View source for Manuel Bento

{{short description|Portuguese footballer}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=June 2021}}
{{Infobox football biography
|name = Manuel Bento
|image = 
|fullname = Manuel Galrinho Bento
|birth_date = {{birth date|1948|6|25|df=yes}}
|birth_place = [[Golegã]], Portugal
|death_date = {{death date and age|2007|3|1|1948|6|25|df=yes}}
|death_place = [[Barreiro, Portugal|Barreiro]], Portugal
|height = 1.73 m
|position = [[Goalkeeper (association football)|Goalkeeper]]
|youthyears1 = | youthclubs1 = Riachense
|youthyears2 = | youthclubs2 = Goleganense
|youthyears3 = | youthclubs3 = [[Sporting Clube de Portugal|Sporting CP]]
|years1 = 1966–1972 | clubs1 = [[F.C. Barreirense|Barreirense]] | caps1 = 94 | goals1 = 0
|years2 = 1972–1992 | clubs2 = [[S.L. Benfica|Benfica]] | caps2 = 330 | goals2 = 0
|years3 = 1989      | clubs3 = [[Canadian National Soccer League|Toronto First Portuguese]] | caps3 = | goals3 = 
|totalcaps = 424 | totalgoals = 0
|nationalyears1 = 1976–1986 | nationalteam1 = [[Portugal national football team|Portugal]] | nationalcaps1 = 63 | nationalgoals1 = 0
| medaltemplates = {{Medal|Sport|Men's [[Association football|football]]}}
{{medal|Country|{{fb|POR}}}}
{{Medal|Comp|[[UEFA European Championship]]|}}
{{Medal|B|[[UEFA Euro 1984|1984 France]]|}}
}}
'''Manuel Galrinho Bento''' (25 June 1948 – 1 March 2007) was a Portuguese professional [[Association football|footballer]] who played as a [[Goalkeeper (association football)|goalkeeper]].

Bento was best known for his 20-year spell at [[S.L. Benfica|Benfica]], having retired well into his 40s after appearing in nearly 650 official games.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Malheiro|first1=João|title=Memorial Benfica 100 Glórias|trans-title=Benfica Memorial, 100 glories|date=July 2006|publisher=QuidNovi|isbn=978-972-8998-26-4|edition=Third|pages=30–31|language=pt}}</ref> He represented [[Portugal national football team|Portugal]] at [[UEFA Euro 1984|Euro 1984]] and the [[1986 FIFA World Cup|1986 World Cup]], helping the national team reach the semi-finals in the former tournament.

Chosen by Portuguese sports newspaper ''[[Record (Portuguese newspaper)|Record]]'' as one of the best 100 Portuguese footballers, Bento won the ''Goalkeeper of the Year'' award a best-ever eight times. In January 2015, he was chosen by the [[UEFA]] website as one of Europe's favourite goalkeepers.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.uefa.com/memberassociations/news/newsid=2202983.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150131063402/http://www.uefa.com/memberassociations/news/newsid=2202983.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=31 January 2015|title=Saving grace: Europe's favourite goalkeepers|publisher=[[UEFA]]|date=30 January 2015|access-date=31 January 2015}}</ref>

==Club career==
Bento was born in [[Golegã]], [[Santarém District]]. After various youth spells, including one with [[Sporting CP]], he started professionally at [[F.C. Barreirense]], being transferred to [[S.L. Benfica]] for the [[1972–73 Primeira Liga|1972–73 season]].

Bento started with Benfica as a backup to another Portuguese keeper, [[José Henrique]]. After three years in an interesting battle for first-choice status, the former gained the starting position in 1976 at age 28, and proceeded to amass 636 overall appearances for the [[Lisbon]] side.

Bento suffered a severe injury in the 1986 summer on [[Portugal national football team|international duty]], from which he never recovered fully. He spent the next six years mainly as third-string, behind [[Silvino Louro|Silvino]] and [[Neno (footballer)|Neno]], being on the bench at both the [[1988 European Cup Final|1988]] and [[1990 European Cup Final|1990]] [[UEFA Champions League|European Cup]] finals, lost to [[PSV Eindhoven]] and [[A.C. Milan]] respectively; the last game of his career came at the end of the [[1989–90 Primeira Liga|1989–90 campaign]] against [[C.F. Os Belenenses]], in which he was chosen ''[[Man of the match]]''. In the summer of 1989 he played in the [[Canadian National Soccer League|National Soccer League]] with [[Canadian National Soccer League|Toronto First Portuguese]].<ref>{{Cite news|date=13 April 1989|title=Six soccer stars sign up to join First Portuguese|page=B8|work=Toronto Star}}</ref>

In June 1992, aged 44, Bento retired from football after exactly 20 years at Benfica – he was the oldest footballer ever to appear in the Portuguese first division. Subsequently, he began working as a goalkeeper coach, always with his main club.

Bento died in the hospital of [[Barreiro, Portugal|Barreiro]] on 1 March 2007, after suffering a [[Myocardial infarction|heart attack]]. He was 58 years old.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://expresso.sapo.pt/desporto/morreu-manuel-bento=f108895|title=Morreu Manuel Bento|trans-title=Manuel Bento has died|newspaper=[[Expresso (newspaper)|Expresso]]|language=pt|date=1 March 2007|access-date=27 September 2017}}</ref>

==International career==
Bento earned 63 [[Cap (sport)|caps]] for [[Portugal national football team|Portugal]], over the course of one decade.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.rsssf.org/miscellaneous/port-recintlp.html|title=Portugal – Record International Players|publisher=[[Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation|RSSSF]]|author=Pierrend, José Luis|date=28 May 2009|access-date=2 September 2009}}</ref> He made his debut on 16 October 1976 in the [[1978 FIFA World Cup]] [[1978 FIFA World Cup qualification (UEFA)|qualifying campaign]]'s opener, a 0–2 defeat against [[Poland national football team|Poland]] in [[Porto]].

