Mario Fernandes celebrates his goal against Croatia in the quarterfinals of the 2018 World Cup in Russia. Getty
Brazilian nationalized Russian Mario Fernandes has become one of the most coveted players in the World Cup. Right back with the stature of a center back, Brazilian technique and European discipline, he already sounds for Milan and Valencia.
«A soldier does not make an army,» Mario commented before the quarter-final against Croatia. That Russian saying shows how well the Brazilian has adapted to the country of his adoption.
In 2016 he received citizenship from the hands of the Russian president, Vladimir Putinbut for bureaucratic reasons he was unable to debut with the national team until the World Cup. Fabio Chapello he wanted to take it to the World Cup in Brazil, but it was too soon.
The wait was worth it. He was the best player on the field against Spain along with his teammate Kutépov. I’m sure Jordi Alba still has nightmares about the CSKA Moscow defender, who closed all the pass routes.
The game that rested against the Uruguayans was the only one that the Russians lost in regulation time. If against the Spaniards he was immeasurable, against the Croats he covered the entire right wing, both in attack and defense.
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In addition, he scored the tying goal in extra time. And it is that Mario can not only score, go up the band and center, but he is also a good header. He showed it against Croatian central defenders Lovren and Vida.
Few remember that Real Madrid had him in their sights when he was a member of the Gremio in 2011, but the Russian Army team beat him to it.
As soon as he got to Moscow the russian federation understood that he was a selectable player. He had played a friendly with Canarinha against Japan, but for personal reasons he chose to apply for Russian citizenship.
Gone are the days when he disappeared from home and did not show up for a call-up to the national team of his home country, a rudeness that almost ended his career.
His days at CSKA are numbered, but not only because the Russian league is too small for him, but also because the Russian club has serious financial problems. Aleksandr Golovin is at the exit door and the same goes for Mario.
Several clubs are already queuing at the CSKA offices. Fernandes is a bargain. The Russian club will not demand exorbitant figures. As an example, Golovín, one of the revelations of the World Cup, costs less than 30 million euros.
Chéryshev must have already told you what the Spanish league is like. These days were inseparable in the training of the national team. Denís spoke in Spanish and Mario in Portuguese interspersing Castilian words.
The Brazilian press lamented these days that Mario wears the Russian shirt and not the canarinha. But the player no longer looks to the past. He has become Russian in body and soul.
He started out as a central defender, as he is 1.87 meters tall, but now he is an accomplished winger. The big clubs will have taken note. At 27 years old, the time has come for a change of scenery, but Russia, the country that has given him everything, will continue to be his home.