Top Facts about Luiz Hernandez, El Matador

The 90s were one of the most productive decades as far as Mexican idols are concerned. A golden generation that shone in Copa Americas, World Cups and that rose to prominence by winning the 1999 Confederations Cup.

And one of the greatest references was a man from Veracruz with long, blond hair, that moved the whole country in the French World Cup and, he even played alongside Diego Armando Maradona. Continue to read about some amazing facts about Luis Hernandez in this article.

A whole generation was inspired by the man from Veracruz who shone everywhere. With charisma, bravery, courage, determination, perseverance and almost 200 goals in his personal record, Matador Hernández emerged as a Legend of Mexican Soccer.

Hernandez became a legend in Mexico's national team. No wonder, because he scored 35 goals in 85 games between 1995 and 2002, making him the fourth-best shooter in Mexico's national jersey. But that's not all about his brilliance, because the star striker scored most of his goals in important tournaments.

At the 1998 World Cup, he was one of the tournament's top scorers with four goals. At the Copa America the previous year, he was even the top scorer of the tournament with six goals.

Top facts about Luiz Hernandez:

The first

fact about Luis Hernandez

is that he had several trademarks that made him famous. The shirt number 15 was one thing, although there have been footballers with fixed and well-known shirt numbers in the past. His hairstyle and nickname are therefore much more distinctive.

Luiz Hernandez early life

Luis Arturo Hernandez Carreon, known worldwide as El Matador, was born in Poza Rica, Veracruz in 1968.

Luiz Hernandez age

is 53. In a match between the selections of Veracruz and Hidalgo, a Cruz Azul scout invited him to be part of the club. He was already 18 years old.

The Mexican was known throughout his career for his long, blonde hair, which was very unusual on the football fields of South and Central America. Even today, his hair is still light blonde, but now much shorter.

Hernandez also became known with his nickname “El Matador”, which means “The Killer” in English. The striker owes his nickname above all to his callousness in front of the opposing goal, which caused the home fans to burst into cheers and fear the opponents.

Luiz Hernandez personal life

Luis Hernandez remains loyal to the sport even after his career. He continues to live in Mexico with his family and a dog, and he keeps his form with the occasional kicking and gym visits. He gives his fans an insight into this on Instagram. Luiz Hernandez is married to Nancy Elizabeth Rivera. The couple are happily living together in Mexico.

A notable fact about

Luiz Hernandez personal life

is that he also produces numerous funny video clips, which can be seen on various social media platforms such as Instagram and TikTok. With this, Luis Hernandez continues to entertain his fans today and give them something back after his career.

Luiz Hernandez professional career

Luiz Hernandez is widely regarded as one of Mexico's most talented strikers. He played for teams in Mexico, Argentina, and the United States.

Luiz Hernandez club career

He began his sporting career, always in the center-forward position, at the Cruz Azul club, with which he debuted in the First Division on August 22, 1990 at age 21, and he remained there until 1992. That year he signed for Monterrey and two years later, he was hired by Necaxa.

With this team he won a CONCACAF Winners' Cup (1995), two Mexican Championship titles (1995 and 1996), a Mexico Cup (1995) and a Mexico Super Cup (1995).

Consecrated as one of the best North American scorers of that time,

, by direct recommendation of Diego Armando Maradona and Julio César Toresani, took over his services in 1997. Due to his physical resemblance to the Argentine player Claudio Caniglia, he received the nickname "El Pájaro."

However, his time in Argentine soccer was brief and he could barely play in it, without major successes. For this reason, in 1998, he returned to his country to join

to keep fit for the 1998 World Cup in France.

Later he was signed by Tigres de Nuevo León. He remained in their squad until May 2000, when he signed for the

, a Major League Soccer team. Luis Hernández played at the end of his career with the Tiburones Rojos de Veracruz, Jaguares de Chiapas and Lobos de BUAP teams.

Querétaro F.C. and Cruz Azul

Luiz Hernandez began his career with the Cruz Azul reserves. His professional debut occurred three years later, in 1990. He remained in the capital team, but next year he was transferred to the White Roosters of Querétaro. He played there until 1992.

