 Hernández in 2017 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Luis Arturo Hernández Carreón | ||
| Date of birth | (1968-12-22)22 December 1968 (age 56) | ||
| Place of birth | Poza Rica,Veracruz, Mexico | ||
| Height | 1.75 m (5 ft 9 in) | ||
| Position | Striker | ||
| Youth career | |||
| –1990 | Cruz Azul | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1990–1991 | Cruz Azul | 18 | (1) |
| 1991–1992 | Querétaro | 28 | (11) |
| 1992–1994 | Monterrey | 62 | (15) |
| 1994–1998 | Necaxa | 125 | (37) |
| 1997 | →Boca Juniors (loan) | 4 | (2) |
| 1998–2000 | Tigres UANL | 64 | (39) |
| 2000–2003 | LA Galaxy | 40 | (15) |
| 2001–2003 | →América (loan) | 43 | (9) |
| 2003 | Veracruz | 18 | (5) |
| 2004 | Chiapas | 5 | (1) |
| 2004–2005 | BUAP | 9 | (4) |
| Total | 521 | (139) | |
| International career | |||
| 1995–2002 | Mexico | 85 | (35) |
Medal record | |||
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Luis Arturo Hernández Carreón (born 22 December 1968), commonly known asEl Matador (English: The Bullfighter),[1] is a Mexican former professionalfootballer. He is widely regarded as one of Mexico's most talentedstrikers.[2]
On the international stage, Hernández made 85 appearances and scored 35 goals. He representedMexico at theFIFA World Cup in 1998 and 2002.
Along withJavier Hernández, he is Mexico's all-time leadingFIFA World Cup goalscorer.[3]
Born on 22 December 1968, inPoza Rica,Veracruz, Hernández began his professional career as a center forward withCruz Azul, making his first-team debut on 22 August 1990, at the age of 21. He stayed with the club until 1992, splitting his playing time with affiliate sideQuerétaro. That year, he joinedMonterrey, and two seasons later moved toNecaxa. His arrival coincided with a remarkable era of success for the club, during which they captured two consecutivePrimera División titles, theCopa México, theCONCACAF Cup Winners Cup, and theCampeón de Campeones.
His prolific scoring and dynamic play earned him a call fromBoca Juniors in 1997, personally recommended by Diego Maradona and Julio César Toresani after his standout performance in theCopa América that year. In Argentina, his resemblance toClaudio Caniggia earned him the nicknameEl Pájaro (“The Bird”), but his time there was short-lived. With Boca’s foreign player quota already filled, Hernández saw limited action, featuring only in threeSupercopa Sudamericana matches before returning to Mexico a month later.
Back with Necaxa, he rediscovered his form, scoring 9 goals in just 12 matches, before moving toTigres UANL. With Tigres, he netted 38 goals in 64 games and achieved the rare feat of scoring in theClásico Regiomontano for both Monterrey clubs — Monterrey and Tigres.
In 2000, Hernández took his talents to the United States, signing with theLos Angeles Galaxy in Major League Soccer. Over two seasons, he scored 15 goals in 40 appearances across league and playoff matches. He returned to Mexico in 2002, playing forClub América,Veracruz,Chiapas, andLobos BUAP before bringing his playing career to a close in 2005.[4][5][6]
Hernández earned his first international cap for Mexico on 1 February 1995, in a match againstUruguay. Later that year, he netted his first international goal againstYugoslavia.
Hernández rose to prominence during the1997 Copa América, where he struck six times to finish as the tournament’s top scorer. His momentum carried into the1998 FIFA World Cup, where he scored four goals—making him one of the competition’s leading scorers and the first Mexican player to record more than two goals in a single World Cup.
He also featured in the2002 FIFA World Cup, appearing as a substitute in three matches but failing to find the net. His final appearance for the national team came on 17 June 2002, in a match against theUnited States.
Hernández earned 85 caps forMéxico over a seven-year span, scoring 35 goals to become the fifth-highest scorer in the national team’s history.
