November 15th
Tiago, Ricardo Silva, and Ricardo Rocha were among the five new faces called up by Agostinho Oliveira in his OFFICIAL last match as caretaker coach. With Boavista and Porto asking that their players be omitted, Oliveira chose to fill their shoes with more youth
Agostinho Oliveira left out Vitor Baia in favour of Quim, the Sp. Braga goalkeeper making his return to the national side since his doping suspension. Belenenses offensive midfielder Neca was rewarded for his good formed with his first senior team call-up.
Portugal will face Tunisia in another friendly scheduled for October 12th in Lisboa. In November, Portugal will face an undetermined opponent in Braga.
Euro 2004 is turning into a huge funding headache for the Government of Portugal. Prime Minister Durão Barroso has refused to boost funding at the request of Loureiro but he's also finding it difficult to stick with the promises of the previous government
Agostinho Oliveira won't be taking that interim label lightly. He has every intention to implement his philosophy about selections, strategy, and formation. The coaching staff met for the first time yesterday.
Manuel José move over. Agostinho Oliveira is quickly picking up support in the form of the most successful national side coach ever and the World Player of the year. With glowing reviews like this, the search for a coach may be over...