Humberto Coelho

Lore & Background

Born in Cedofeita, Porto, Coelho was regarded as one of the best stoppers in Portuguese football, imposing himself in Benfica's first team at the age of 18. On 27 October 1968 he made his debut for Portugal, in a 3–0 win over Romania. During the next 15 years he would appear in a further 63 internationals, scoring six goals while acting as captain on 30 occasions. From 1975 during two seasons, Coelho played abroad with Paris Saint-Germain.

He netted six times in his first year, although the side could only finish in 14th position in Ligue 1. Subsequently, Coelho returned to Benfica, helping to the conquest of a further three leagues and domestic cups. He last appeared for the national team at the age of 33, during the 0–5 defeat in the Soviet Union for the UEFA Euro 1984 qualifiers. He retired shortly after, having appeared for his main club in 496 competitive matches (355 in the league alone) and scoring 76 goals.

Reader's Guide

Coelho worked as a manager since 1985, also being in charge of several national teams, including his own. More than one decade after starting as a coach, with spells with Salgueiros and Braga, both in the top level, Coelho led Portugal to the semi-finals of Euro 2000. However, his contract was not renewed, and late into that same year he was appointed manager of Morocco, being released after the Atlas Lions failed to qualify for the 2002 World Cup. After a spell with South Korea, which ended after roughly one year after a surprise loss to Vietnam, Coelho joined another one in 2008, Tunisia, after a brief return to club action in Saudi Arabia. On 18 November 2009, he was fired following a 0–1 loss in Mozambique for the 2010 World Cup qualification. Subsequently, Coelho acted as a director in the Portuguese Football Federation.

Did You Know?

• Coelho met his future wife, Laurence, shortly after moving to Paris in 1975. She worked as a freelance reporter for RTL, and the couple became parents to two daughters, born in 1980 and 1986.
• Coelho won the Portuguese Footballer of the Year award in 1974.
• As a manager, Coelho led South Korea to win the EAFF E-1 Football Championship in 2003.