Abel Hernández

Early career

Nicknamed La Joya, he started his professional career with Uruguayan side Central Español, immediately scoring five goals in his first four games. He was subsequently acquired by Peñarol, where he played a handful of games and also gained a spot into the Under-20 Uruguayan side.

Palermo

On 2 February 2009, Italian Serie A club Palermo completed the signing of Hernández, where he joined fellow Uruguayan Edinson Cavani. He was presented by Palermo only one month later, due to some health concerns regarding a cardiac arrhythmia that led to a small surgical intervention. He made his first team debut on 15 March, replacing Edinson Cavani in the final minutes of a 5–2 home win to Lecce. He then won the Trofeo Giacinto Facchetti with the Primavera under-19 team in June 2009. After missing the initial weeks of the 2009–10 Serie A due to injury and his participation in the 2009 FIFA U-20 World Cup. Hernández played his first game on 29 October 2009. Coming on as a half-time substitute for Cristian Melinte, he scored in the 5–3 loss to league leaders Internazionale. In 2012–13, Hernández scored only 1 goal in 14 league matches as Palermo suffered relegation. He equalised as a substitute against Udinese in the 81st minute of a home match on 8 May, only for Medhi Benatia to score a winner for the visitors two minutes later. The following campaign, he struck 14 times in 28 Serie B games as the Sicilians returned to the top flight, netting braces in away…

On 27 July 2010, Hernández was called up for his debut with Uruguay, a friendly against Angola in Lisbon. The game, which was played on 11 August, ended in a 2–0 win for Uruguay, with Hernández being fouled for the penalty, which was scored by Edinson Cavani. Hernández then scored the second goal for the Celeste during injury time. He was part of the Uruguayan team which won the 2011 Copa América in Argentina, making substitute appearances in their opening match and their semi-final victory, both against Peru. He was chosen by Óscar Tabárez for the London 2012 Olympic Uruguay squad, making a half-time substitute appearance in the 0–2 defeat to Senegal at Wembley Stadium, in an eventual group stage exit. The following year, Hernández was selected for Uruguay's squad at the 2013 FIFA Confederations Cup. In his only appearance, the final group stage match against Tahiti, Hernández scored a first-half hat-trick and went on to become the fourth player in Confederations Cup history to score four goals in one match after converting a second-half penalty goal in Uruguay's 8–0 victory. He was named man of the match for this performance. Hernández was also included in the Uruguayan squad for the 2014 FIFA World Cup, making substitute appearances in their opener against Costa Rica and round of 16 match against Colombia, both defeats. At the 2015 Copa América, he made one start and two substitute appearances as Uruguay reached the quarter-finals. Hernández who was a regular in his…

Club

As of 30 August 2025

International

As of match played 13 June 2016

As of match played 13 June 2016 Scores and results list Uruguay's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Hernández goal.

Palermo

Serie B: 2013–14 Hull City

Football League Championship play-offs: 2016 Liverpool F.C. (Montevideo)

Torneo Apertura 2025 Uruguay

Copa América: 2011 Individual

South American U-20 Championship joint top scorer: 2009 Football League Championship Player of the Month: January 2016