Coelho hopes to benefit from Portugal's loss

RABAT (Reuters) -- Humberto Coelho went painfully close to taking Portugal to the final of the last European championship and will hope the experience will help him go one step further with Morocco in the African Nations Cup.

Coelho, 51, was in charge of his home country at Euro 2000 where Portugal controversially lost in the semifinals to eventual winners France thanks to a disputed penalty three minutes from the end of extra time.

He resigned after the tournament and later in the year took over as coach of Morocco.

Coelho was, however, unable to deliver World Cup qualification after Morocco lost out on goal difference to Senegal in their African preliminary group.

His record in charge of the side is a less-than-impressive six wins in 13 internationals.

Coelho, who played alongside African-born hero Eusebio when he started his career at Benfica, captained Portugal and won 64 caps.

After 18 years with Benfica, he spent two in France at Paris St Germain. His coaching career marked the return of Portugal to the top end of the European game, including a record run of 13 matches without defeat.

 

Related information
Stories
African Nations Cup 2002 Index
Multimedia
Visit Video Plus for the latest audio and video
Search our site	Watch CNN/SI 24 hours a day
	Sports Illustrated and CNN have combined to form a 24 hour sports news and information channel. To receive CNN/SI at your home call your cable operator or DirecTV.

Copyright 2003 Reuters Limited. All rights reserved.