Paulo Bento
Encyclopedia
Paulo Jorge Gomes Bento (born 20 June 1969; ˈpawlu ˈbẽtu) is a retired Portuguese
footballer, and the current manager
of Portugal
.
A defensive midfielder with tackling ability and workrate as his main assets, he played for two of the major three
teams in his country, also playing four years in Spain
. He represented the Portuguese national team
in one World Cup
and one European Championship
.
Bento then took up a coaching career, managing Sporting Clube de Portugal during four years and four months, with relative success.
, Bento played for C.F. Estrela da Amadora, Vitória de Guimarães, S.L. Benfica and had a four-year abroad spell with La Liga
side Real Oviedo
(helping the Asturias
outfit to always maintain its top flight status), before moving to Sporting Clube de Portugal, where he finished his career as a player. With Sporting, he was part of the star-studded team that achieved the double in 2002, under the direction of Laszlo Bölöni, playing alongside João Vieira Pinto
and Mário Jardel
, among others.
He had 35 caps for the Portuguese national team
, his first game coming on 15 January 1992, in a 0–0 draw with Spain
; his last was the 0–1 loss to South Korea
, on 14 June 2002, in the 2002 FIFA World Cup
. He also played at UEFA Euro 2000 where, along with teammates Abel Xavier
- who played with him at Oviedo for two seasons - and Nuno Gomes
, he was suspended (in Bento's case for five months) due to bad behavior, during the semi-final loss with France
.
, midway through 2005–06, he was promoted to first-team duties, a somewhat surprising decision given his relatively little experience in management. To most observers, he was seen as an interim at the post, handling the team until a more prestigious manager was found.
Despite a slow start, Bento managed an impressive turnaround of Sporting's fortunes in the second half of the season, as a series of 10 consecutive wins placed Sporting within touching distance of then-leaders and eventual league champions F.C. Porto, as Sporting came second in that and the following season, achieving direct UEFA Champions League
qualification. He was now firmly established as a top flight manager.
In June 2007, Bento signed a two-year contract-extension. Using the former experience in the youth team, he began building a strong squad using players from Sporting's famed youth academy. Under his supervision, highly rated young players such as Nani
, João Moutinho
and Miguel Veloso
, all of them raised in Sporting's youth roster, bursted into the spotlight. During the 2006–07 campaign, Bento's team challenged for the Portuguese League title until the final day of the season, finishing runners-up to Porto, by a single point. He would lead Sporting on a successful Portuguese Cup
campaign, culminating in a 1–0 victory in the final against C.F. Os Belenenses. Bento would later on lead Sporting to capture the Portuguese Supercup in 2007, beating champions Porto in the final (1–0).
Sporting had a turbulent pre-season in preparation for the 2007–08 campaign. Defense mainstays Rodrigo Tello
and Marco Caneira
left the club, while Portuguese international keeper Ricardo
was sold to Real Betis
. With little resources to invest, Sporting brought Eastern
promises: Simon Vukčević
, Marat Izmailov
and Serbia
n goalkeeper Vladimir Stojković
aboard.
After a very irregular season, Bento managed to lead Sporting to an unprecedented third consecutive qualification for the Champions League, with another second-place finish. Despite spending most of the season below third place, Sporting managed to pip Guimarães and Benfica in the final match day of the league season to secure Champions League football once again. In the same season, Bento also retained the domestic cup, beating Porto in the final (2–0 after extra time
), after knocking-out eternal rivals Benfica in the last four, with a 5–3 triumph.
Bento's team broke a number of long-standing club records, including the first season without home defeats since 1987, the first capture of back-to-back Portuguese cups since 1974 and the first time since 1962 that Sporting finished three consecutive seasons in the top two league positions. At the age of 38, Bento also became only the fifth manager in the history of Portuguese football to win back-to-back Portuguese cups (alongside the likes of Janos Biri, John Mortimore
or José Maria Pedroto
).
