*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 20:30, 18 May 2024 (UTC)
Vasco Herculano Salgado Cunha Mango Fernandes (born 12 November 1986) is a Portuguese professional footballer who plays mainly as a centre-back for Primeira Liga club Chaves.
After moving to Spain, joining UD Salamanca where he teamed up with compatriot Zé Tó,[3] Fernandes returned to Portugal after being bought by Leixões SC. He played roughly half of the games during the season, as the Matosinhos team overachieved for a final sixth place in the Primeira Liga.[4] His debut in the competition took place on 24 August 2008, when he featured the full 90 minutes in a 1–3 home loss against C.D. Nacional.[5]
Abroad
Fernandes was loaned again for the 2009–10 campaign, also in Spain and in its Segunda División, moving to RC Celta de Vigo.[6] He was much more regularly used than in his previous stint in the country, although the Galicians constantly battled relegation even though they finished 12th.
On 3 June 2016, aged nearly 31, Fernandes signed a two-year contract with Vitória F.C. in the Portuguese top flight.[12] He scored his first league goal on 17 September of that year, but in a 1–4 home defeat to F.C. Paços de Ferreira.[13]
Fernandes stayed for a third season at the Estádio do Bonfim, where he was played consistently and was captain of a side the fans nicknamed "Vasco Fernandes and ten others".[18]
Later career
In August 2019, Fernandes went abroad again to join Ümraniyespor in Turkey's TFF First League,[19] returning home in January 2021 by signing for G.D. Chaves in his first experience in his country's second division for over a decade.[20] Six months later, he moved to Casa Pia A.C. in the same league,[21] being a key player and scoring twice as the Lisbon-based club ended its 83-year exile from the top flight; he then extended his contract to 2023.[22]
In 2022–23, Fernandes played 30 games as the Geese came 10th in the highest division, plus four more cup matches. The 36-year-old then committed for another season.[23]
Fernandes returned to Chaves on 6 January 2024 on a deal until June 2025, having severed his ties with Casa Pia following a run-in with manager Filipe Martins.[24]
Fernandes' father, Herculano, was also a footballer and a defender. He too represented Olhanense and, in a 16-year senior career, appeared in one Portuguese top-division game with Académica de Coimbra; he coached his son in Olhanense's juniors, where he played as a forward.[2]
^Cunha, Pedro Jorge (24 August 2008). "Leixões-Nacional, 1–3 (crónica)" [Leixões-Nacional, 1–3 (match report)] (in Portuguese). Mais Futebol. Retrieved 25 March 2021.
^Matos, Diogo; Silva Reis, Paulo (3 March 2021). "Vasco Fernandes 'pegou de estaca' no Chaves" [Vasco Fernandes 'came, saw and conquered' at Chaves]. Record (in Portuguese). Retrieved 2 February 2023.
^Zeferino, André (6 January 2024). "Vasco Fernandes é reforço do Chaves" [Vasco Fernandes is a Chaves addition]. Record (in Portuguese). Retrieved 8 January 2024.
^Cunha, Pedro Jorge (21 August 2007). "Sub 21: Portugal-Malta, 3–0 (crónica)" [Under 21: Portugal-Malta, 3–0 (match report)] (in Portuguese). Mais Futebol. Retrieved 25 March 2021.