When a player is scouted by PSV Eindhoven and invited to join their academy at just six years of age, they clearly have enormous potential. And that was exactly the case with Noah Fernandez, who began dribbling a ball before he even knew how to tie his laces.
“I think I started playing football when I was three,” said the young winger in an exclusive interview with FIFA. “When I was a young kid, I always had a ball with me. I’ve always loved the game.”
The eldest of three siblings, Fernandez grew up in a family that has always supported him and his dreams. “They’re always with me!” he highlighted, and it is just as well, because he got his football journey under way at a very young age.
“I was spotted by a scout from PSV when I was six or seven years old. I started playing for them straight away and I’m still there today,” explained the winger, who has risen through the club’s youth ranks and is now regularly included in the senior squad in the Eredivisie – even if he is yet to establish himself.
Although he is still to make his mark in the Dutch top flight, the 17-year-old has become a key player for Belgium at U-17 and U-18 level. At the UEFA U-17 EURO earlier this year, he scored twice in three appearances, including a stunning top-corner free kick in a 1-1 draw with England.
“People always bring up that goal – and it was a beauty!” he said with a smile. Shortly after winning and scoring the set piece, however, Fernandez was forced off with a broken nose; as a result, he missed the following match before returning to the side with a protective mask.
“I don’t fully remember it. It was a bit of a blur,” admitted the winger. “I told my team-mates I was going to score. I even looked around for the cameras. I visualised it all – then I watched it go in. It was insane.”
“The tournament was a real rollercoaster. I scored and broke my nose in our opening match; then I went home for treatment and came back in time to play against Italy – and we went through! After that, in the semi-finals against France, we were way on top but we didn’t take our chances, and when that happens, winning becomes an uphill battle.”
The Young Devils ultimately lost 3-2 on the day, and Fernandez was forthcoming about his hunger for more: “Reaching the semi-finals isn’t bad, but I think we were aiming for more as a team. It was disappointing, but we have a World Cup coming up, and I’m optimistic that we can do well. The team is ambitious, and I am too. I want to win it all.”
Fernandez has the technical ability to back up his lofty aspirations. Blessed with natural pace and dribbling prowess, he thrives on creating chances, whether on the flank or in the centre of the pitch. He even prefers an inch-perfect pass to a flashy nutmeg or spectacular shot.
“I’d rather provide assists than score myself,” the teenager noted. “I’m not really sure why. Scoring is nice, of course, but as a midfielder, the feeling you get when you set up a goal is something else. I do also enjoy running with the ball and scoring, though. I’m fortunate to be talented at dribbling and shooting. I love it all!”
This selflessness is also reflected in the way Fernandez speaks about his team-mates: “I think we have a great team. We’ve developed a really tight-knit unit under our coach [Bob Browaeys]. We’ve built a really good group in our age category, and expectations are really high. Competing at the World Cup is a great reward for the work we’ve done, and it’d be amazing to win it.”
Belgium kick off their quest for FIFA U-17 World Cup 2025™ glory in Group D alongside Argentina, Tunisia and Fiji, with a clear goal in mind: to surpass the third-place finish achieved by the 2015 side, the country’s best-ever result in the competition.