On 15 July 2008, The Sun
and the Daily Telegraph reported that Manchester United
were planning to hire Bento (reportedly Cristiano Ronaldo
's friend and former team-mate) as manager Alex Ferguson
's new assistant after the departure of previous number two Carlos Queiroz
to manage the Portuguese national team. Bento quickly denied any speculation and reaffirmed his intention to stay at Sporting.
In preparation for the 2008–09 season, Bento was given leeway to add a number of experienced players to his squad. In this manner, Fábio Rochemback
and Caneira completed their return to Sporting, while Hélder Postiga
swapped Porto for the Lisbon
club. Furthermore, Sporting acquired the footballing rights for Izmailov and Leandro Grimi
, while successfully fending off widespread interest in their high-rated youngsters Moutinho and Veloso.
On 16 August 2008, Bento managed Sporting to a clear 2–0 victory in the Supercup over champions Porto, at the opening of the new campaign. One of the players that Bento has kept in the team despite heavy criticism, Rui Patrício
, was a key element and saved a crucial penalty from Lucho González during the second half. This win raised Bento's tally in cup finals against counterpart Jesualdo Ferreira
to 3–0 (2007 and 2008 Supercups, and the 2008 Portuguese Cup). Additionally, it marked the first ever capture of back-to-back Portuguese Supercups in Sporting's history, thus adding to the list of club records broken during Bento's tenure.
Already the second most successful manager in the history of the club in terms of trophies won (only surpassed by the legendary Josef Szabo), Bento gained the nickname "Papa-Taças" (roughly translated as "cup-eater") as a consequence of the four pieces of silverware added to Sporting's cabinet under his command.
On 4 November 2008, Bento managed Sporting to a 1–0 home win over FC Shakhtar Donetsk
, therefore mathematically securing automatic qualification for the knockout stages of the Champions League for the first time in the club's history. In the process, his team also broke the club's record number of points in UEFA
's main competition (nine) and remarkably did so with two matches to spare, becoming the first team to qualify from the group stages in 2008–09 (alongside FC Barcelona
, from the same group).
Later he would also lead Sporting to break the (unremarkable) record for most goals suffered by a team in a Champions League knockout round, after a 12–1 aggregate ousting at the hands of FC Bayern Munich
, at the round of 16. In the league, another second place to FC Porto, with the season also featuring the controversial League Cup final loss against Benfica, on penalties.
That heavy Champions League ousting marked the beginning of fan discontent towards Bento, especially regarding the team's playing style (which was perceived as becoming dull and unattractive) continued until the end of the season, where presidential elections were held. Supported by the winning candidate José Eduardo Bettencourt
, Bento signed a two-year contract extension; in spite of maintaining the same base squad and adding the talent of Matías Fernández
or Felipe Caicedo
, Sporting was unable to start the season brightly. Knocked out in the Champions League playoff round by ACF Fiorentina
on away goals, the club's form slumped quickly and after nine matches the Lions found themselves mired in 7th place, 12 points adrift from leaders Sporting de Braga.
After a 1–1 home draw in the UEFA Europa League group stage against Latvia
n side FK Ventspils
on November 5, 2009, and facing considerable pressure to step down, Bento resigned as manager of Sporting. His tenure at the helm of Sporting's football team was the second longest ever in the history of the club and was marked by a strong style but also by a cult of more defensive approaches to the game.
, Bento was named his successor, initially until the last match of that stage. His first game in charge came on 8 October, a 3–1 win against Denmark
in Porto
.
On 17 November, Portugal defeated World Cup champions
Spain
4–0 in Lisbon, imposing the largest defeat to its Iberian
neighbours since 13 June 1963 (2–6 against Scotland
, in another friendly).
Portugal
Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...
footballer, and the current manager
Coach (sport)
In sports, a coach is an individual involved in the direction, instruction and training of the operations of a sports team or of individual sportspeople.-Staff:...
of Portugal
Portugal national football team
The Portugal national football team represents Portugal in association football and is controlled by the Portuguese Football Federation, the governing body for football in Portugal. Portugal's home ground is Estádio Nacional in Oeiras, and their head coach is Paulo Bento...
.
