International Career
Maniche played for his country in their second-place finish at UEFA Euro 2004, having just made his debut the previous year. He scored from long-range against the Netherlands in the semi-final, in a 2–1 win.
On 21 June 2006, in the 2006 FIFA World Cup, Portugal played Mexico, in the nation's final group game. Maniche scored in the 6th minute, and Portugal went on to win 2–1, progressing as group-winners. On 25 June, in the round-of-16, as the national side faced the Netherlands once again, he netted the only goal in the game, and was the only Portuguese player to feature on Adidas' Golden Ball shortlist.
After appearing significantly during the qualifying stages for Euro 2008, he was surprisingly left out of the nation's final squad, although younger brother, left back Jorge Ribeiro, would make the final cut. He also featured little during the qualification for the 2010 World Cup, and was subsequently left out of the squad for the final stages by manager Carlos Queiroz.
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—Lewis H. Lapham (b. 1935)