Bento remained first-choice for the following nine years, being between the posts as the national team reached the semi-finals at [[UEFA Euro 1984]], excelling in the 2–3 loss against the hosts [[France national football team|France]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://pt.uefa.com/uefaeuro/history/news/0254-0d7b39da609a-09bc665112af-1000--platini-faz-a-diferenca-em-meia-final-de-sonho-no-euro-1984/|title=Platini faz a diferença em meia-final de sonho|trans-title=Platini makes the difference in dream semi-final|publisher=[[UEFA]]|language=pt|date=4 October 2003|access-date=18 April 2017}}</ref> He also started in the epic 1–0 win in [[Germany national football team|West Germany]] for the [[1986 FIFA World Cup qualification (UEFA)|1986 World Cup qualifiers]], being subsequently picked for [[1986 FIFA World Cup|the final stages]] in Mexico at age 38: he appeared in the first game against [[England national football team|England]] (another single-goal success), then broke his [[fibula]] in training, being replaced for the remainder of the tournament by Sporting's [[Vítor Damas]]; Portugal lost the next two matches and were eliminated from the knockout stages.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.ojogo.pt/internacional/noticias/interior/bento-e-o-bom-bacalhau-3819999.html|title=Bento e o bom bacalhau|trans-title=Bento and good codfish|newspaper=[[O Jogo]]|language=pt|date=18 April 2014|access-date=27 September 2017}}</ref>

==Honours==
'''Benfica'''
*[[Primeira Liga|Primeira Divisão]] (8):<ref name="eternal">{{cite web|title=Bento, o eterno "homem de borracha"|trans-title=Bento, the eternal "rubber man"|language=pt|date=1 March 2020|access-date=25 June 2020|website=S.L. Benfica|url=https://www.slbenfica.pt/pt-pt/agora/noticias/2020/03/01/benfica-manuel-galrinho-bento-efemeride-13-anos-desde-o-falecimento}}</ref> [[1972–73 Primeira Divisão|1972–73]], [[1974–75 Primeira Divisão|1974–75]], [[1975–76 Primeira Divisão|1975–76]], [[1976–77 Primeira Divisão|1976–77]], [[1980–81 Primeira Divisão|1980–81]], [[1982–83 Primeira Divisão|1982–83]], [[1983–84 Primeira Divisão|1983–84]], [[1986–87 Primeira Divisão|1986–87]]<ref>{{cite magazine|date=April–June 2017|title=Especial 'Tetra'|trans-title='Tetra' special edition|language=pt|magazine=Mística|location=Portugal|publisher=[[Impresa]] Publishing|issue=33|page=72|issn=3846-0823}}</ref>
*[[Taça de Portugal]] (5):<ref name="eternal"/><ref name="bi">{{cite magazine|date=May 2015|title=Bicampeões para a história|trans-title=Back-to-back champions for the ages|language=pt|magazine=[[Visão]]|location=Portugal|publisher=Impresa Publishing|page=53|issn=0872-3540}}</ref> 1979–80, 1980–81, [[1982–83 Taça de Portugal|1982–83]], 1984–85, 1985–86
*[[Supertaça Cândido de Oliveira]] (2):<ref name="eternal"/><ref name="bi"/> [[1980 Supertaça de Portugal|1980]], [[1985 Supertaça Cândido de Oliveira|1985]]
*[[Taça de Honra]] (6)<ref name="eternal"/><ref name="bi"/>

'''Individual'''
*[[Portuguese Footballer of the Year]]: 1977

==References==
{{reflist}}

==Further reading==
*{{cite book|last=Ribeiro|first=Raúl|title=Bento, um "santo" com garras de "águia"|trans-title=Bento, a "saint" with "eagle" claws|date=1986|publisher=Mirandela e Companhia}}

==External links==
*{{ForaDeJogo}}
*{{NFT player}}
*{{FIFA player}}
*{{Eu-Football.info|1659}}

{{Navboxes
|title=Portugal squads
|bg=#900020
|fg=gold
|bordercolor=
|list1=
{{Portugal Squad 1984 Euro Cup}}
{{Portugal Squad 1986 World Cup}}
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{{Portuguese Footballer of the Year}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bento, Manuel}}
[[Category:1948 births]]
[[Category:2007 deaths]]
[[Category:People from Golegã]]
[[Category:Portuguese men's footballers]]
[[Category:Men's association football goalkeepers]]
[[Category:Primeira Liga players]]
[[Category:Canadian National Soccer League players]]
[[Category:F.C. Barreirense players]]
[[Category:S.L. Benfica footballers]]
[[Category:Toronto First Portuguese players]]
[[Category:Portugal men's international footballers]]
[[Category:UEFA Euro 1984 players]]
[[Category:1986 FIFA World Cup players]]
[[Category:Portuguese expatriate men's footballers]]
[[Category:Expatriate men's soccer players in Canada]]
[[Category:Portuguese expatriate sportspeople in Canada]]
[[Category:Footballers from Santarém District]]
[[Category:20th-century Portuguese sportsmen]]