A defensive midfielder with tackling ability and workrate as his main assets, he played for two of the major three
Big Three (Portugal)
The Big Three is the nickname of the three most successful sports clubs in Portugal. The football teams of Sport Lisboa e Benfica, Futebol Clube do Porto and Sporting Clube de Portugal have a great rivalry, and are usually the main contenders for the title. They share all but two of the Portuguese...
teams in his country, also playing four years in Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
. He represented the Portuguese national team
Portugal national football team
The Portugal national football team represents Portugal in association football and is controlled by the Portuguese Football Federation, the governing body for football in Portugal. Portugal's home ground is Estádio Nacional in Oeiras, and their head coach is Paulo Bento...
in one World Cup
FIFA World Cup
The FIFA World Cup, often simply the World Cup, is an international association football competition contested by the senior men's national teams of the members of Fédération Internationale de Football Association , the sport's global governing body...
and one European Championship
UEFA European Football Championship
The UEFA European Football Championship is the main football competition of the men's national football teams governed by UEFA . Held every four years since 1960, in the even-numbered year between World Cup tournaments, it was originally called the UEFA European Nations Cup, changing to the current...
.
Bento then took up a coaching career, managing Sporting Clube de Portugal during four years and four months, with relative success.
Playing career
Born in LisbonLisbon
Lisbon is the capital city and largest city of Portugal with a population of 545,245 within its administrative limits on a land area of . The urban area of Lisbon extends beyond the administrative city limits with a population of 3 million on an area of , making it the 9th most populous urban...
, Bento played for C.F. Estrela da Amadora, Vitória de Guimarães, S.L. Benfica and had a four-year abroad spell with La Liga
La Liga
The Primera División of the Liga Nacional de Fútbol Profesional , commonly known as La Liga or, for sponsorship reasons, Liga BBVA since 2008, is the top professional association football division of the Spanish football league system...
side Real Oviedo
Real Oviedo
Real Oviedo is a Spanish football club based in Oviedo, in the autonomous community of Asturias. Founded on 26 March 1926, it currently plays in Segunda División B - Group 2....
(helping the Asturias
Asturias
The Principality of Asturias is an autonomous community of the Kingdom of Spain, coextensive with the former Kingdom of Asturias in the Middle Ages...
outfit to always maintain its top flight status), before moving to Sporting Clube de Portugal, where he finished his career as a player. With Sporting, he was part of the star-studded team that achieved the double in 2002, under the direction of Laszlo Bölöni, playing alongside João Vieira Pinto
João Vieira Pinto
João Manuel Vieira Pinto is a retired Portuguese footballer who played mostly as a forward.Blessed with formidable skills and scoring ability, he made his name mostly at a domestic level and as a key figure in the Portuguese national team's "Golden Generation", collecting 138 caps and scoring 35...
and Mário Jardel
Mário Jardel
Mário Jardel de Almeida Ribeiro is a former Brazilian professional footballer.Jardel was most noted for his positioning on the field and "being at the right place, at the right time"...
, among others.
He had 35 caps for the Portuguese national team
Portugal national football team
The Portugal national football team represents Portugal in association football and is controlled by the Portuguese Football Federation, the governing body for football in Portugal. Portugal's home ground is Estádio Nacional in Oeiras, and their head coach is Paulo Bento...
, his first game coming on 15 January 1992, in a 0–0 draw with Spain
Spain national football team
The Spain national football team represents Spain in international association football and is controlled by the Royal Spanish Football Federation, the governing body for football in Spain. The current head coach is Vicente del Bosque...
; his last was the 0–1 loss to South Korea
Korea Republic national football team
The Korea Republic national football team represents Korea Republic in international football and is controlled by the Korea Football Association. Korea Republic is the most successful Asian football team in the history of the FIFA World Cup having participated in eight World Cup tournaments,...
, on 14 June 2002, in the 2002 FIFA World Cup
2002 FIFA World Cup
The 2002 FIFA World Cup was the 17th staging of the FIFA World Cup, held in South Korea and Japan from 31 May to 30 June. It was also the first World Cup held in Asia, and the last in which the golden goal rule was implemented. Brazil won the tournament for a record fifth time, beating Germany 2–0...
