Manucho · Biography

Mateus Alberto Contreiras Gonçalves, known as Manucho, made his professional debut in 1999 with Benfica de Luanda, the club where he took his first steps in Angola’s top flight. Born on 7 March 1983 in Luanda, Angola, he is a tall centre-forward whose career took him through Angola, Greece, England, Turkey and Spain. In Spain he played for Real Valladolid and Rayo Vallecano.

Early years in Luanda

He came through at Flaminguinhos between 1997 and 1999, a small club in the Terra Nova district of Luanda where his father, Alberto Gonçalves, was the coach. In those youth years he did not play through the middle: he was a left winger. With Benfica de Luanda, from 1999 to 2002, he made 12 league appearances and scored 5 goals before moving to Petro Atlético, one of the biggest clubs in Angolan football.

Goals at Petro Atlético

At Petro Atlético, between 2002 and 2008, he became the team’s main striker. After Flávio Amado left, he took on the scoring burden and was Girabola top scorer in 2006 and 2007, with 16 and 15 goals. In all he made 78 league appearances and scored 34 goals for the club. His form earned him a three-week trial at Manchester United, who announced his signing on 21 December 2007.

Manchester United and loan spells

He arrived in England in January 2008, but work-permit problems meant he was loaned to Panathinaikos for the rest of the 2007-08 season. In Greece he scored on his league debut, a 2-0 win over AEL, and added three goals in the play-off mini-tournament that sent the club into the 2008-09 Champions League qualifiers. With his permit granted in the summer of 2008, he made his United debut on 23 September 2008 as a substitute in a League Cup third-round win over Middlesbrough (3-1). His Premier League debut came on 15 November 2008 against Stoke City, replacing Carlos Tevez in the 74th minute. On 16 January 2009 he joined Hull City on loan and scored his first Premier League goal on 4 March 2009, a last-minute winner at Fulham.

Real Valladolid and Turkey

On 17 July 2009 Real Valladolid agreed his transfer, handing him a five-year contract. His first goal for the club came on 13 September 2009, in a 4-2 defeat to Valencia. In the summer of 2010 he was loaned to Turkish side Bucaspor, where he scored the winner in a 3-2 victory away to Fenerbahçe in December 2010. At the end of January 2011 he moved on loan again, to Manisaspor, making his debut on 5 February 2011. Back in Valladolid, he was part of the squad that won the promotion play-off to the Spanish top flight in 2012, and he shared the forward line with Javi Guerra in 2012-13. Between 2009 and 2014 he made 98 league appearances and scored 19 goals for the club.

Rayo Vallecano and Cornellà

On 13 June 2014 he signed for Rayo Vallecano, where he spent four seasons. He played 112 league games and scored 14 goals in Vallecas, and his spell ended with the Spanish second division title in 2017-18, which took the club back up. On 18 September 2018 he joined UE Cornellà of the Segunda División B, making 16 appearances and scoring once in the 2018-19 season.

Angola national team

He made his Angola debut in 2006, the year the team finished runners-up in the COSAFA Cup. His biggest stage was the 2008 Africa Cup of Nations in Ghana: he opened the scoring against South Africa, struck twice in a 3-1 win over Senegal and scored again in the 2-1 quarter-final defeat to Egypt, earning a place in the team of the tournament. At the 2010 edition, hosted by Angola, he converted a penalty in the 4-4 draw with Mali. In 2012 he scored three group-stage goals, one against Burkina Faso and two against Sudan, although Angola went out in the first round. He was also named in the squad for the 2013 Africa Cup of Nations, and his international career lasted until 2017.

Honours

His honours include the Spanish second division title with Rayo Vallecano in 2017-18, a COSAFA Cup runners-up finish with Angola in 2006 and the Girabola top scorer awards in 2006 and 2007. His club career ended at UE Cornellà in the 2018-19 season.