Fernando Mendes (footballer, born 1937)


Fernando Mamede Mendes was a Portuguese football midfielder and manager.

Playing career

Mendes was born in Seia, Guarda District. During his professional career, which lasted 13 seasons, he played almost exclusively for Sporting CP, also starting and finishing his football development at the Lisbon side. He appeared in 233 matches during his spell, including friendlies.
Mendes represented the Portuguese national team during six years, but did not attend any major international tournament. On 25 April 1965, he broke his leg in the early minutes of the away fixture against Czechoslovakia for the 1966 FIFA World Cup qualification as the national team eventually won it 1–0 thanks to Eusébio, with ten players.

Coaching career

Mendes never fully recovered from that situation, and retired four years later at only 31. In 24 Primeira Liga games over three separate seasons, he served as interim manager at his only club, winning nine, drawing nine and losing six; with the Lions, he also worked as an assistant coach and extensively with the youth teams.

Death

Mendes died on 31 March 2016 at the Hospital Pulido Valente in Lisbon, after a long illness. He was 78 years old.