. He also played at UEFA Euro 2000 where, along with teammates Abel Xavier
Abel Xavier
Faisal Xavier is a retired Portuguese footballer who played as a full back. He last played for Los Angeles Galaxy and also made 20 appearances for the Portuguese national team.-Career:...
- who played with him at Oviedo for two seasons - and Nuno Gomes
Nuno Gomes
Nuno Miguel Soares Pereira Ribeiro , commonly known as Nuno Gomes, is a Portuguese footballer who plays for S.C. Braga as a striker.He was given the nickname Gomes during childhood after F.C...
, he was suspended (in Bento's case for five months) due to bad behavior, during the semi-final loss with France
France national football team
The France national football team represents the nation of France in international football. It is fielded by the French Football Federation , the governing body of football in France, and competes as a member of UEFA, which encompasses the countries of Europe...
.
Sporting
After an emotional 2004 retirement, aged 35, Bento got the job of Sporting's youth team coach. He won the junior championship in 2005, and developed a base to the future. After the sacking of José PeseiroJosé Peseiro
José Vítor dos Santos Peseiro is a football manager, who most notably served as an assistant for Carlos Queiroz during his Real Madrid tenure and as a manager for Sporting until his resignation in October 2005....
, midway through 2005–06, he was promoted to first-team duties, a somewhat surprising decision given his relatively little experience in management. To most observers, he was seen as an interim at the post, handling the team until a more prestigious manager was found.
Despite a slow start, Bento managed an impressive turnaround of Sporting's fortunes in the second half of the season, as a series of 10 consecutive wins placed Sporting within touching distance of then-leaders and eventual league champions F.C. Porto, as Sporting came second in that and the following season, achieving direct UEFA Champions League
UEFA Champions League
The UEFA Champions League, known simply the Champions League and originally known as the European Champion Clubs' Cup or European Cup, is an annual international club football competition organised by the Union of European Football Associations since 1955 for the top football clubs in Europe. It...
qualification. He was now firmly established as a top flight manager.
In June 2007, Bento signed a two-year contract-extension. Using the former experience in the youth team, he began building a strong squad using players from Sporting's famed youth academy. Under his supervision, highly rated young players such as Nani
Nani
-People:*Nani, a Portuguese footballer who plays for Manchester United*Gianluca Nani, former technical director at West Ham United*Nanabhoy Palkhivala, nicknamed Nani, an Indian jurist and economist*Nani Roma, a Spanish rally racing driver...
, João Moutinho
João Moutinho
João Filipe Iria Santos Moutinho is a Portuguese footballer who plays for F.C. Porto, also being a Portuguese international.Mainly a central midfielder, he can also operate as a holding or attacking midfielder, and on either flank.-Sporting:...
and Miguel Veloso
Miguel Veloso
Miguel Luís Pinto Veloso is a Portuguese footballer who plays for Genoa C.F.C. and the Portuguese national team.Mainly a defensive midfielder, he can also operate as an offensive left back.-Sporting:...
, all of them raised in Sporting's youth roster, bursted into the spotlight. During the 2006–07 campaign, Bento's team challenged for the Portuguese League title until the final day of the season, finishing runners-up to Porto, by a single point. He would lead Sporting on a successful Portuguese Cup
Taça de Portugal
The Taça de Portugal is the main Portuguese national football knock-out competition. The tournament has been officially known as the Taça de Portugal Millennium since 2008, due to its sponsorship by Portuguese private bank Millennium BCP. It has occurred on a yearly basis since 1938 and is...
campaign, culminating in a 1–0 victory in the final against C.F. Os Belenenses. Bento would later on lead Sporting to capture the Portuguese Supercup in 2007, beating champions Porto in the final (1–0).
