What became of Maniche?

To remember Maniche solely for his time at Atlético de Madrid would be an understatement. Portuguese dressed the red and white jersey for two and a half seasons, with half an intermediate course at Inter Milan after a great confrontation with Javier Aguirre, by then mattress technician and left the team separated by indiscipline. The irregularity marked Maniche's stage in Spain, leaving droppers samples of a quality that in 2004 had served him to become one of the best midfielders in the world.

Because such praise is not an exaggeration. Portuguese was a key piece for Porto to become champion of the Champions by Mourinho and for your selection to reach the final of the Eurocup where she started as an amphitheater. A wayward footballer, who needed an environment and a tailor-made coach to perform, but when he got his best version he was a fantastic player. With ability to command in the middle, distribution of the game, covering a lot of field, working in the recovery, managing the game long and with a fantastic arrival in the rival area. Currently, he has not separated from football, as he is the ambassador of FIFA and UEFA and is a television commentator.

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Beginnings and turbulent exit of Benfica

Nuno Ricardo de Oliveira Ribeiro (November 11, 1977), his real name, began his sports career at Benfica at age nine, the great team from his native Lisbon alongside Sporting, where he would retire. The footballer collected the nickname of Maniche from his physical resemblance, with long hair included, which evoked the figure of Michael Manniche, a Danish center forward who played for Benfica between 1983 and 1987 and who won two leagues and three cups in the Lisbon team. Maniche, who had been rising step by step since childhood, debuted with the Eagles' first team in UEFA on September 12, 1995 at the age of 17.

His precocity led him to look for a club where he could accumulate experience. The humble Alverca, a Benfica satellite, took over his services for three seasons, beginning to demonstrate his abilities to channel the team's game and his arrival from the second line. His good level led Benfica to recover the player in the 1999-00 season, where he scored 12 goals among all competitions, coming to play second striker. Powerful long shot, ability to step on the area where the defense did not expect and a lot of intelligence in the auction. His good level led him in the following season to ask for a raise. In the push and pull with Benfica, His rival for the title, Porto, appeared to reach an agreement with the player. An operation that the lisboetas took to the courts and that in their maximum anger caused Maniche to go to Benfica B until he decided to renew, which did not happen.

Explosion in Porto

On his arrival at the dragons, without any payment for the transfer, he coincided with José Mourinho, the coach who marked his career. “Maniche only plays well with me because I know how to understand him” the technician declared. After a first season in which he scored nine goals in 44 games, his great year came, the academic year 2003-04. Porto began the Champions League with the intention of playing a good role after win the league, the portuguese cup and UEFA (beating Celtic in overtime) in a fantastic year, but nobody expected it to go beyond eighths, where it crossed Manchester United. However, the 2-1 victory at Porto was followed by a draw to one at Old Trafford that served the Portuguese team into the quarters. A team that sent for its strength in midfield with Maniche together with Deco generating game and contributing a lot of goal and with Costinha from behind acting as a stopper.

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In quarters, Porto passed over the Olympique Lyon (overall 4-2) and Deportivo was measured in the semifinals. A zero draw in Portugal and the Portuguese victory in Coruña by 0-1 led Porto to the final and ended the great dream of the Galician team, who experienced a surreal expulsion to Jorge Andrade in the first leg. In the final it was Monaco, the executioner of Madrid, who suffered the power of Mourinho's team. A spectacular 3-0 that gave the Champions to the dragons, again champions in league.

Not content with that, in the summer of 2004 Maniche became a benchmark in the Portuguese team. A team that it had Figo, Cristiano Ronaldo, Deco, Carvalho… for the Eurocopa that played at home and where Maniche was apparently going to be a second sword. But he became indisputable in the middle and beyond the goal against Russia in groups, qualified Portugal for the final with an extraordinary goal in the semifinals against the Netherlands that slipped through the entire squad after a short corner kick. Finally, Greece took the title and left Portugal with honey on her lips.

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Departure from Porto

After a last season in Porto without Mourinho on the bench, Dynamo Moscow paid 16 million for its services. In Russia he played only half a season before Mourinho claimed his services to Chelsea on loan. In the Premier League he crossed out his First major league on the map and lifted the Premier League title. Although it had been almost two years at a lower level than the Euro Cup, in the World Cup in Germany a great version of Maniche appeared again. Again it was the executioner of Holland, in this case in eighths, getting the only goal of the match. Holder throughout the tournament, Portugal fell in the semifinals against France with a solitary goal from Zidane's penalty.

Land at Atlético

His great tournament led Atlético to take over his services for 9 million. The rojiblanco team had been interested in Maniche for several summers, but it wasn't until 2006 that they got it. As the rojiblanco, the dominant midfielder of years ago could not be seen and interspersed pills of his troubled talent for his strong character, in addition to a fame that accompanied him for being too nocturnal. Although he was not the best Maniche, he consolidated himself as a starter in the same course where they had landed on the banks of the Manzanares also his ex-partners Costinha and Seitaridis, without meeting any of them expectations.

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In his first season he did four goals in 30 games. However, in his second year, still being an important piece in the eleven, he had a direct confrontation with coach Javier Aguirre who It led him to leave on loan to Inter Milan after seeing six consecutive games from the stands by decision of the Mexican. Thus, Maniche played in England, Spain and Italy in just three seasons. On his return from Inter, where he won Serie A, the midfielder was again important in an Atlético that with Forlán and Agüero returned to the Champions League. In their first match in the top European competition after so many years absent, the Atletico team won 0-3 on their visit to PSV with a goal by Maniche himself in addition to Kun's double.

But since March he did not have a participation with the team again, showing his bad relationship with Abel Resino, who he called the worst coach of his career and in April he was fined 50,000 euros and removed from the team with Seitaridis for not attending Atlético-Sporting, something mandatory for all players despite not being called. He did not put on the Atlético shirt again before set course for the colony and he stayed 16 games away from having a plate in the Wanda Metropolitano.

Withdrawal in Portugal

Maniche played 30 games and scored two goals for the German team before returning to Portugal for a final year of his career at Sporting, Benfica's greatest rival. At the end of that 2010-11 season (27 games and four goals), the midfielder hung up his boots. In his trunk of memories was a historic Champions League with Porto, where the best Maniche was seen, the participation in the three great teams of Portugal, his name in the Russian, English, Spanish, Italian and German league, and the league titles in Porto, Chelsea and Inter, a baggage that few players can boast.

Currently Maniche, who was physically compared to actor Jim Carrey, He is an ambassador for FIFA, UEFA and is a television commentator in Portugal. In addition, he has published a book with his memories as an elite athlete, ‘Maniche 18’, the number that accompanied him for much of his career. A book that reviews his career and where several of the great players with whom he shared costumes participate: Deco, Cristiano, Figo, Casillas, Torres or the technicians Mourinho, Scolari and Villas Boas. A player who confronted his talent and character and who left almost the same great football moments with anecdotes and confrontations against technicians who tried to tame him without success. If at Atlético his role as Mr. Hyde was seen more, at Porto, Dr. Jekyll left his name etched in the history of the club.