FC Porto victory over Gil Vicente started with a “different dynamic”, set by Sérgio Conceição. The blue and white coach talked of a deserved victory for his team, which could have been bigger, if the “finishing had been more accurate”. The objective was simple and it was achieved, even after a “few adjustments”, which led to the dominance in the second-half.

Adapt to win
“It was difficult because we weren’t efficient. We didn’t start the match well. We sent in the team with a different dynamic, with creative players, such as Nakajima and Fábio Vieira, so they could find spaces where there were few, as Gil Vicente was playing from the back. Manafá and Corona offered deep and wide plays and we had two forwards upfront. It was a bold dynamic, and I realised, 20 minutes in, maybe, that having many players upfront doesn’t mean creating danger. We adjusted a few things and started to create some more dangerous situations. We corrected some more at the start of the second-half and created five or six clear opportunities, including a penalty. If we had been more accurate in the finishing, we could have had a big victory.”

The tactic
“Playing with three defenders and seven players upfront means adjusting to any team? Allowing for that much offensive plays means to you want to push the opponent. That’s what we did. Gil Vicente was courageous in the defence, played aggressively, especially in the first 30 minutes, even if we did create two or three opportunities in that period, including the one that led to the goal. If the opponents are pleased to see our fullbacks pushing against theirs... it’s not ambitious for coaches to think like that. I was certain that, playing like this, we would pose many difficulties to Gil Vicente. I obviously had to adjust to the match, that’s what I’m paid to do. And it’s true that they did get to our goal with danger once or twice, but if we had scored four or five goals, it wouldn’t have been surprising.”

Changes at halftime
“I sent in Romário Baró and we continued to have Nakajima and Fábio Vieira in the middle, where they were playing well. Toni Martínez works hard, he has been training well. He deserved my confidence for this match and he deserves it in the future. He was replaced at halftime because I felt we needed to make adjustments, and those allowed us to dominate the second-half until Zaidu was sent-off.”

The opponent’s aggression
“Some players ended the match in pain. Sérgio Oliveira, Zaidu, Manafá, Romário... they were tackled hard, but aggression is part of the match. They were quick to get the ball away, and were unfortunate to have the opponent hit their legs.”

The first goal for Evanilson
“These are kids who got to FC Porto and are starting their path and work. They have been proving to be humble, which means they accept the work and our message. The quality is there, but we need to give them time, even if a club as big as FC Porto doesn’t allow for much time.”