Sporting had a turbulent pre-season in preparation for the 2007–08 campaign. Defense mainstays Rodrigo Tello
Rodrigo Tello
Rodrigo Álvaro Tello Valenzuela is a Chilean footballer who plays with Eskişehirspor in Turkey.Left-footed, he usually operates as a left midfielder, but can also appear in the middle, and as an offensive left back...
and Marco Caneira
Marco Caneira
Marco António Simões Caneira is a Portuguese professional footballer who plays for Videoton FC in Hungary. He preferably plays as a central defender, but is equally at ease on the right or the left flank....
left the club, while Portuguese international keeper Ricardo
Ricardo Pereira
Ricardo Alexandre Martins Soares Pereira, OIH , simply Ricardo, is a Portuguese footballer who plays for Vitória de Setúbal as a goalkeeper....
was sold to Real Betis
Real Betis
Real Betis Balompié S.A.D. is a Spanish football club based in Seville, in the autonomous community of Andalusia. Founded on 12 September 1907, it currently plays in La Liga, holding home games at Estadio Benito Villamarín....
. With little resources to invest, Sporting brought Eastern
Eastern Europe
Eastern Europe is the eastern part of Europe. The term has widely disparate geopolitical, geographical, cultural and socioeconomic readings, which makes it highly context-dependent and even volatile, and there are "almost as many definitions of Eastern Europe as there are scholars of the region"...
promises: Simon Vukčević
Simon Vukcevic
Simon Vukčević is a Montenegrin footballer who plays for Premier League club Blackburn Rovers....
, Marat Izmailov
Marat Izmailov
Marat Nailevich Izmailov is a Russian footballer who plays for Sporting Clube de Portugal. He is an ethnic Volga Tatar.Mainly a right midfielder, he can also appear as an attacking midfielder, being best known for his one-on-one skills and pace, while also possessing a good long-distance...
and Serbia
Serbia
Serbia , officially the Republic of Serbia , is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeast Europe, covering the southern part of the Carpathian basin and the central part of the Balkans...
n goalkeeper Vladimir Stojković
Vladimir Stojkovic
Vladimir Stojković is a Serbian football goalkeeper who plays for FK Partizan and for the Serbian national team.-Family:Stojković was born into a sporting family...
aboard.
After a very irregular season, Bento managed to lead Sporting to an unprecedented third consecutive qualification for the Champions League, with another second-place finish. Despite spending most of the season below third place, Sporting managed to pip Guimarães and Benfica in the final match day of the league season to secure Champions League football once again. In the same season, Bento also retained the domestic cup, beating Porto in the final (2–0 after extra time
Overtime (sports)
Overtime or extra time is an additional period of play specified under the rules of a sport to bring a game to a decision and avoid declaring the match a tie or draw. In most sports, this extra period is only played if the game is required to have a clear winner, as in single-elimination...
), after knocking-out eternal rivals Benfica in the last four, with a 5–3 triumph.
Bento's team broke a number of long-standing club records, including the first season without home defeats since 1987, the first capture of back-to-back Portuguese cups since 1974 and the first time since 1962 that Sporting finished three consecutive seasons in the top two league positions. At the age of 38, Bento also became only the fifth manager in the history of Portuguese football to win back-to-back Portuguese cups (alongside the likes of Janos Biri, John Mortimore
John Mortimore (footballer)
John Mortimore is an English former association football player and manager. He played as a centre half in the Football League for Chelsea, with whom he scored 10 goals from 279 games in all competitions between 1956 and 1965 and won the 1965 Football League Cup, and for Queens Park Rangers...
or José Maria Pedroto
José Maria Pedroto
José Maria Carvalho Pedroto, OIH, was a Portuguese footballer and trainer. He was nicknamed Zé do Boné since, like the character, he usually wore a flat cap....
).
On 15 July 2008, The Sun
The Sun (newspaper)
The Sun is a daily national tabloid newspaper published in the United Kingdom and owned by News Corporation. Sister editions are published in Glasgow and Dublin...
and the Daily Telegraph reported that Manchester United
Manchester United F.C.