A

fact about Luiz Hernandez

club career is that with Blues he scored 1 goal in 20 games, while in Querétaro he participated 33 times and scored 11 goals.

Monterrey

For 92-93, he moved to

. With the royals he established himself as a constant of the lineups and in his first season reached the final.

In the first leg the team was left with one man less very early for the expulsion of Felix Fernández. Luis missed a very good opportunity in front of the goal. Monterrey lost 1-0 the first leg and 3-0 the return leg, with which the Colts were proclaimed champions.

In the second season he also had a lot of participation, although his squad was out of the league. After 69 games and 17 goals with the team, the man from Veracruz was transferred to Necaxa.

Necaxa

The nineties were one of the best periods of the club. Also, Hernández was a key piece of the squad's successes.

He stayed 5 seasons with the team that then had its training camps in Cuautitlán Izcalli. There were three long and two short tournaments. In 94-95 he played 42 games and scored 8 goals, and helped the team reach the final, in which they faced Cruz Azul. El Matador raised his first professional title, despite not contributing to the final match scoreboard. That year he also won the Mexican Cup and the Champion of Champions.

For the 95-96, Necaxa was more determined and achieved a record of 15 games won, 10 tied and 9 lost. El Matador played 44 games between the league and the cup, scoring 11 goals. The team qualified for the league and after winning against Tigers in the second round, Luis scored the second goal of the first leg of the semifinals against América.

The final was played against Celaya de Butragueño. Luis Hernandez missed a head strike in the match. With a one goal lead, Necaxa became two-time champion.

Necaxa would qualify for the league once again, where the forward would be more decisive and would score goals in all the phases of this one. In the final match at La Comarca, Luis scored the goal that put Necaxa slightly ahead, but a hit from Caballero and another header from Borgetti, the opponents sealed the first title in history for the lagoons.

A fact about Luiz Hernandez club career is that in Winter 97, the Rojiblancos managed to qualify once again, but this time they were defeated by amazing Neza Bulls.

Boca Juniors

It was at the end of that tournament that Diego Maradona spoke well of the Mexican with Boca Juniors, one of the greats of Argentina. The Bostero club announced Luis Hernández as its reinforcement, while Argentine journalists nicknamed him "the Bird", thanks to his supposed resemblance to Claudio Caniggia.

Unfortunately, the man from Veracruz had been named one of the worst signings throughout the history of the Boca club. This is because the manager did not trust him at all. Despite this, we can always remember the game he played against Colo Colo in the South American Super Cup, where he scored one of two goals with Boca Juniors. With the Buenos Aires team, he played 4 games and scored twice.

Back to Necaxa

A fact about Luis Hernandez is that he returned to Necaxa for Summer 98, where he would only play 12 games. The team reached the final of the tournament, where they lost by a landslide against Toluca de Cardozo.

Luiz Hernandez was no longer a player of Necaxa after 1998 FIFA World Cup. With the Rojiblanco club, he participated in 144 matches, scoring 41 goals, the most he scored in a team.

Tigres

In Winter 98 he was transferred to the Tigres. Before arriving at the club, he received an offer from the Chivas, but with a fight over the number of the jersey, Luiz did not join the team.

His new team never managed to stand out. In the 4 tournaments he played with the Monterrey. With Tigres, Matador Hernández played 65 games and scored 39 goals.

Los Angeles Galaxy and America

Luis Hernandez signed with the MLS Galaxy in the year 2000, although he would change jerseys for two years, between America and the Los Angeles club. From January to May 2000, he played with the eagles, on loan from the Los Angeles team.

The second half of the year he participated in the MLS and so, every six months, he jumped from one club to another. His last leap would be at the end of 2001, when he returned to America and stayed for a year.

A notable fact about Luis Hernandez club career is that those two years of ups and downs didn't help his performance much. The appearances with the Galaxy reached only 30 times, and his 13 goals were not enough to help them win the title, despite reaching the final in 2001. In that match he scored, but it was not enough, they were defeated.

