The Benfica coach admitted on Friday that the appearance against Paris Saint-Germain boosted confidence, but warned that the team must already confirm that in the next I Football League game, against Rio Ave.
Roger Schmidt, at a press conference at Seixal, assumed that “it is very important to draw confidence” from the big games of the Champions League, “especially when the next game is three days later”, but emphasized that the team “must show” also in these games”, such as Saturday’s, “this quality, attitude, mentality, dedication and connection”.
“Our job is to be ready every three days and confirm this kind of performance against big teams also in our stadium, at home, against teams like Rio Ave. So, trust, yes! We are gaining trust in these matches, but it’s something we have to confirm in the next game”be the German coach.
And the next game, according to Schmidt, is seen by both Benfica and Rio Ave as “an I Liga game”, although the ‘incarnate’ coach acknowledges that “all teams are playing very motivated against Benfica”.
As for the motivation of his own players to take on the Portuguese I League’s 10th place, after Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions League, the coach admitted he expects a difficult game but believes the team in will be able to give a good answer.
“When you watch Rio Ave games, they believe in themselves, they are brave. They also play with five defenders, but they play attacking football, so I expect a difficult game. I will be there again,” he noted.
The German, however, did not reveal whether he would make any changes to the starting line-up against Vila Condenses, but admitted it is “a bit special” as Benfica will play “three games in six days” between Wednesday and next Tuesday. .
In this sense, he again let the idea hang in the air that during the game he can make changes to the team “at the beginning or later, a little earlier”, but assured that in every game he always tries to make the best decisions “to the team and for the players”.
“It’s my way of thinking. I don’t know how often I will change in the coming weeks. It depends on the players and their recovery,” he emphasized.
Benfica welcomes Rio Ave on Saturday, at Estádio da Luz, in Lisbon, in a match of the ninth round of the Portuguese football league, which starts at 6 p.m. and will be whistled by Manuel Oliveira (AF Porto).
The team led by Roger Schmidt defends the championship lead, where it is three points more than FC Porto and Sporting de Braga, just three days after the 1-1 draw against Paris Saint-Germain, also in Luz, in a meeting of the Champions League.
Source: DN
