CAIRO: Former Ahly s legendary manager Manuel Jose played down reports saying he is on his way back to the Cairo giants. The Portuguese left Ahly in the end of last season to take over as Angola manager, leading the host nation during the African Cup of Nations in January. He took Angola to the quarter-finals but was defeated 1-0 by Ghana, who reached the final before losing to title holders Egypt with the same result. With Angola having no further commitments in 2010 and Jose s huge popularity among the Ahly supporters, speculation has been rife that he might return to the Egyptian champions. Till now, there are no talks between me and Ahly, Jose told Egypt s leading sports magazine Al-Ahram Al-Riyadi. I have a contract with Angola till June 2010 and no Ahly official talked to me about returning to Cairo. I still haven t decided my next destination. Jose was Ahly s manager during the past five years. He won the league title as many times and reached four African Champions League finals, winning the title on three occasions. He evolved to a demigod status among Ahly fans, who always supported him not only against press but against the club management on a few occasions. Hossam Al-Badri, Jose s first assistant, took over in the beginning of the season, leading the team to first place after the first half of the season.
