Fernando Spinelli (born 26 August 1982) is a

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

coach and former player. Born and raised in

Argentina Argentina, officially the Argentine Republic, is a country in the southern half of South America. It covers an area of , making it the List of South American countries by area, second-largest country in South America after Brazil, the fourt ...

, he also has

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, a Romance ethnic group related to or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance languag ...

citizenship.

Playing career

Early career

Spinelli played for

Chievo Chievo (4,500 inhabitants) is a frazione of Verona located to the west of the city, around from the historic city centre, on the shores of the river Adige. It is best known for its football team, A.C. ChievoVerona. History The name came from t ...

's youth team in 2000–01

Campionato Nazionale Primavera The Campionato Nazionale Primavera – Trofeo Giacinto Facchetti, was an Italian football youth competition. It is organised by the Lega Serie A and the participating teams that take part in Serie A and Serie B: the first edition was held in the 1 ...

season. Spinelli joined Malaysian club

Pahang {{Infobox political division , name = Pahang , official_name = Pahang Darul Makmur , native_name = , settlement_type = States and federal territories of Malaysia, State , image_skyline = , imagesize ...

in December 2003.

Italian clubs

Spinelli went back to Italy and joined Eccellenza Calabria club Paolana in 2004–05 season. He then left for Ragusa after released by Paolana. From 2006 to 2008 he played for

Andria Andria (; Barese: ) is a city and ''comune'' (municipality) in the Apulia region of Southern Italy. It is an agricultural and service center, producing wine, olives and almonds. It is the fourth-largest municipality in the Apulia region (behind ...

. In July 2008 Spinelli and Emanuele Catania were signed by another club

Cosenza Cosenza (; Languages of Calabria#Northern Calabrian (Cosentian), Cosentian: ''Cusenza'', ) is a city located in Calabria, Italy. The city centre has a population of approximately 70,000, while the urban area counts more than 200,000 inhabitants. ...

. In January 2009 Spinelli left for

Taranto Taranto (; ; previously called Tarent in English) is a coastal city in Apulia, Southern Italy. It is the capital of the province of Taranto, serving as an important commercial port as well as the main Italian naval base. Founded by Spartans ...

. Spinelli was signed by Cavese in December 2009. He made his debut for that club in league in January 2010. At the start of

2010–11 Lega Pro Prima Divisione The 2010–11 Lega Pro Prima Divisione season was the thirty-third football league season of Italian Lega Pro Prima Divisione since its establishment in 1978, and the third since the renaming from Serie C to Lega Pro. It will be divided into two ...

season, he joined U.S. Siracusa. The first team of that club folded in 2012. In the same transfer window, Spinelli joined

Trapani Trapani ( ; ; ) is a city and municipality (''comune'') with 54,887 inhabitants, on the west coast of Sicily, in Italy. It is the capital of the Province of Trapani. Founded by Elymians, the city is still an important fishing port and the mai ...

. The club won a promotion to

Serie B The Serie B (), officially known as Serie BKT for sponsorship reasons, is the second-highest division in the Italian football league system after the Serie A. It has been operating for over ninety years since the 1929–30 season. It had b ...

in 2013. Spinelli was assigned number 5 shirt at the start of

2013–14 Serie B The 2013–14 Serie B (known as the Serie B Eurobet for sponsorship reasons) was the 82nd season since its establishment in 1929. A total of 22 teams contested the league: 15 of which were returning from the 2012–13 Serie B, 2012–13 season, ...

season. After half a season without any league appearance, Spinelli joined

Pavia Pavia ( , ; ; ; ; ) is a town and comune of south-western Lombardy, in Northern Italy, south of Milan on the lower Ticino (river), Ticino near its confluence with the Po (river), Po. It has a population of c. 73,086. The city was a major polit ...

in January 2014, along with Trapani new signing

Marcello Mancosu Marcello Mancosu (born 15 April 1992) is an Italian footballer who plays as a forward for Tuttocuoio. Career Born in Cagliari, Sardinia, Mancosu started his career at Cagliari Calcio, where his elder brother Matteo was a member of the first ...