Manchester United Football Club is an English professional football club, based in Old Trafford, Greater Manchester, that plays in the Premier League. Founded as Newton Heath LYR Football Club in 1878, the club changed its name to Manchester United in 1902 and moved to Old Trafford in 1910.The 1958...
were planning to hire Bento (reportedly Cristiano Ronaldo
Cristiano Ronaldo
Cristiano Ronaldo dos Santos Aveiro, OIH, , commonly known as Cristiano Ronaldo, is a Portuguese footballer who plays as a winger or striker for Spanish La Liga club Real Madrid and is the captain of the Portuguese national team...
's friend and former team-mate) as manager Alex Ferguson
Alex Ferguson
Sir Alexander Chapman "Alex" Ferguson, CBE is a Scottish association football manager and former player, currently managing Manchester United, where he has been in charge since 1986...
's new assistant after the departure of previous number two Carlos Queiroz
Carlos Queiroz
Carlos Manuel Brito Leal Queiroz ComIH is a Portuguese football manager. He is currently the manager of the Iran national football team. A former manager of Real Madrid, and Portugal national football team, he has also twice been Alex Ferguson's assistant manager at English club Manchester...
to manage the Portuguese national team. Bento quickly denied any speculation and reaffirmed his intention to stay at Sporting.
In preparation for the 2008–09 season, Bento was given leeway to add a number of experienced players to his squad. In this manner, Fábio Rochemback
Fábio Rochemback
Fábio Rochemback is a Brazilian professional footballer who currently plays for Grêmio. He is a versatile midfielder who can play in front of the defense, as an attacking midfielder, or even as a winger...
and Caneira completed their return to Sporting, while Hélder Postiga
Hélder Postiga
Hélder Manuel Marques Postiga is a Portuguese footballer who plays for Real Zaragoza in Spain, as a striker.After starting professionally at Porto, Postiga went on to have spells in England , France and Greece , before returning to his country with Sporting.A Portuguese international on more than...
swapped Porto for the Lisbon
Lisbon
Lisbon is the capital city and largest city of Portugal with a population of 545,245 within its administrative limits on a land area of . The urban area of Lisbon extends beyond the administrative city limits with a population of 3 million on an area of , making it the 9th most populous urban...
club. Furthermore, Sporting acquired the footballing rights for Izmailov and Leandro Grimi
Leandro Grimi
Leandro Damián Marcelo Grimi is an Argentine footballer who plays for K.R.C. Genk in Belgium on loan from Sporting Clube de Portugal, as a left defender...
, while successfully fending off widespread interest in their high-rated youngsters Moutinho and Veloso.
On 16 August 2008, Bento managed Sporting to a clear 2–0 victory in the Supercup over champions Porto, at the opening of the new campaign. One of the players that Bento has kept in the team despite heavy criticism, Rui Patrício
Rui Patrício
Rui Pedro dos Santos Patrício is a Portuguese footballer who plays for Sporting Clube de Portugal as a goalkeeper.-Club career:Patrício played as a striker at a young age...
, was a key element and saved a crucial penalty from Lucho González during the second half. This win raised Bento's tally in cup finals against counterpart Jesualdo Ferreira
Jesualdo Ferreira
Manuel Jesualdo Ferreira is a Portuguese football manager who currently manages Greek club Panathinaikos.-Early career:In Ferreira's early career, he managed Rio Maior and Torreense...
to 3–0 (2007 and 2008 Supercups, and the 2008 Portuguese Cup). Additionally, it marked the first ever capture of back-to-back Portuguese Supercups in Sporting's history, thus adding to the list of club records broken during Bento's tenure.
Already the second most successful manager in the history of the club in terms of trophies won (only surpassed by the legendary Josef Szabo), Bento gained the nickname "Papa-Taças" (roughly translated as "cup-eater") as a consequence of the four pieces of silverware added to Sporting's cabinet under his command.
On 4 November 2008, Bento managed Sporting to a 1–0 home win over FC Shakhtar Donetsk
FC Shakhtar Donetsk
FC Shakhtar Donetsk is a Ukrainian professional football club from the city of Donetsk. Shakhtar has appeared in several European competitions and currently is often a participant of the UEFA Champions League. The club became the first Ukrainian club to win the UEFA Cup in 2009, the last year...