| Club | Season | League | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | ||
| Cruz Azul | 1990–91 | Mexican Primera División | 18 | 1 |
| Querétaro | 1991–92 | Mexican Primera División | 28 | 11 |
| Monterrey | 1992–93 | Mexican Primera División | 26 | 6 |
| 1993–94 | 32 | 8 | ||
| Total | 58 | 14 | ||
| Necaxa | 1994–95 | Mexican Primera División | 30 | 8 |
| 1995–96 | 31 | 10 | ||
| 1996–97 | 39 | 14 | ||
| 1997–98 | 12 | 9 | ||
| Total | 112 | 41 | ||
| Boca Juniors (loan) | 1997–98 | Argentine Primera División | 4 | 2 |
| Tigres UANL | 1998–99 | Mexican Primera División | 33 | 19 |
| 1999–2000 | 31 | 19 | ||
| Total | 64 | 38 | ||
| LA Galaxy | 2000 | Major League Soccer | 16 | 5 |
| 2001 | 14 | 8 | ||
| Total | 30 | 13 | ||
| América (loan) | 2001–02 | Mexican Primera División | 14 | 2 |
| 2002–03 | 2 | 0 | ||
| Total | 16 | 2 | ||
| Veracruz | 2002–03 | Mexican Primera División | 18 | 5 |
| Chiapas | 2003–04 | Mexican Primera División | 5 | 1 |
| BUAP | 2004–05 | Primera División A | 9 | 4 |
| Career total | 362 | 132 | ||
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mexico | 1995 | 5 | 2 |
| 1996 | 6 | 0 | |
| 1997 | 21 | 10 | |
| 1998 | 16 | 14 | |
| 1999 | 18 | 6 | |
| 2000 | 9 | 2 | |
| 2001 | 4 | 1 | |
| 2002 | 6 | 0 | |
| Total | 85 | 35 | |
| No. | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 15 November 1995 | Estadio Tecnológico,Monterrey, Mexico |  Yugoslavia | 1–2 | 1–4 | Friendly | [9] |
| 2 | 6 December 1995 | Estadio Héroe de Nacozari,Hermosillo, Mexico |  Slovenia | 1–0 | 1–2 | Friendly | [10] |
| 3 | 17 January 1997 | Rose Bowl,Pasadena, United States |  Denmark | 2–0 | 3–1 | Friendly | [11] |
| 4 | 13 April 1997 | Estadio Azteca,Mexico City, Mexico |  Jamaica | 6–0 | 6–0 | 1998 FIFA World Cup qualification | [12] |
| 5 | 20 April 1997 | Foxboro Stadium,Foxborough, United States |  United States | 2–1 | 2–2 | 1998 FIFA World Cup qualification | [13] |
| 6 | 13 June 1997 | Estadio Ramón Tahuichi Aguilera,Santa Cruz, Bolivia |  Colombia | 1–0 | 2–1 | 1997 Copa America | [14] |
| 7 | 2–0 | ||||||
| 8 | 16 June 1997 | Estadio Ramón Tahuichi Aguilera, Santa Cruz, Bolivia |  Brazil | 1–0 | 2–3 | 1997 Copa America | [15] |
| 9 | 2–0 | ||||||
| 10 | 19 June 1997 | Estadio Ramón Tahuichi Aguilera, Santa Cruz, Bolivia |  Costa Rica | 1–0 | 1–1 | 1997 Copa America | [16] |
| 11 | 28 June 1997 | Estadio Jesús Bermúdez,Oruro, Bolivia |  Peru | 1–0 | 1–0 | 1997 Copa America | [17] |
| 12 | 12 December 1997 | King Fahd International Stadium,Riyadh, Saudi Arabia |  Australia | 1–2 | 1–3 | 1997 FIFA Confederations Cup | [18] |
| 13 | 4 February 1998 | Oakland Coliseum,Oakland, United States |  Trinidad and Tobago | 2–1 | 4–2 | 1998 CONCACAF Gold Cup | [19] |
| 14 | 4–2 | ||||||
| 15 | 12 February 1998 | Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum,Los Angeles, United States | Jamaica | 1–0 | 1–0 | 1998 CONCACAF Gold Cup | [20] |
| 16 | 15 February 1998 | Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, Los Angeles, United States | United States | 1–0 | 1–0 | 1998 CONCACAF Gold Cup | [21] |
| 17 | 15 April 1998 | Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, Los Angeles, United States | Peru | 1–0 | 1–0 | Friendly | [22] |
| 18 | 9 May 1998 | Montecatini Terme, Italy |  Estonia | 2–0 | 6–0 | Friendly | [23] |
| 19 | 4–0 | ||||||
| 20 | 6–0 | ||||||
| 21 | 13 June 1998 | Stade de Gerland,Lyon, France |  South Korea | 2–1 | 3–1 | 1998 FIFA World Cup | [24] |
| 22 | 3–1 | ||||||
| 23 | 25 June 1998 | Stade Geoffroy-Guichard,Saint-Étienne, France |  Netherlands | 2–2 | 2–2 | 1998 FIFA World Cup | [25] |
| 24 | 29 June 1998 | Stade de la Mosson,Montpellier, France |  Germany | 1–0 | 1–2 | 1998 FIFA World Cup | [26] |
| 25 | 17 November 1998 | Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, Los Angeles, United States |  El Salvador | 1–0 | 2–0 | Friendly | [27] |
| 26 | 18 November 1998 | Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, Los Angeles, United States |  Guatemala | 1–0 | 2–2 | Friendly | [28] |
| 27 | 19 February 1999 | Hong Kong Stadium,Causeway Bay, Hong Kong |  Egypt | 3–0 | 3–0 | Friendly | [29] |
| 28 | 9 June 1999 | Soldier Field,Chicago, United States |  Argentina | 1–0 | 2–2 | Friendly | [30] |
| 29 | 16 June 1999 | Dongdaemun Stadium,Seoul, South Korea |  Croatia | 1–0 | 1–2 | Friendly | [31] |
| 30 | 30 June 1999 | Estadio Antonio Aranda,Ciudad del Este, Paraguay |  Chile | 1–0 | 1–0 | 1999 Copa America | [32] |
| 31 | 10 July 1999 | Estadio Defensores del Chaco,Asunción, Paraguay | Peru | 1–2 | 3–3 | 1999 Copa America | [33] |
| 32 | 2–2 | ||||||
| 33 | 9 January 2000 | Oakland Coliseum, Oakland, United States |  Iran | 1–0 | 2–1 | Friendly | [34] |
| 34 | 13 February 2000 | San Diego Stadium,San Diego, United States | Trinidad and Tobago | 2–0 | 4–0 | 2000 CONCACAF Gold Cup | [35] |
| 35 | 31 January 2001 | Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, Los Angeles, United States | Colombia | 2–0 | 2–3 | Friendly | [36] |
Monterrey
Necaxa
LA Galaxy
América
Mexico
Individual
Mexico squads | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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