FC Porto is one point behind the lead of the league table. Saturday's victory in Famalicão (4-2) brought the National Champions closer to Benfica on the eve of the Lisbon derby and was achieved with four goals from Mehdi Taremi, the new top scorer of the league. After the match, Sérgio Conceição praised "the excellent performance of the team on an always difficult pitch". "It was a great match and I'm happy with the result, which was important," the coach stated, "happy with the ambition and dedication" shown by the players.

Pleased with the performance
"I have to praise the excellent game the team played today on an always difficult pitch. We went in fantastic, figuring out how to get out of the pressure and exploiting some of their weaknesses. 20 minutes in, we could have been winning by three or four, but we needed to be more mature and keep possession in the opposite midfield. It's the only think I asked the players to do at half time, their goal came from there, we had an opportunity to make it 3-1 with Grujic and out of nowhere came the penalty where they tied. There was little to correct, we created a lot of attacks and goal situations. We had to keep going and realize why we conceded in the transitions. In the second half the game was much more under control, it was a great game and I'm happy with the result, which was important. The situation is not easy, we are used to being in the lead, we do not depend on ourselves, but we have to keep believing."

The differences to the Cup 
"There was more control, our dynamics were much better from behind, we exploited one or another situation that we should have done in the Cup. There was a very interesting work in exploring their weaknesses. We did extremely well, but there was the problem that the control of the game was not complete and we suffered here or there."

The choice for Toni Martínez 
"In terms of moment decision, he gave me more guarantees than the other forwards, so he started the match. That’s how I decide who plays, then there are the reinforcements coming off the bench who have been giving good replies during the year."

Belief 
"We work on all levels. Not just on what we do on the pitch. To represent this club, you need something else to be competitive every three days. Being competitive has to do with organization, with the ability to be well both physically and emotionally. We are always motivated to do what we love and to give our best on a daily basis. That to me is non-negotiable. In that regard, I am very happy with the dedication, the ambition. Anyone who didn't know our situation would say this is undoubtedly the national champion."

Playing time 
"I think it's great that Fábio Veríssimo gave 13 minutes of stoppage time. My applause to the refereeing team, they tried to make up for what wasn't played."

Wishes for the derby 
"I will be cheering for FC Porto B on Monday, as they are going to Tondela for a difficult match."