Pedro Emanuel

Pedro Emanuel

Personal information
Full name	Pedro Emanuel Santos Martins Silva
Date of birth	February 11, 1975 (1975-02-11)
Place of birth	Luanda, Angola
Height	1.80 m (5 ft 11 in)
Playing position	Defender
Club information
Current club	Académica (coach)
Youth career
1986–1993	Boavista
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps†	(Gls)†
1993–1994	Marco	28	(2)
1994–1995	Ovarense	31	(2)
1995–1996	Penafiel	28	(2)
1996–2002	Boavista	154	(2)
2002–2009	Porto	120	(1)
National team
1995–1996	Portugal U21	4	(0)
Teams managed
2010–2011	Porto (assistant)
2011–	Académica
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only. † Appearances (Goals).

Pedro Emanuel dos Santos Martins Silva (born 11 February 1975 in Luanda, Angola, Portuguese Empire), known as Pedro Emanuel, is a retired Portuguese footballer who played mainly as a central defender.

In his 16-year professional career, he was closely associated with the two biggest clubs in Porto, Boavista - he helped it win its first and only first division title in 2001 - and F.C. Porto, being awarded team captaincy in both at one point.

Club career

After three seasons as a professional in Portugal's secondary leagues, with F.C. Marco, A.D. Ovarense and F.C. Penafiel, Emanuel's performances caught the eye of scouts from Porto side Boavista FC, where he had already played as a youth. During his six-year stay in the team, he played a large part in the defensive wall (with fellow stopper Litos, fullbacks Nuno Frechaut and Erivan and goalkeeper Ricardo) that led Boavista to the historical league title in 2000–01. After Litos left for Málaga CF, Emanuel captained the team for one season, but a move to a larger club was close.

Prior to the start of 2002–03, S.L. Benfica seemed closer to clinching a deal, but it was F.C. Porto, under the guidance of José Mourinho, who signed Emanuel. Part of a strong defense that included Jorge Costa, Ricardo Carvalho, Paulo Ferreira and Nuno Valente, his always effective style earned him the confidence of his manager, and he played in both the UEFA Cup and UEFA Champions League finals won by Porto between 2003 and 2004.

In the season following the departure of Mourinho, Emanuel still managed to appear in the spotlight, as in the 2004 Intercontinental Cup win against Once Caldas, where he scored the decisive penalty, becoming the last player to touch the ball in the competition's history.

In the 2005–06 season, following the decision of Dutch coach Co Adriaanse not wanting a goalkeeper captain (Vítor Baía) and sidelining Jorge Costa, Emanuel was chosen as the side's new captain. He missed the entire 2006–07 season due to injury, but returned to the starting lineups the following season, helping with 19 league appearances as Porto were crowned back-to-back champions.

After only five matches in 2008–09, in a fourth consecutive league accolade, Emanuel retired on June 16, 2009, immediately becoming Porto's U-17 head coach, and guiding it to the national championship, after defeating Sporting Clube de Portugal.

In July 2010, Emanuel returned to Porto's main squad, being named newly-signed André Villas-Boas assistant manager. In June of the following year, he had his first head coach experience, being appointed at Villas Boas' previous team Académica de Coimbra.

International career

Although Angolan-born, Emanuel never represented the Palancas Negras internationally. Some interpreted this as a desire to keep alive the possibility of playing for Portugal, the nation he represented at junior levels.

Prior to the 2006 FIFA World Cup, Emanuel accepted a call-up from Angola, but FIFA confirmed that he (and Carlos Chaínho) could not represent other teams than Portugal, because of a new law set-up in 2004 which considered playing for junior sides at international level.

Honours

• Boavista:
  • Portuguese League: 2000–01
  • Portuguese Cup: 1996–97

• Porto:
  • Portuguese League: 2002–03, 2003–04, 2005–06, 2007–08, 2008–09
  • Portuguese Cup: 2002–03, 2005–06, 2008–09
  • Portuguese Supercup: 2003
  • UEFA Cup: 2002–03
  • UEFA Champions League: 2003–04
  • Intercontinental Cup: 2004

External links

• Stats and profile at Zerozero
• Stats at ForaDeJogo (Portuguese)
• PortuGOAL profile