In America, he played 54 times and scored 10 goals, including one phenomenal hit in Libertadores. The 2002 Summer League was played almost at the same time as the Korea-Japan World Cup, so the teams had to give rest to their footballers and the mini tournament was played without the main selection of the squads. That prevented Hernández from lifting the champion trophy with his teammates at Azteca.

Returning from Asia and 2002 FIFA World Cup, the striker only participated in two matches of the Apertura 2002 with América. His time at the America club was ending, where he played 54 games and scored 10 goals.

Veracruz

Already in the twilight of his career, he was transferred to Veracruz, where he reached the semifinals of the Clausura 2003.

Although he scored a penalty goal in the quarterfinals, it was not enough to reach the final, since they were eliminated by Morelia. With the Veracruz he played 18 games and scored 5 goals.

Chiapas

The Jaguars of Chiapas became the last First Division team where Matador Luis Hernandez would play, but his low level relegated him to the bench and he could only score once in 5 games.

The Apertura 2004 and the Clausura 2005 would be the last soccer professional tournaments that Hernández would participate in his career.

BUAP

In the end, he would wear BUAP shirt, where he would not achieve anything to highlight. He lined up in 9 games and scored 4 goals.

On May 17, 2005, with a match between his soccer friends and Poza Rica players, the Dog, as he was called in his hometown, said goodbye to professional football. He scored two goals in his goodbye to the fields. In the last match, the player was a tactical mess, but his heart and pride were undeniable.

Luiz Hernandez international career

In February 1995, Luiz Hernandez made his debut in the National Team, against

, in the same party that Cuauhtémoc Blanco appeared in green. It was the beginning of one of the most remembered eras for Mexican fans.

Then he would attend the CONCACAF Gold Cup, where he would have a good participation and, although he would not score a goal, he began to stand out with El Tri.

The National Team obtained the title and Luis celebrated an international tournament trophy for the first time. Already more mature, Hernández was established in the starting lineup and dominated the offensive force of the team.

In 1997, In the break between tournaments, the

was qualified to the Copa América again, this time in Bolivia. Luis Hernandez was once again an important part of the offensive line.

Hernández served the team well. In the first match he scored both in the victory against the Colombians. For the second game, Mexico beat

2-0 with two more goals from Matador, but a terrible handling of the game made them lose by 3 to 2.

A

fact about Luiz Hernandez

international career is that in the third game, he scored a penalty against

and Mexico qualified for the quarterfinals, where he would face Ecuador. After an intense match, the game was defined on penalties, where Luis marked one of the four that gave them the pass to the next phase.

Already in the semifinals El Tri could not compete with the excellence of Bolivians and were defeated by the host with a heavy 3 to 1. In the match for third place, the Mexican idol scored his sixth goal of the tournament, which credited him as the best scorer and gave the bronze medal to the national team.

Despite his failure after return to Necaxa, 1998 would be the best year of the football career of the Matador Hernandez. First, he would be summoned to the Gold Cup that was played in February.

During that tournament he would score 4 times, including the final goal with which el Tri defeated the United States to lift the second consecutive title.

This would be the preamble to the great World Cup that Luis Hernández would have. In the tournament in France, the long-haired player with the band on his forehead showed why he was born so that his name would be remembered forever in the World Cup tournament.

Mexico started the first game losing against South Korea, but Peláez entered the field to achieve the tie. Ricardo scored the second goal, but FIFA credited it to the Matador after a shot in the area.

The 3-1 came after an overflow of Cuauhtémoc Blanco on the left, yielding to Hernández and looking for the return pass, but the Veracruz star, with some slowness, turned around to finish off goalkeeper Kim Byung-Ji. In the third match, El Tri suffered against a powerful Holland. The first half ended 2-0 and Mexico had to row against the current.

The Mexicans drew strength from weakness and again the Peláez helped his team, marking 2 to 1 in 75 minutes. Mexico, with 4 points, tied the qualification, but with a goal from Belgium in the other game, The Mexicans were left out.

