José Águas

José Águas

Águas with Benfica in 1962
Personal information
Full name	José Pinto Carvalho Santos Águas
Date of birth	(1930-11-09)9 November 1930
Place of birth	Luanda, Angola
Date of death
Place of death	Lisbon, Portugal
Height
Position(s)	Striker
Youth career
1944–1948	Lusitano Lobito
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
1948–1950	Lusitano Lobito
1950–1963	Benfica	281	(290)
1963–1964	Austria Vienna	7	(2)
Total		288	(292)
International career
1952–1962	Portugal	25	(11)
Managerial career
1966–1967	Marítimo
1967–1968	Atlético
1968–1969	Leixões
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

José Pinto de Carvalho Santos Águas (Portuguese pronunciation: [ʒuˈzɛ ˈaɡwɐʃ]; 9 November 1930 – 10 December 2000) was a Portuguese footballer who played as a striker.

He enjoyed a lengthy professional spell with Benfica, never scoring less than 18 goals in 12 of his 13 first division seasons.

Club career

Born in Luanda, Portuguese Angola, Portuguese Empire from a white colonial family, Águas started his footballing career with local team Lusitano do Lobito, before moving to S.L. Benfica in 1950 where he gained legendary status.

With Benfica he won the Primeira Liga five times (1955, 1957, 1960, 1961 and 1963) and the domestic cup seven, also being crowned national league's top scorer on five occasions. In the years previous to Eusébio's explosion he was also instrumental in the club's back-to-back European Cup conquests, in 1961 against FC Barcelona (3–2), and the next season against Real Madrid (5–3), scoring his team's first goal on both occasions and being club captain; he failed to complete a hat-trick of wins in the competition after the 1–2 defeat to A.C. Milan in the 1963 final (he did not play).

After leaving Benfica, Águas, aged 33, played one more season for FK Austria Wien, retiring the next summer. He died in Lisbon, at the age of 70.

International career

Águas made his debut for Portugal on 23 November 1952, in a 1–1 draw with Austria, and went on to gain a total of 25 caps while scoring 11 times. His last appearance was on 17 May 1962, a 1–2 defeat against Belgium.

Personal life

Águas' son, Rui, was also a footballer and a striker. He too represented Benfica and the national team, as well as FC Porto.

His daughter, Helena Maria, known as Lena d'Água, had a career in pop music as a singer.

Statistics

Club

Club	Season	League		Cup		Continental		Total
		Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
Lusitano Lobito	1948–49					–
	1949–50					–
	Total					–
Benfica	1950–51	19	23			–
	1951–52	22	28			–
	1952–53	25	25			–
	1953–54	18	23			–
	1954–55	26	20			–
	1955–56	26	28
	1956–57	25	30			–
	1957–58	22	22
	1958–59	24	26			–
	1959–60	25	18			–
	1960–61	23	27				11
	1961–62	22	18				6
	1962–63	4	2			0	0
	Total	281	290	75	70	21	18	384	374
Austria Wien	1963–64	7	2
Career total

International goals

#	Date	Venue	Opponent	Score	Result	Competition
1.	22 November 1953	Estádio do Jamor, Lisbon, Portugal	South Africa	2–0	3–1	Friendly

Honours

Player

Benfica

• European Cup: 1960–61, 1961–62
• Primeira Liga (5): 1954–55, 1956–57, 1959–60, 1960–61, 1962–63
• Taça de Portugal (7): 1950–51, 1951–52, 1952–53, 1954–55, 1956–57, 1958–59, 1961–62

Manager

Marítimo

• AF Madeira Championship: 1966–97
• Madeira Cup: 1966–97

Atlético

• Portuguese Second Division: 1967–68

Individual

• Primeira Liga: Top Scorer 1951–52, 1955–56, 1956–57, 1958–59, 1960–61
• European Cup: Top Scorer 1960–61
• Taça de Portugal: Top Scorer 1950–51, 1952–53, 1954–55, 1957–58

External links

• José Águas at footballzz.co.uk
• José Águas profile at ForaDeJogo
• José Águas at National-Football-Teams.com
• Portugal stats at Eu-Football