Fernandinho

Atlético Paranaense

Fernandinho began his career at Atlético Paranaense alongside his future Shakhtar teammate Jádson and close friend Carlos. In Paranaense he was runners-up of both the Brazilian first division (in 2004) and the Libertadores da America, in 2005. He made 72 appearances for the club, scoring 14 goals, before moving to Ukrainian side Shakhtar Donetsk for a fee of around £7 million in the summer of 2005.

Shakhtar Donetsk

2005–09: Initial league championships and UEFA Cup

In his first season as a Shakhtar player he played 34 matches, including 23 league appearances, and scored three goals, with one coming in the league. Shakhtar were victorious in the Super Cup, however Fernandinho did not play in the match. He played in the championship deciding match between Shakhtar and Dynamo Kyiv, who were level on 75 points after all 30 games had been played, in which Shakhtar prevailed 2–1 to take the title. This marked Fernandinho's first league title with Shakhtar. He made 25 league appearances in the 2006–07 season as Shakhtar finished 2nd to Dynamo Kyiv. They also finished as runners-up in the Ukrainian Cup and Ukrainian Super Cup. In the 2007–08 season Shakhtar regained the championship with Fernandinho playing a pivotal role by scoring 11 goals, including one from the penalty spot, in 29 league appearances. He failed to appear in just one league match during the season. Shakhtar were also victorious in the Ukrainian Cup, giving…

On 11 August 2011, Fernandinho made his first appearance for the Brazil national team in a 3–2 friendly defeat against Germany. He won four further caps during the 2011–12 season but did not appear in another Seleção squad until February 2014. On 5 March 2014, Fernandinho scored his first international goal on his return to the Brazil team in a 5–0 win over South Africa. In May 2014, he was named in Brazil's squad for the 2014 FIFA World Cup. He made his tournament debut as a half-time substitute for Paulinho in the third game of the group stage, scoring the last goal in the 4–1 victory against Cameroon. He was then selected in the starting line-up for Brazil's penalty shootout defeat of Chile in the round of 16. Fernandinho played a full match against Colombia in the quarter-finals, and played the first 45 minutes before being taken off in Brazil's 1–7 loss to Germany in the semi-finals: Brazil's biggest ever defeat at the World Cup. In May 2018, Fernandinho was named in Tite's final 23-man squad for the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia. On 6 July, Brazil were eliminated from the 2018 World Cup by Belgium in the quarter-finals, losing 2–1, with Fernandinho scoring an own goal for Belgium. In May 2019, Fernandinho was included in Brazil's 23-man squad for the 2019 Copa América, held on home soil. He featured in the side's opening two group matches as they went on to win the tournament.

Fernandinho was well known for his pace and ability to shoot from long distances, as well as his energy, technique, movement, and work-rate. He was described in the media as "a defensive midfielder with a box to box style of play, contributing in large part to the defense and the attack. With a powerful shot and great passing range, Fernandinho played an important part in breaking up opposition attacks and creating goal scoring opportunities". Jonathan Wilson, when writing for The Guardian in 2013, described Fernandinho as a holding midfielder who can "make tackles," and who is "capable of regaining the ball," while also noting that he frequently functioned "as the more "creative player alongside a destroyer." However, he also clarified that while "Fernandinho was a fine long passer, [...] he is not an Alonso or an Andrea Pirlo type; he is not a regista. Rather he likes to make forward surges, just as Touré does, and, [...] is more than capable of scoring goals when chances present themselves." As such, he labelled Fernandinho as a "carrier" or "surger," namely "a player capable of making late runs or carrying the ball at his feet." Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola praised Fernandinho for his intelligence, versatility, ability in the air, and wide range of skills, noting that "Fernandinho can do everything," also citing his important role in the club's successes. Due to a series of injuries to the Manchester City first team's defensive players, Guardiola also deployed…

Fernandinho is married and has one son, Davi, born on 5 March 2010, and a daughter, Mariana, born on 28 January 2017. Aside from his native Portuguese, Fernandinho reportedly speaks Russian, Italian, Spanish and English. Fernandinho is a devout Christian; concerning his personal faith, he has stated: "Jesus is my biggest inspiration."