, therefore mathematically securing automatic qualification for the knockout stages of the Champions League for the first time in the club's history. In the process, his team also broke the club's record number of points in UEFA
UEFA
The Union of European Football Associations , almost always referred to by its acronym UEFA is the administrative and controlling body for European association football, futsal and beach soccer....
's main competition (nine) and remarkably did so with two matches to spare, becoming the first team to qualify from the group stages in 2008–09 (alongside FC Barcelona
FC Barcelona
Futbol Club Barcelona , also known as Barcelona and familiarly as Barça, is a professional football club, based in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain....
, from the same group).
Later he would also lead Sporting to break the (unremarkable) record for most goals suffered by a team in a Champions League knockout round, after a 12–1 aggregate ousting at the hands of FC Bayern Munich
FC Bayern Munich
FC Bayern Munich , is a German sports club based in Munich, Bavaria. It is best known for its professional football team, which is the most successful football club in Germany, having won 22 national titles and 15 cups....
, at the round of 16. In the league, another second place to FC Porto, with the season also featuring the controversial League Cup final loss against Benfica, on penalties.
That heavy Champions League ousting marked the beginning of fan discontent towards Bento, especially regarding the team's playing style (which was perceived as becoming dull and unattractive) continued until the end of the season, where presidential elections were held. Supported by the winning candidate José Eduardo Bettencourt
José Eduardo Bettencourt
José Eduardo Fragoso Tavares de Bettencourt , also known as "JEB", is a Portuguese banker, he was currently 47th President of Portuguese sports club, Sporting Clube de Portugal, the eldest of three sons of José Manuel de Barros de Bettencourt, of remote Norman and distant Italian descent, and his...
, Bento signed a two-year contract extension; in spite of maintaining the same base squad and adding the talent of Matías Fernández
Matías Fernández
Matías Ariel Fernández Fernández is a Chilean footballer who plays for Sporting Clube de Portugal in Portugal.An attacking midfielder with playmaking and dribbling skills, also being a free-kick specialist, he is known by several nicknames: Mati, El Pelusa and Matigol.Fernández was elected South...
or Felipe Caicedo
Felipe Caicedo
Felipe Salvador Caicedo Corozo is an Ecuadorian footballer who plays as a striker for Lokomotiv Moscow.-Basel:...
, Sporting was unable to start the season brightly. Knocked out in the Champions League playoff round by ACF Fiorentina
ACF Fiorentina
ACF Fiorentina, commonly referred to as simply Fiorentina, is a professional Italian football club from Florence, Tuscany. Founded by a merger in 1926, Fiorentina have played at the top level of Italian football for the majority of their existence; only four clubs have played in more Serie A...
on away goals, the club's form slumped quickly and after nine matches the Lions found themselves mired in 7th place, 12 points adrift from leaders Sporting de Braga.
After a 1–1 home draw in the UEFA Europa League group stage against Latvia
Latvia
Latvia , officially the Republic of Latvia , is a country in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by Estonia , to the south by Lithuania , to the east by the Russian Federation , to the southeast by Belarus and shares maritime borders to the west with Sweden...
n side FK Ventspils
FK Ventspils
FK Ventspils is a Latvian football club, based at Ventspils Olimpiskais Stadions in Ventspils city and is one of the most popular football clubs in the country. FK Ventspils plays in the Latvian Virsliga. They are the current champions of the tournament....
on November 5, 2009, and facing considerable pressure to step down, Bento resigned as manager of Sporting. His tenure at the helm of Sporting's football team was the second longest ever in the history of the club and was marked by a strong style but also by a cult of more defensive approaches to the game.
Portugal
On 20 September 2010, following Queiroz's dismissal after a poor start to the Euro 2012 qualifying campaignUEFA Euro 2012 qualifying
The qualifying competition for UEFA Euro 2012 is a series of parallel association football competitions held over 2010 and 2011 to decide the qualifiers for UEFA Euro 2012, to be held in Poland and Ukraine...
