LUANDA: Angola’s football players may have their names on the back of the shirts worn by their fans but the real star of the side is their Portuguese coach Manuel Jose.
Plucked to lead Angola from a glittering run at Egypt’s Al Ahly, where he won 19 titles in six years, Jose carries on his shoulders the weight of expectation of a nation desperate to see their team shine as hosts of the Africa Cup of Nations.
But despite the size of the task in hand, Jose appears unfazed and against all the odds may take Angola into the quarter finals – the hosts can seal their place in the last eight with a draw against World Cup qualifiers Algeria here on Monday.
Manuel Jose is a guy who likes a challenge, Khaled Mortagy, personal friend and board member of Al Ahly, said.
He likes working under pressure, he’s charismatic, he’s a great leader and a great coach, who has vision and an ability to make players adapt and work for him.
Born in 1946 in Portugal, Jose has managed 11 clubs over his 32 year career, including Benfica, Sporting Lisbon, Boavista and Belenenses, but Angola is his first national appointment.
He is a legend in Egypt and for Al Ahly and it was disappointing when he decided to leave, Mortagy told AFP, And personally it was very sad as well because he was like a member of my family.
Jose, nicknamed the Magician at the Cairo club, was begged to stay by many fans who started blogs and social networking sites in his honor.
But despite this, he packed his bags, flew south and started with Angola in June, one day after his final game with Al Ahly.
He had just six months to turn around a team which was in the doldrums after failing to qualify for the World Cup and a string of miserable results including losses to Mali (4-0), Cape Verde (1-0) and a 0-0 draw with Namibia.
Speaking to Angolan media at his first press conference, flanked by his faithful Portuguese physiotherapist Fidalgo Antunes who followed him from Belenenses and Al Ahly, Jose oozed confidence.
By December I can guarantee that the Angolan national team will be mentally, physically, technically, tactically and psychologically ready, the coach said.
According to Portuguese journalist Ricardo Quaresma, Jose, credited for discovering Luis Figo, knows African football like no other foreign coach .
Manuel Jose has lots of experience, he won everything he could win in Africa with Al-Ahly, Quaresma said.
At 63, Jose, who has the initials MJ sewn onto his Angolan kit, refers to himself as O mais velho literally The Oldest One which in Portuguese infers wisdom and demands respect.
Former Manchester United striker, Manucho, the only Angolan player to have played in the Premier League, fell foul of O mais velho in November last year when he turned up late for training and was kicked out of the squad for friendlies against Ghana and the Republic of Congo.
Jose made no secret of his feelings, telling journalists that Manucho had made a mistake by not respecting his coach and the country and that until he apologized in person he would be left out of the side.
Manucho earned his recall into the Cup of Nations squad and has proved a key part of the Palancas Negras (Black Antelopes).
Angola’s captain, Kali, said: The coach is a strong disciplinarian and he has his rules. We all respect these rules and him very much.
Before and after training, he’s one of us and we laugh and joke together, but when we’re working, that stops and we get on with work and he becomes ‘mister’.
Married with one grown up son, Jose speaks Portuguese, Spanish and English and made an attempt at Arabic during his time in Egypt.
His contract with Angola was for the Cup of Nations and it’s not clear if he will stay on afterwards or take retirement to enjoy his hobby of fishing.
Mortagy said: I don’t think he’ll retire just yet, he still has a lot to give and deliver and he’s in great demand. I had a call from a club in Saudia Arabia just recently who said they would like him. Manuel Jose is definitely a wanted man.