, which Trapani decided to loan out the player. In mid-2014, he joined Viterbese Castrense. Spinelli joined

Lega Pro The Lega Italiano Calcio Professionistico (Italian for Professional Football Italian League), commonly known as Lega Pro (Pro League), is the governing body that runs the third tier of professional football competitions in Italy, the Serie C. I ...

club AlbinoLeffe in January 2015. In August 2015, Spinelli return to the city of Syracuse for

A.S.D. Città di Siracusa Siracusa Calcio 1924 SSD, commonly referred to as Siracusa, is an Italian football club based in Syracuse, Sicily, Syracuse, Sicily. () The club currently plays in Serie D, the fourth-tier of football in Italy. However, for the 2025-26 season, th ...

, an illegitimate phoenix club of 2012 folded U.S. Siracusa. The club was relocated from

Palazzolo Acreide Palazzolo Acreide ( Sicilian: ''Palazzolu'', in the local dialect: ''Palazzuolu'') is a town and ''comune'' in the Province of Syracuse, Sicily ( southern Italy). It is from the city of Syracuse in the Hyblean Mountains. It is one of I Borghi ...

to Syracuse in 2013 and then renamed. The club won the Group I of

2015–16 Serie D The 2015–16 Serie D was the sixty-eighth edition of the top level Italian non-professional football championship. It represents the fourth tier in the Italian football league system. The phoenix club of Parma Calcio was added to this league. ...

season. The club also renamed to Siracusa Calcio circa 2016. Spinelli remained in Syracuse for

2016–17 Lega Pro The 2016–17 Lega Pro Divisione Unica was the third season of the unified Lega Pro division, the third highest division in the Italian football league system. The championship name, which is ''Divisione Unica'' according to the FIGC regulations, ...

season. He signed a new contract in June 2017. In 2018 Spinelli left for

Eccellenza Sicily Eccellenza Sicily () is the regional Italian Eccellenza football division for clubs in Sicily. It is competed among 32 teams in two groups (A and B). The winners of the Groups are promoted to Serie D. The clubs that finish second also have the c ...

club S.C. Palazzolo, an illegitimate phoenix club of the 2013 relocated

A.C. Palazzolo Pro Palazzolo Società Sportiva Dilettantistica, commonly referred to as just Pro Palazzolo, is an Italian association football club located in Palazzolo sull'Oglio, Lombardy. It currently plays in Serie D. History It was founded in 1913. ...

. It was reported that he was released in September 2019, however, he returned to the squad in the same season.

Coaching career

On 30 March 2024, after a few experiences as a youth coach, Spinelli was promoted head coach of

Serie D The Serie D () is the highest level of semi-professional football in Italy, and the fourth tier of the Italian national league system. It sits beneath the third and lowest fully professional league, Serie C, and feeds in to it through promotion ...

club Siracusa. Under his tenure, Siracusa completed the regular season in second place and successively won the post-season playoff tournament, defeating

LFA Reggio Calabria Associazione Sportiva Reggina 1914, commonly referred to as Reggina, is an Italian football club based in Reggio Calabria. They play their home matches at the 27,763 seater Stadio Oreste Granillo and are currently playing in the Serie D league. ...

in the final. He successively stayed in at Siracusa as assistant to new head coach Marco Turati.

References

External links

*
AIC profile (data by football.it)
* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Spinelli, Fernando Argentine men's footballers Sri Pahang FC players Fidelis Andria 2018 players Cosenza Calcio players Taranto FC 1927 players Cavese 1919 players US Siracusa players FC Trapani 1905 players AC Pavia 1911 SSD players US Viterbese 1908 players Siracusa Calcio players ASD SC Palazzolo players Serie C players Serie D players Men's association football midfielders Argentine expatriate men's footballers Expatriate men's footballers in Malaysia Expatriate men's footballers in Italy Argentine expatriate sportspeople in Malaysia Argentine expatriate sportspeople in Italy Footballers from Buenos Aires 1982 births Living people Argentine football managers 21st-century Argentine sportsmen