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Robert Fernández (footballer) facts for kids

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Robert Fernández
Personal information
Full name Roberto Fernández Bonillo
Date of birth (1962-07-05) 5 July 1962 (age 62)
Place of birth Betxí, Spain
Height 1.79 m (5 ft 10 in)
Playing position Midfielder
Youth career
1976–1978 Villarreal
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1978–1979 Villarreal
1979–1981 Castellón 63 (8)
1981–1986 Valencia 135 (36)
1986–1990 Barcelona 144 (35)
1990–1995 Valencia 123 (22)
1995–1999 Villarreal 142 (8)
1999–2001 Córdoba 67 (0)
Total 674 (109)
National team
1979–1980 Spain U18 10 (1)
1981 Spain U19 3 (0)
1980–1988 Spain U21 21 (7)
1982 Spain U23 1 (0)
1983 Spain amateur 2 (0)
1982–1991 Spain 29 (1)
Teams managed
2004 Valencia B
2004 Córdoba
2006–2007 Orihuela
2008–2009 Alzira
Honours
Representing  Spain
UEFA European Championship
Runner-up 1984 France
  • Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only.
† Appearances (Goals).

Roberto Fernández Bonillo (born July 5, 1962), often called Robert or Roberto, is a Spanish former football player. He mostly played as a central midfielder.

For 14 years, from 1981, he played for famous Spanish clubs like Valencia and Barcelona. He played 439 games in La Liga, scoring 95 goals. He also played for Villarreal twice, which is where he started his career.

Roberto also played for the Spanish national team for almost ten years. He took part in one World Cup and one European Championship.

Playing for Clubs

Roberto Fernández was born in Betxí, a town in Spain. He began his professional football journey with CD Castellón in 1979. Before that, he came up through the youth teams of nearby club Villarreal CF.

Time at Valencia and Barcelona

After two years with Castellón, Roberto moved to Valencia CF in 1981. He scored 33 goals in his first four seasons there. However, the team was relegated from La Liga in 1986.

In the summer of 1986, Roberto joined FC Barcelona. In his first season, he scored ten goals in 40 games. One of these goals was a penalty in a 2–1 win against Real Madrid.

Roberto was a key player for Barça. He helped them win two Copa del Rey trophies and the 1988–89 European Cup Winners' Cup. After four years, he returned to Valencia in 1990. He helped Valencia finish fourth in the league twice in a row. In the 1993–94 season, he was out for most of the year due to an injury.

Later Career and Retirement

For the 1995–96 season, Roberto went back to Villarreal CF. At this time, Villarreal was playing in the Segunda División, which is the second division of Spanish football. In his third year, he helped Villarreal get promoted to La Liga for the first time ever. However, they were immediately relegated the next season.

Roberto retired from playing football in 2001, when he was almost 39 years old. His last two seasons were with Córdoba CF in the second division. He played over 700 official games in his career.

Moving into Coaching

After retiring as a player, Roberto became a coach. He managed several smaller teams in his home region, like Valencia B, Orihuela CF, and UD Alzira. In the 2004–05 season, he was one of four managers for Córdoba, but the team was relegated to a lower division.

In 2015, Roberto returned to Barcelona in a management role. He left the club in June 2018 when his contract ended.

Playing for Spain

Roberto played 29 games for the Spanish national team over nine years. He scored one goal for his country. He was chosen to play in the UEFA Euro 1984 and the 1990 FIFA World Cup tournaments.

His first game for Spain was on October 27, 1982. It was a qualifying match for Euro 1984 against Iceland, which Spain won 1–0. Roberto played the whole game.

International Goals

Roberto scored one goal for Spain:

# Date Venue Opponent Score Result Competition
1. 14 November 1990 Strahov, Prague, Czechoslovakia  Czechoslovakia 1–1 3–2 Euro 1992 qualifying

Achievements

Roberto won several important titles during his career:

Castellón

  • Segunda División: 1980–81 (This means his team won the second division league title.)

Barcelona

  • Copa del Rey: 1987–88, 1989–90 (This is Spain's main knockout cup competition.)
  • UEFA Cup Winners' Cup: 1988–89 (A European club competition, no longer played.)

Spain U21

See also

Kids robot.svg In Spanish: Robert Fernández para niños

  • List of FC Barcelona players (Players who have played 100 or more games for FC Barcelona)
  • List of La Liga players (Players who have played 400 or more games in La Liga)
  • List of Valencia CF players (Players who have played 100 or more games for Valencia CF)
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