 Hernández playing forJunior in 2010 | |||||||||||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Giovanni Hernández Soto | ||||||||||||||||
| Date of birth | (1976-06-17)17 June 1976 (age 49) | ||||||||||||||||
| Place of birth | Cali, Colombia | ||||||||||||||||
| Height | 1.72 m (5 ft 8 in) | ||||||||||||||||
| Position | Midfielder | ||||||||||||||||
| Youth career | |||||||||||||||||
| 1986–1993 | Boca Juniors de Cali | ||||||||||||||||
| Senior career* | |||||||||||||||||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) | ||||||||||||||
| 1993–1995 | Once Caldas | 28 | (11) | ||||||||||||||
| 1995–1996 | América de Cali | 68 | (6) | ||||||||||||||
| 1996–1999 | Independiente Medellín | 111 | (20) | ||||||||||||||
| 2000–2003 | Deportivo Cali | 146 | (32) | ||||||||||||||
| 2003–2006 | Colón de Santa Fe | 124 | (14) | ||||||||||||||
| 2007–2008 | Colo-Colo | 39 | (13) | ||||||||||||||
| 2008–2012 | Junior | 203 | (52) | ||||||||||||||
| 2013–2014 | Independiente Medellín | 46 | (5) | ||||||||||||||
| 2014 | Uniautónoma | 11 | (0) | ||||||||||||||
| Total | 781 | (154) | |||||||||||||||
| International career‡ | |||||||||||||||||
| 1995–2009 | Colombia | 46 | (5) | ||||||||||||||
| Managerial career | |||||||||||||||||
| 2015 | Uniautónoma | ||||||||||||||||
| 2016 | Real Cartagena | ||||||||||||||||
| 2016 | Junior | ||||||||||||||||
| 2018–2023 | Atlético | ||||||||||||||||
Medal record
| |||||||||||||||||
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 29 January 2015 ‡ National team caps and goals as of 17 November 2010 | |||||||||||||||||
Giovanni Andrés Hernández Soto (Spanish pronunciation:[ɟʝoˈβanjeɾˈnandesˈsoto]; born 17 June 1976), is a Colombianfootballmanager and former player. He is the current manager ofAtlético F.C. in the ColombianCategoría Primera B, and formerly managedUniautónoma,Real Cartagena andJunior.
Before his career as a coach, he played as amidfielder and was famous for his technical skills and ability to create chances as aplaymaker, as well as his penchant for setting-up goals fromfree kicks.[citation needed]
Giovanni Hernández made his professional debut at the age of 17 withOnce Caldas in 1993.[1] In 1995, he played forAmérica de Cali and he scored 5 goals during this season. He continued playing for the club during the1996 Copa Libertadores where he scored 2 goals. He played forIndependiente Medellín during 1998. At the end of that year, he was signed byDeportivo Cali.
He played for Deportivo Cali in the1999 Copa Libertadores as a substitute, but after a few goals he became a starter for the 2001 season, where he scored 13 goals.
In the second half of 2003, Hernández was sold to Argentine clubColón de Santa Fe. In his debut match on 12 August, he scored a free kick goal and made an assist, in a 3-1 victory againstVelez Sarsfield as part of the first stage of the2003 Copa Sudamericana.[2][3] He quickly became one of the favorites in the Argentine league, scoring a total of 12 goals that season.[citation needed]
On 15 January 2007, Hernandez joined Chilean clubColo-Colo on a one-year contract with a transfer fee of $800,000.[4][5] He was brought in to replace the2006 South American Player of the Year,Matías Fernández, and was handed the prestigious #10 jersey. He was a vital part of the team that would eventually win the2007 Apertura championship, being the second top scoring of the team with 7 goals. Colo-Colo also won the2007 Clausura, with Hernandez being part of the squad, and scoring 6 goals.