, Bento was named his successor, initially until the last match of that stage. His first game in charge came on 8 October, a 3–1 win against Denmark
Denmark national football team
The Denmark national football team represents Denmark in association football and is controlled by the Danish Football Association , the governing body for the football clubs which are organized under DBU...
in Porto
Porto
Porto , also known as Oporto in English, is the second largest city in Portugal and one of the major urban areas in the Iberian Peninsula. Its administrative limits include a population of 237,559 inhabitants distributed within 15 civil parishes...
.
On 17 November, Portugal defeated World Cup champions
2010 FIFA World Cup
The 2010 FIFA World Cup was the 19th FIFA World Cup, the world championship for men's national association football teams. It took place in South Africa from 11 June to 11 July 2010...
Spain
Spain national football team
The Spain national football team represents Spain in international association football and is controlled by the Royal Spanish Football Federation, the governing body for football in Spain. The current head coach is Vicente del Bosque...
4–0 in Lisbon, imposing the largest defeat to its Iberian
Iberian Peninsula
The Iberian Peninsula , sometimes called Iberia, is located in the extreme southwest of Europe and includes the modern-day sovereign states of Spain, Portugal and Andorra, as well as the British Overseas Territory of Gibraltar...
neighbours since 13 June 1963 (2–6 against Scotland
Scotland national football team
The Scotland national football team represents Scotland in international football and is controlled by the Scottish Football Association. Scotland are the joint oldest national football team in the world, alongside England, whom they played in the world's first international football match in 1872...
, in another friendly).
Managerial statistics
| Team | Nat | From | To | Record | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| G | W | D | L | Win % | ||||
| Sporting |  |
October 2005 | 5 November 2009 |
|||||
| Portugal Portugal national football team The Portugal national football team represents Portugal in association football and is controlled by the Portuguese Football Federation, the governing body for football in Portugal. Portugal's home ground is Estádio Nacional in Oeiras, and their head coach is Paulo Bento... |
|
20 September 2010 | Present |
|||||
| Total |
||||||||
Player
- Estrela Amadora:
- Portuguese CupTaça de PortugalThe Taça de Portugal is the main Portuguese national football knock-out competition. The tournament has been officially known as the Taça de Portugal Millennium since 2008, due to its sponsorship by Portuguese private bank Millennium BCP. It has occurred on a yearly basis since 1938 and is...
: 1989–90
- Portuguese Cup
- Benfica:
- Portuguese CupTaça de PortugalThe Taça de Portugal is the main Portuguese national football knock-out competition. The tournament has been officially known as the Taça de Portugal Millennium since 2008, due to its sponsorship by Portuguese private bank Millennium BCP. It has occurred on a yearly basis since 1938 and is...
: 1995–96
- Portuguese Cup
- Sporting:
- Portuguese League: 2001–02
- Portuguese CupTaça de PortugalThe Taça de Portugal is the main Portuguese national football knock-out competition. The tournament has been officially known as the Taça de Portugal Millennium since 2008, due to its sponsorship by Portuguese private bank Millennium BCP. It has occurred on a yearly basis since 1938 and is...
: 2001–02 - Portuguese Supercup: 2002
Manager
- Sporting:
- Portuguese CupTaça de PortugalThe Taça de Portugal is the main Portuguese national football knock-out competition. The tournament has been officially known as the Taça de Portugal Millennium since 2008, due to its sponsorship by Portuguese private bank Millennium BCP. It has occurred on a yearly basis since 1938 and is...
: 2006–07, 2007–08 - Portuguese Supercup: 2007, 2008
- Portuguese League Cup: Runner-up 2007–08, 2008–09
- Portuguese Cup
Individual
- CNID Breakthrough CoachCNID Awards in footballThe LPFP Awards are a number of awards given annually during the Portuguese League for Professional Football gala, and the winners are chosen by a vote amongst the LPFP pairs. Between 2006 and 2010 the winners were chosen only by a vote amongst the members of Sports National Press Club...
: 2005–06