At 10 in the morning in Mexico time, Ricardo Peláez, the anonymous hero of that game, threw a ball into the Dutch area. It was at minute 4 of the extension, a few seconds before the referee whistled the end.

Jaap Stam, one of the rockiest defenders in history and who was recognized at that time as one of the best in the world, did not know how to measure the situation and handle the ball, which gave El Matador the opportunity to win against Edwin Van der Saar, another legend.

Matador Hernández swept his left leg forward and scored the most iconic goal of his entire life. And if the epic draw against the Netherlands already put Luis on the idol pedestal, his great round of 16 game against

confirmed it. It is a pity that sometimes a failure is remembered more than a historical performance.

But sadly, in this case, the failure cost Mexico the qualification to the fifth game. After a pass from the Temo that once again wanted a return, the one from Poza Rica decided to carry the ball, dribble the German defender and lift the ball so that it entered the goal at mid-height.

Mexico was playing an excellent game. But the decisive minutes would come. It was just the first quarter of the second half. El Cabrito Arellano dragged the ball down the right wing, with a great skill. Hernández ran from the center to the right to pull the mark, but the three German defenses followed the Monterrey.

Despite the mark, Arellano took a shot that crashed into the post. On the rebound, Blanco first focused on the Matador who had annihilated hundreds of rivals, but, with a weak left-footed shot that went into the hands of the goalkeeper, did not kill the Germans. The rest is history and with two goals near the end, Mexico was going home, defeated, but with his head held high.

Luis Hernandez said about that match: “it had already happened. We are no longer on that topic ... ". He became the first Mexican player to score 4 goals in the World Cup, record that has not been surpassed and that looks complicated to be broken in the near future.

A fact about Luis Hernandez international career is that in the summer of 99 he was called once more to represent Mexico in the Copa América in Paraguay. Luis scored a goal in the first group match and was decisive in the quarterfinals against Peru with a double. In the semifinal against Brazil, Mexico was outmatched and Luis failed to help the team.

Already in the last game, the Veracruz player returned to line up, but without a goal. An entry by Zepeda in 87 minutes gave, again, the medal for the third place in America to the Mexican team. A week later, Mexico returned home to win the Confederations, but a regrettable injury in the game against Bolivia deprived Mexican fans to see the longhair in action for the rest of the tournament.

The 2002 FIFA World Cup tournament was tough for El Matador. He entered as a substitute in the second half of the first two games and substituted Ramón Morales at minute 28 of the round of 16. But he could do nothing to avoid the defeat of Mexico vs USA. sadly, that was Luis Hernández's last game with Tricolor.

He retired from the National Team holding the title of the top scorer in history of the Mexicans, although he currently occupies the fourth position. With the international team, he played 85 games, scoring 35 goals.

He won two Gold Cups, one Confederations and two third places in the Copa América. A footballer who will always be remembered for his performances wearing the Aztec Calendar shirt.

Luis Hernandez social media

Regarding

Luiz Hernandez social media

, it should be mentioned that he has an Instagram page (

) with 171K followers. In the page we can see pictures of him with his family and sometimes his days as a player.

He also has a Twitter account (

) with more than 230K followers. He regularly posts new stuff on his Twitter page.

Luis Hernandez body measurements

Speaking about

Luis Hernandez body measurements

, it should be mentioned that the former Mexican star is 5 ft 9 in (175 cm) and weighs 152 lbs (69 kg).

Luis Hernandez net worth and salary

According to our analysis,

Luis Hernandez net worth

is approximately $1.5 Million. He has made such amount of wealth from his primary career as soccer player. After his retirements, Luis Hernandez has joined some football broadcasting channels as an analyst and commentator, so he has earned some of his net worth through his career as a commentator.

As far as we know, Luis Hernandez salary is nearly 200K dollars a year. He is currently working as an analyst on La Ultima Palabra on FOX Deportes and this is his main source of income.

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