The World Cup has the power to catapult a player from relative obscurity into the hearts and minds of football supporters across the globe. With the tournament now in it’s final week, any contribution made might become an iconic image in the history of the sport.
No pressure, eh? But one man who has taken his opportunity and run with it is Enzo Fernandez. He had only made three appearances for Argentina prior to the 2022 World Cup, all of them from the bench.
The 21-year-old was fulfilling a similar substitute role in Qatar at first, but then scored a fine goal in his country’s second match, a 2-0 win over Mexico. Fernandez started the next game, against Poland, assisted a goal for Julian Alvarez and has been in the side since. He’s now being strongly linked with a move to Liverpool.
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In fairness, the rumours had already started before the World Cup got underway. However, the speculation has ramped up with reports emerging from South America that a pre-agreement for a deal next summer is now in place.
Whether there’s any truth in the stories will become apparent in due course. Fernandez only joined Benfica from River Plate last summer and will be under contract for another four years after this season, which suggests an imminent deal is unlikely. We shall see what unfolds, though he’s certainly a fine player.
Despite having arrived in Europe at the start of 2022/23, Fernandez’ numbers already suggest he has outgrown second tier competitions. England, France, Germany, Italy and Spain are considered the top five leagues. FBRef then has a ‘next eight’, which includes the likes of the Eredivisie, MLS, the English Championship and Portugal’s Primeira Liga.
On his FBRef scouting report, Fernandez is in the top one per cent of midfielders in the next eight competitions for 23 different metrics, and the top five per cent for a further 12. It’s his passing which stands out most, as well as an ability to find space in key areas.
Last month, Statsbomb tweeted that he “has made more line-breaking passes in open play (68) AND received the ball in space in Zone 14 more often (28) than any other player in the Primeira Liga this season.” Zone 14 is the central area directly in front of the opposition penalty box, and from there Fernandez is able to play through balls on a regular basis. Only one player in Portugal (Iuri Medeiros) has created more Opta-defined clear-cut chances (where you expect the attacker to score) in 2022/23. It’s fascinating to wonder how Fernandez would have linked up with Darwin Nunez if the Uruguayan were still at Benfica.
While his numbers don’t stand out as much in the Champions League or at the World Cup (understandably thanks to the higher standard), it’s interesting to see which players are similar based on that data. In Europe’s elite club competition, in which he has assisted goals against Juventus and Paris Saint-Germain this season ( per Transfermarkt ), Fernandez counts Thiago Alcantara among the midfielders he is most like. Both in the Champions League and the international tournament in Qatar, former Liverpool transfer target Aurelien Tchouameni is a match. If the Argentina man can offer what those players do on a long-term basis then he’s destined for the top.
Fernandez’ defensive numbers stand out more in tougher competitions, which again makes sense. Benfica have won 12 and drawn one of their opening 13 league games, their dominance making it natural that their players haven't been quite so involved in stopping opposition attacks. The fact the Argentine is in the top four per cent of midfielders for tackles per 90 minutes in the Champions League this season shows he can win the ball back when required.
And Fernandez may yet end this week as a World Cup winner. An already promising career could be on the verge of going stratospheric.
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