At the end of the year, Colo-Colo's president wanted him to stay at the club, but Hernandez told the press, "I asked for a Coca-Cola, but I got water with gas" meaning that he had certain terms that he asked for, but the club could not meet them.[6]
After receiving offers fromBarcelona of Ecuador andNecaxa of Mexico,[7][6][8] in January 2008, the midfielder went back to Colombia to play forJunior de Barranquilla, signing a three-year contract and becoming the most expensive transfer made by the team at that time.[9] When Hernandez arrived, Junior were close to being relegated, because the team had very poor 2006 and 2007 seasons. Junior also had a poor 2008 Apertura season, failing to qualify for the playoffs, but in the 2008 Finalizacion, with the help of Hernandez and other new signings, Junior reached the playoffs and avoided relegation as well.
In the 2009 Apertura, he scored 5 goals to help Junior reach the finals, where they lost toOnce Caldas. He had a great 2009 Clausura season, scoring nine goals in 15 games, including a streak of five consecutive games scoring.[10] His goals helped Junior make the playoffs, but he failed to score any in the playoffs and Junior eventually missed out on the finals. Junior won the2010 Apertura, which was his first title with the club.[11] In December 2010,Universitario of thePeruvian Primera División made an offer for him, but Hernandez declined, expressing his desire to stay in Barranquilla.[12] After declining the offer, he signed a two-year contract extension.[13]
In the 2011 Clausura, Junior qualified for the playoffs, and facedMillonarios in the semi-finals. Junior lost the first leg 3-0,[14] but in the second leg Junior came back and won 3-0, with Hernandez scoring the goal to tie the series.[15] He later scored his penalty in the shootout, which Junior won to qualify to the final.[16] In the finals, Junior won the first leg 3-2. In the second leg on 21 December, Once Caldas won 2-1 and tied the series, sending the game into penalties. He assistedCarlos Bacca's goal and scored his penalty in the shootout to win his second title with Junior.[17][18]
In December 2012, Hernandez told Junior's president that he wished to stay at the club and renovate his contract for two more years. However, the club only gave him the option to renovate his contract for one year, and he left the club that month.[19]
On 20 December 2012, he returned toIndependiente Medellín, the club he played for from 1996 to 1999.[20]
In September 2013, he had an argument with managerPedro Sarmiento after being subbed off early in a loss againstBoyaca Chico and not being included in the squad in the following match againstAtlético Nacional. However, everything was settled quickly and he resumed training within a few days.[21] At the end of the2014 Apertura, Hernandez left the club.
In June 2014, Hernandez joinedUniautónoma for the2014 Finalizacion tournament.[22]
Hernández was called up to theColombia national team for the2001 Copa América, which they won. Colombia did not qualify for the2002 FIFA World Cup but did qualify for the2003 Confederations Cup where he was called up again. Giovanni scored 3 goals in 5 games and he was considered one of the best players of the tournament. He played in the2003 CONCACAF Gold Cup with a lacklustre performance, not scoring a single goal.
After a three-year absence from theColombia national team, Giovanni was recalled for the match againstMexico on 22 August 2007.[23]
In September 2010, it was reported that Hernandez failed to pay approximately 865,000 pesos ($215,000) to the Argentine government while he was playing for Colon in 2005.[24]
| No. | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 23 July 2001 | Estadio Centenario, Armenia, Colombia |  Peru | 2–0 | 3–0 | Copa America 2001 |
| 2 | 20 June 2003 | Stade de Gerland, Lyon, France |  New Zealand | 3–1 | 3–1 | Confederations Cup |
| 3 | 22 June 2003 | Stade Geoffroy-Guichard, Saint-Etienne, France |  Japan | 0–1 | 0–1 | Confederations Cup |
| 4 | 28 June 2003 | Stade Geoffroy-Guichard, Saint-Etienne, France |  Turkey | 1–1 | 1–2 | Confederations Cup |
| 5 | 30 April 2008 | Estadio Alfonso López, Bucaramanga, Colombia |  Venezuela | 3–2 | 5–2 | Exhibition game |
América de Cali
Colo-Colo
Junior
Colombia
Individual
| Sporting positions | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Atlético Junior captain 2008–2012 | Succeeded by |
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