Fernando Aristeguieta

Caracas

In his first year at the club he managed to win the U-17 National Championship in the 2007–2008 season, being the top goalscorer with 21 goals. Aristeguieta turned down offers from teams like Tenerife, Real Oviedo, and Grêmio to continue his studies. He debuted in the first division in Venezuela with Caracas in the 2009/2010 season. In his first season, he played 20 games and scored 6 times, scoring his first professional goal on his debut against Trujillanos, in the city of Valera, on 16 August 2009. On 10 March 2010, he had his international tournament debut, coming in at the 77th min. for Rafael Castellín, in the 2010 Copa Libertadores match against Flamengo, which Caracas lost 1–3 at home; that game was the last of Noel Sanvicente coaching the club. On 30 July 2010 he suffered a ruptured cruciate ligament in his left knee that would keep him sidelined nine months, missing the Copa Sudamericana 2011 and the 2011 South American U-20 Championship. First division of Venezuela in the season of 2011/2012 was the rebirth of the redhead forward, which few expected after his painful injury. In the first round against Trujillanos FC, he played 26 minutes. He makes his first goal of the season against the Football Club Tucanes Amazon in New Haven when he had entered 67 minutes, from there he was awarded with being a starter. The next match against Llaneros de Guanare Futbol Club he scored two goals. This game was played over two days due to power failure. The next…

Youth level

He began his involvement in the Venezuelan selection in the U-15 category to compete in the 2007 South American U-15 Championship played in Porto Alegre. Aristeguieta managed to be the top scorer of his team with three goals. Venezuela narrowly missed out on qualifying to the second round due to goal difference. He was present in 48 friendly matches of the U-17 level in preparation for the 2009 U-17 South American League the city of Iquique, where the team finished in last place in their group. He also participated in Bolivarian Games of 2009 scoring 1 goal in that tournament and the Venezuela National Team won the bronze medal.

Senior team

Aristigueta made his senior team debut on 2 February 2010 against Japan with the number 7 and was replaced by Alexander Rondón after 70 minutes. He was again called up for the friendly against Chile on 31 March, playing 8 minutes in the last game of the Marcelo Bielsa era. He was subsequently called up for the match against El Salvador, the first after the 2011 Copa America, and scored a goal, thanks to an assist from Yonathan Del Valle. On 7 October 2011, he made his competitive debut on the first matchday of the 2014 FIFA World Cup qualifiers against Ecuador at Estadio Olímpico Atahualpa in Quito. After a year without playing for the national team, he played five minutes on 14 November 2012 against Nigeria. On 27 March 2013, He started against rivals Colombia. Wearing the number 9, he had two clear chances,…

After retiring, Aristeguieta was appointed manager of the under-23 squad of former club Club Puebla. On 24 February 2024, he was named interim manager of the first team after the sacking of Ricardo Carbajal, but returned to his previous role on 12 March after the appointment of Andrés Carevic. On 6 July 2024, Aristeguieta was named in charge of another club he represented as a player, Caracas. On 7 November 2025, he was named interim manager of the national team for two friendlies against Australia and Canada. On 22 April 2026, Aristeguieta resigned from Caracas, joining the technical staff of Oswaldo Vizcarrondo in the national team.

School

He studied at the Colegio San Ignacio de Loyola. He also managed to represent their school in Recreational Mathematics Olympics five times, in which he was the runner up in 2006. In the summer of 2007 and 2008 he studied English at the Cushing Academy institution, located in the city of Ashburnham, Massachusetts, achieving complete mastery of the language. During these years, he took the decision to leave school in order to fully focus on soccer, causing quarrels with his parents. Aristeguieta wanted to graduate in a school for athletes; however, he decided to finish at his school. He graduated in July 2010.

Sports

At age 7, he joined the Loyola football team, being coached by former Caracas and Venezuela national team player Leopoldo Páez, who Aristeguieta considers his mentor both on and off the pitch. Simultaneously he was practicing tennis, participating in tournaments at regional, national and international levels. In that list, was leader David Souto, who is currently in first place in the ranking of Venezuelan men's professional tennis. However, in the same year of publication, Aristeguieta decided to retire from tennis to specialize in football. As a soccer player, he represented his school in Caracas Sports School League and the League César Del Vecchio. He also played in several international championships in European cities such as Barcelona, Gothenburg, Regina, Milan, San Sebastián and Dallas. At 15 he left Loyola to join the football…