Mozambique Football Association (FMF) has disbanded the entire Mambas technical bench following the team’s failure to qualify for the 2021 Africa Cup of Nations.
Mambas lost 1-0 to Cape Verde in their last Group F match played on Tuesday at Estadio Nacional Zimpeto in Maputo, a result that saw the Central Atlantic Islanders sail to the Nations Cup finals in Cameroon.
In a statement sent to media houses, FMF said it had given the bench all the necessary support but they had failed to deliver. Those affected are head coach Luís Gonçalves, assistant Nasser Carimo, chief scout specialist Tiago Capaz, performance analyst João Pereira, fitness coach Florêncio Tembe and goalkeepers coach Manuel Valoi.
The statement read in part, “The Executive Directorate of the Mozambican Football Federation (FMF) at an emergency meeting held on Wednesday afternoon, took the unanimous decision to end, with immediate effect, the contractual link with the technical bench of the national team,Mambas.
“The decision was taken after an analysis of the performance of Mambas, and some objectives were defaulted, mainly failure to qualify for the 2021 Africa Cup of Nations.”
Gonçalves was appointed in August 2019 after the departure of Abel Xavier and the abrupt termination of Victor Matine’s tenure at the helm of the Mambas.
The Portuguese tactician was not new to Mozambican football having been born in Maputo and also worked Xavier’s assistant from January 2016 to May 2018 after which he took up a job as the coach of China’s under-16 team.
Mozambique job was his first senior role after years of coaching juniors, including his time at the Alcochet Academy at Sporting Lisbon, from where Cristiano Ronaldo first emerged.
Goncalves was also a junior coach at FC Porto, Belenenses, Estoril and Tondela – all top flight Portuguese clubs.
