| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Pedro Manuel Torres | ||
| Date of birth | (1982-03-18)18 March 1982 (age 43) | ||
| Place of birth | Huambo, Angola | ||
| Height | 1.78 m (5 ft 10 in) | ||
| Position | Striker | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 1999 | Progresso | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1999–2001 | Alverca | 31 | (9) |
| 2001–2011 | Benfica | 101 | (29) |
| Total | 132 | (38) | |
| International career | |||
| 2001 | Angola U20 | 4 | (1) |
| 2001–2010 | Angola | 33 | (5) |
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Pedro Manuel Torres (born 18 March 1982), known asMantorras, is an Angolan former professionalfootballer who played as astriker.
His nickname derives from the fact that, as a child, he sufferedslight accidental burns, being then known as "Mantorras" from the Angolan expression"Mano Torras," which means "toasted brother".[1] His professional career, mainly spent withBenfica, was blighted by constant injury problems which cause him to retire at just 30 years old.[2][3]
Mantorras played forAngola in the 2000s, representing the nation at the2006 World Cup and twoAfrica Cup of Nations tournaments.
Born inHuambo, Mantorras started his career atProgresso Associação do Sambizanga. He quickly caught the eye of Portuguesescouts, and transferred toF.C. Alverca shortly thereafter as that club acted also asS.L. Benfica'sfarm team. Most notably, he scored once in a 3–1 home win overSporting Clube de Portugal on 17 February 2001, and finishedthat season with nine league goals as the team managed to retain theirPrimeira Liga status, finishing in 12th position.[4]
At 19, Mantorras signed with Benfica, making a particularly good impression duringhis first season and being subsequently sought out byFC Barcelona andInter Milan. During his quick rise to stardom, he was frequently described as the best player to come out ofPortuguese Africa sinceEusébio leftMozambique for Benfica in the early 1960s; the latter himself said of the former: "He has special qualities and is set for a great future".[4][5]
In 2002, Mantorras suffered a serious knee injury that almost put an end to his short career.[6][7] He spent approximately two-and-a-half years recovering, during which he was subject to four surgical procedures.[2] He returned to the pitch during the2004–05 campaign, and managed to contribute sufficiently as Benfica ended an 11-year drought and won the national championship, with five goals in only 15 matches (four of those in the final two months).[8][9]
Even though he was subsequently deemed to be fully recovered, Mantorras failed to re-establish himself as a first-team player, playing only in a few games throughout the next seasons combined. However, he remained a fan favourite, additionally stating he would like to see out his career at the club and that he would remain there even if he was not paid a salary.[10]
Benfica won the league again in2009–10, as well as thedomestic league cup, alsoreaching the last eight in theUEFA Europa League, but Mantorras' output consisted of ten minutes during the pre-season, in a 2–1 loss againstAtlético Madrid; in mid-February 2011, one month shy of his 29th birthday, he announced his retirement from professional football, making a short and unsuccessful comeback withC.D. Primeiro de Agosto later on.[11]
In June 2012, Mantorras returned to Benfica as club ambassador.[12] The following month, on the 18th, he received atestimonial match at theEstádio da Luz, facing an All-Star team which includedLuís Figo,Edgar Davids,Luís Boa Morte,Teddy Sheringham,Dwight Yorke,Paulo Futre,Ronaldo,Francesco Toldo,Fabio Cannavaro,Fernando Couto,Míchel Salgado,Serginho,Pauleta,Juliano Belletti andMateja Kežman, and netting the fourth goal in a 5–1 win;[13][14] after the match he praised the club fans in an interview, and dedicated his goal to them for all the support he received during his spell.[15] His former managerJorge Jesus praised his efforts, as well as the money raised in the game by both teams.[16]
Mantorras representedAngola at the2001 FIFA World Youth Championship, inArgentina. He scored in a 1–1 group stage draw againstAustralia, helping his country eventually reach theround-of-16.
A full international since the age of 19, Mantorras was part of the national team which became the first ever African Portuguese-speaking country to qualify for theFIFA World Cup, in2006. There, he played twicefrom the bench, including in the 0–1 group stage loss againstPortugal.[17]
Even though he was only fifth or sixth-choice at Benfica at the time, Mantorras was also summoned for the2010 Africa Cup of Nations, played on home soil. As Angola reached the last-eight he only appeared once, again as a substitute, in a 2–0 win overMalawi.[18]
Soon after joining Benfica, Mantorras promised to donate a large percentage of his wages to set up a home forstreet children inLuanda. He related their plight to his own experiences: "My father died when I was three months old and my mother when I was 16. I had a brother to look after and became the head of the family [when I was] very young. I had a lot of difficulties early in my life. Now that my fortunes have improved, I'm going to do what I can to help the underprivileged".[19][20]
| Club | Season | League | National cup | League cup | Europe | Total | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Alverca | 1999–2000 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 0 | – | – | 6 | 0 | ||
| 2000–01 | 26 | 9 | 2 | 0 | – | – | 28 | 9 | |||
| Total | 31 | 9 | 3 | 0 | – | – | 34 | 9 | |||
| Benfica | 2001–02 | 30 | 13 | 3 | 0 | – | – | 33 | 13 | ||
| 2002–03 | 8 | 3 | 1 | 0 | – | 0 | 0 | 9 | 3 | ||
| 2003–04 | – | ||||||||||
| 2004–05 | 15 | 5 | 1 | 0 | – | 2 | 0 | 18 | 5 | ||
| 2005–06 | 17 | 3 | 2 | 0 | – | 5 | 0 | 24 | 3 | ||
| 2006–07 | 17 | 2 | 3 | 1 | – | 5 | 0 | 25 | 3 | ||
| 2007–08 | 9 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 14 | 2 | |
| 2008–09 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 2 | |
| 2009–10 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | |
| 2010–11 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| Total | 101 | 29 | 13 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 14 | 1 | 129 | 31 | |
| Career total | 132 | 38 | 16 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 14 | 1 | 163 | 40 | |
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| Angola | 2001 | 2 | 0 |
| 2002 | 2 | 0 | |
| 2003 | 0 | 0 | |
| 2004 | 0 | 0 | |
| 2005 | 4 | 2 | |
| 2006 | 9 | 1 | |
| 2007 | 3 | 1 | |
| 2008 | 3 | 1 | |
| 2009 | 8 | 0 | |
| 2010 | 2 | 0 | |
| Total | 33 | 5 | |
| No. | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 17 August 2005 | Estádio José Gomes,Amadora, Portugal |  Cape Verde | 1–1 | 2–1 | Friendly |
| 2 | 4 September 2005 | Estádio da Cidadela,Luanda, Angola |  Gabon | 2–0 | 3–0 | 2006 World Cup qualification |
| 3 | 17 January 2006 | Prince Moulay Abdellah Stadium,Rabat, Morocco |  Morocco | 2–2 | 2–2 | Friendly |
| 4 | 25 March 2007 | Estádio da Cidadela, Luanda, Angola |  Eritrea | 2–0 | 6–1 | 2008 Africa Cup of Nations qualification |
| 5 | 14 June 2008 | Mandela National Stadium,Kampala, Uganda |  Uganda | 1–3 | 1–3 | 2010 World Cup qualification |
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