 Fuertes in 2008 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Esteban Óscar Fuertes | ||
| Date of birth | 26 December 1972 | ||
| Place of birth | Coronel Dorrego, Buenos Aires, Argentina | ||
| Height | 1.85 m (6 ft 1 in) | ||
| Position(s) | Centre forward | ||
| Youth career | |||
| Independiente | |||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1992 | Independiente | 1 | (0) |
| 1992–1993 | El Porvenir | 26 | (17) |
| 1993–1995 | Los Andes | 68 | (31) |
| 1995–1996 | Platense | 29 | (9) |
| 1996–1997 | Racing Club | 33 | (8) |
| 1997–1999 | Colón | 62 | (23) |
| 1999 | Derby County | 8 | (1) |
| 2000 | Colón | 18 | (17) |
| 2000 | Lens | 26 | (7) |
| 2001–2002 | Tenerife | 26 | (5) |
| 2002–2003 | River Plate | 34 | (12) |
| 2003–2006 | Colón | 81 | (35) |
| 2007 | Universidad Católica | 35 | (19) |
| 2008–2012 | Colón | 122 | (63) |
| 2013 | Sport Boys | 11 | (3) |
| Total | 577 | (250) | |
| International career‡ | |||
| 2009 | Argentina | 1 | (0) |
|
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 22:03, 16 October 2013 (UTC) ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 18:20, 17 December 2010 (UTC) | |||
Esteban Óscar Fuertes (born 26 December 1972) is an Argentine former footballer.
In July 1999, Fuertes was purchased for £2.3m by Jim Smith, manager of Derby County in England. He scored two early goals, including the winner against Everton in the league.[1] and another against Swansea City in the League Cup.[2] However, weeks later, he was refused entry back into Britain when immigration officials discovered that his Italian passport was forged. Derby were able to sell him on to Lens in France for £2.8m.[3]
Fuertes retired from professional football on 25 June 2012 in a match against Banfield, scoring two goals.[4] A year following his retirement, Fuertes signed a six-month contract for Bolivian side Sport Boys which had been recently promoted to the Liga de Fútbol Profesional Boliviano.[5] He officially retired on 6 December 2013 after eleven appearances and three goals scored for the club.[6]
On 20 May 2009, Fuertes made his international debut in a friendly match against Panama aged 36, making him the oldest player ever to make his debut for the Argentina national team.[7] The Argentina team made up of players based in the Primera División Argentina won the game 3–1.
