Abel Hernández

Abel Mathías Hernández Platero (born 8 August 1990) is a Uruguayan professional footballer who plays as a striker for Premier League club Hull City and the Uruguay national team.
He began his career with Central Español and Peñarol, and spent five-and-a-half seasons in Italy with Palermo before joining Hull for a club record £10 million in September 2014.
A full international since 2010, Hernández has competed at various international tournaments with Uruguay, including their victory at the 2011 Copa América.

Club career

Early career

Nicknamed La Joya, he started his professional career with Uruguayan side Central Español, immediately scoring five goals in his first four games. He was subsequently acquired by Peñarol, where he established himself as a regular and also gained a spot into the Under-20 Uruguayan side.

Palermo

On 2 February 2009, Italian Serie A club Palermo completed the signing of Hernández, where he joined fellow Uruguayan Edinson Cavani. He was presented by Palermo only one month later, due to some health concerns regarding a cardiac arrhythmia that led to a small surgical intervention. He made his first team debut on 15 March, replacing Edinson Cavani in the final minutes of a 5–2 home win to Lecce. He then won the Trofeo Giacinto Facchetti with the Primavera under-19 team in June 2009.

After missing the initial weeks of the 2009–10 Serie A due to injury and his participation in the 2009 FIFA U-20 World Cup. Hernández played his first game on 29 October 2009. Coming on as a half-time substitute for Cristian Melinte, he scored in the 5–3 loss to league leaders Inter.

In 2012–13, Hernández scored only once in 14 league matches as Palermo suffered relegation: he equalised as a substitute against Udinese in the 81st minute of a home match on 8 May, only for Medhi Benatia to score a winner for the visitors two minutes later. The following campaign, he struck 14 times in 28 Serie B games as the Sicilians returned to the top flight, netting braces in away victories over Padova and Siena, both of which included a penalty kick.

Hull City

Hernández signed for English club Hull City on 1 September 2014 for a club record £10 million on a three-year contract, with the club having an option for a fourth year. Two weeks later he made his debut at the KC Stadium, and scored the first goal of a 2–2 draw with West Ham United. In his next home game against Manchester City on the 27th he won a penalty after being fouled in the area by Eliaquim Mangala, and scored it in an eventual 2–4 defeat. His next goal came when he put his team into the lead during a 2–2 away draw against Arsenal.

Hull were relegated on 24 May 2015 after a goalless draw with Manchester United on the final day of the season. During the match, Hérnandez punched United defender Phil Jones in an off the ball incident, not seen by match officials. Two days later, he was charged with violent conduct by The Football Association, and subsequently given a three-match ban.

On 16 January 2016, in a Championship match against Charlton Athletic, Hernández scored his first club career hat-trick in a game that finished 6–0, taking his league tally to 14 goals for the season. With six goals in four games, he won January's Football League Championship Player of the Month, and his manager Steve Bruce won the equivalent. At the club's annual awards, held on 3 May 2016, Hernández was named Player of the Year and Player's Player of the Year.

International career

On 27 July 2010, Hernández was called up for his debut with Uruguay, a friendly against Angola in Lisbon. The game, which was played on 11 August, ended in a 2–0 win for Uruguay, with Hernández being fouled for the penalty, which was scored by Edinson Cavani. Hernández then scored the second goal for the Celeste during injury time. He was part of the Uruguayan team which won the 2011 Copa América in Argentina, making substitute appearances in their opening match and their semi-final victory, both against Peru. He was chosen by Óscar Tabárez for the London 2012 Olympic Uruguay squad, making a half-time substitute appearance in the 0–2 defeat to Senegal at Wembley Stadium, in an eventual group stage exit.

The following year, he was selected for Uruguay's squad at the 2013 FIFA Confederations Cup; in his only appearance, the final group stage match against Tahiti, Hernández netted a first half hat-trick and eventually went on to become the fourth player in Confederations Cup history to score four goals in one match after converting a second-half penalty goal in Uruguay's 8–0 victory. He was named Man of the match for this performance. Hernández was also included in the Uruguayan squad for the 2014 FIFA World Cup, making substitute appearances in their opener against Costa Rica and last-16 match against Colombia, both defeats. At the 2015 Copa América, he made one start and two substitute appearances as Uruguay reached the quarter-finals.

Career statistics

Club

As of 22 January 2017

International

As of match played 13 June 2016

International goals

As of match played 13 June 2016. Uruguay score listed first, score column indicates score after each Hernández goal.

Honours

Hull City

• Championship play-offs: 2015–16

Uruguay

• Copa América: 2011

Individual

• 2009 South American Youth Championship: Joint top scorer with 3 others
• Championship Player of the Month: January 2016

• Williams, Adam (28 May 2016). "Hull City 1–0 Sheffield Wednesday". BBC Sport. Retrieved 5 June 2016. 
• "Copa América 2011". rsssf.com. Retrieved 1 September 2014. 
• "XXIV Sudamericano Juvenil 2009 (Venezuela)". rsssf.com. Retrieved 1 September 2014.