Stats by El Capo and Interista93
Name: Antônio Fernandes
Nicknames: "Antoninho", "O Arquiteto da Bola"
Country:
BrazilClub: Santos F.C.
Position: ★AMF, SS
Side: RF/BS
Age: 27-31 years (13/08/1921 - † 16/12/1973)
Height: 173 cm (Approx.)
Weight: 75 kg (Approx.)
Attack: 84
Defence: 43
Balance: 78
Stamina: 81
Top Speed: 75
Acceleration: 76
Response: 81
Agility: 76
Dribble Accuracy: 84
Dribble Speed: 77
Short Pass Accuracy: 87
Short Pass Speed: 75
Long Pass Accuracy: 85
Long Pass Speed: 71
Shot Accuracy: 85
Shot Power: 81
Shot Technique: 82
Free Kick Accuracy: 72
Curling: 71
Header: 77
Jump: 74
Technique: 84
Aggression: 81
Mentality: 86
Goalkeeper Skills: 50
Team Work: 85
Injury Tolerance: A
Condition: 5
Weak Foot Accuracy: 5
Weak Foot Frequency: 5
Consistency: 6
Growth Type: Standard
Dribble Style: 1
Free Kick Style: 1
CARDS:
P01 - Classic N°10
P15 - Free Roaming
S01 - Marauding
S02 - Passer
SPECIAL ABILITIES: Tactical Dribble - Reaction - Playmaking - Passing - Scoring
Attack/Defence Awareness: Attack Minded
INFO:
Antoninho was a right inside. He spent almost his entire career at Santos, where he made 402 appearances from 1941 to 1954, scoring 144 goals and winning several trophies in the city of Santos and Belo Horizonte as well as São Paulo state tournaments. He retired in 1956 after two seasons at Jabaquara. Regarded as one of Santos greatest ever players and their best before the arrival of Pelé, he was a regular in the Seleção Paulista but incredibly was never called up for Brazil.
Antoninho was talented and sometimes tireless, gifted with sharp technique and plenty of determination. He was capable of scoring with ease but was nicknamed O Arquiteto da Bola for his brilliancy in building the game and providing assists with accurate balls, allowing his teammates to find themselves in front of the goal. He moved well with the ball, calm and elegant, showing his refined technique and ability to deliver millimetric passes to the forwards. Probably a top assist-man at his time, he surely was a top scorer but also a leader who commanded his team, earning the respect of his teammates and opponents. In fact, he served his teammates all the time thanks to his formidabile will, aiming at his team's technical work and the ball distribution. He was the lungs of the team, bringing morale and courage even when the team was losing, seeking to improve the general performance of the group. Antoninho himself knew how important and helpful he was, recovering balls in the midfield, dribbling the defenders one by one with his head held high, looking for a better placed striker and serving him with an accurate pass, leaving him in a favourable position to score. That was the playstyle of Antoninho, described by historian De Vaney as a "true dancer". Antoninho recalled once that he considered as his most beautiful goal: « Odair took the corner kick. This time the ball came fast, much more a shot than a cross, and I, who was then marked by Waldemar Fiúme and Manuelito, ran between them, I jumped towards the ball, put my forehead and hit it at the angle closer to the goal of the great Palmeiras goalkeeper, who stretched himself out but without being able to stop the trajectory of the ball ».