
|
Current team
|
Esenler Erokspor | ||
| Number | 78 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 1995–2006 | Cobreloa | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2007–2009 | Cobreloa | 51 | (2) |
| 2007 | → Municipal Mejillones (loan) | 20 | (12) |
| 2010 | Magallanes | 25 | (10) |
| 2011 | Palestino | 35 | (9) |
| 2012 | Universidad de Chile | 17 | (8) |
| 2012–2014 | Bayer Leverkusen | 6 | (0) |
| 2013–2014 | → Dinamo Zagreb (loan) | 28 | (13) |
| 2014–2017 | Dinamo Zagreb | 74 | (25) |
| 2017 | → Alanyaspor (loan) | 14 | (6) |
| 2017–2020 | Alanyaspor | 80 | (26) |
| 2020–2021 | Ittihad Kalba | 13 | (3) |
| 2021 | İstanbul Başakşehir | 9 | (1) |
| 2021–2022 | Universidad de Chile | 34 | (4) |
| 2023 | Manisa | 14 | (3) |
| 2023–2024 | Adanaspor | 27 | (9) |
| 2024– | Esenler Erokspor | 36 | (13) |
| International career‡ | |||
| 2011– | Chile | 20 | (0) |
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 15 June 2025 ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 10 October 2022 |
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Antenor Junior Fernandes da Silva Vitoria, known as Junior Fernandes, is a professional footballer from Chile. He was born on April 10, 1988. Junior plays as a forward, which means he is usually focused on scoring goals. He currently plays for the Turkish club Esenler Erokspor.
Contents
Club Career Highlights
Early Days at Cobreloa
Junior Fernandes was born in Tocopilla, Chile. When he was six, he moved to Calama with his family. There, he joined the youth teams of Cobreloa, a football club. He played in all their youth groups. He even played for Cobreloa's B team in 2006. During this time, he was teammates with another famous Chilean player, Alexis Sánchez.
In 2007, Junior was loaned to Municipal Mejillones, another team. Later that year, he joined Cobreloa's main team. He made his professional debut in a match against Deportes La Serena. His first time starting a game was against Deportes Melipilla. In that game, he scored three goals, which is called a hat trick!
Playing for Magallanes and Palestino
In 2010, Junior played for Magallanes. He was a key player for them. His team won the championship and moved up to a higher league. His great performance caught the eye of Palestino, and he joined them in 2011.
Time at Universidad de Chile
On December 2, 2011, Junior moved to Universidad de Chile. He was hoping to help them win the 2012 Apertura tournament. He also wanted to play in the Copa Libertadores, a big South American club competition. He made his debut for the club on February 4, 2012, scoring a goal and helping with another in a 3–1 win.
In the league playoffs, Junior scored another hat-trick against Colo-Colo on June 24, 2012. In the Copa Libertadores, he scored three goals in a 5–1 win against Godoy Cruz. He also scored two goals and assisted another in a 6–0 win against Deportivo Quito.
Moving to Bayer Leverkusen
On July 6, 2012, Junior signed a five-year contract with Bundesliga club Bayer 04 Leverkusen in Germany. He scored in his very first game for them in the DFB-Pokal cup. However, he didn't get to play as much as he hoped in his first season.
Success with Dinamo Zagreb
On May 26, 2013, Junior joined the Croatian club Dinamo Zagreb on a one-year loan. He did so well that on April 23, 2014, he signed a six-year contract to stay with Dinamo Zagreb permanently. He became a very important player for them.
Playing in Turkey
In January 2017, Junior was loaned to Alanyaspor in Turkey. He returned to Dinamo for a short time, even scoring two goals against Rijeka. But then he moved back to Alanyaspor permanently.
After Alanyaspor, Junior played for Ittihad Kalba in the UAE Pro League starting in August 2020. In January 2021, he returned to Turkey to play for İstanbul Başakşehir. In January 2023, he joined Manisa in Turkey. He then moved to Adanaspor in 2023 and is currently playing for Esenler Erokspor as of 2024.
International Career
Junior Fernandes has also played for the Chile national football team. He was first called up in 2011 for friendly matches. His official debut for the national team was on September 11, 2012, in a qualifying match for the 2014 FIFA World Cup against Colombia.
He was part of the team for the 2019 Copa América, which was his first major international tournament.
Honours and Achievements
Club Trophies
- Magallanes
- Tercera División de Chile: 2010
- Universidad de Chile
- Primera División de Chile: 2012 Apertura
- Dinamo Zagreb
- Croatian First League: 2013–14, 2014–15, 2015–16, 2017–18
- Croatian Cup: 2014–15, 2015–16
- Croatian Super Cup: 2013
National Team Trophy
- Chile
- China Cup: 2017
Individual Awards
- SIFUP Best Right Forward: 2013 Torneo de Transición
See also
In Spanish: Junior Fernandes para niños
