Coach Roger Schmidt said on Sunday that Benfica was “under pressure all season” and that the focus is on their own work, without looking at the standings of the Portuguese football league, in which they are leading.
At a press conference at the training center ‘Águias’ in Seixal, in anticipation of the reception in Boavista, which concludes the 21st round of the championship, the German coach emphasized the difficulty of becoming Portuguese champion, but he is not looking forward to the table.
“We are under pressure all season. There are very good teams and it is not easy to become champions. We have more points at the moment, but there are still many games to play. I expect a tough race until the last round. We focus on ourselves and not on opponents’ games and results,” Roger Schmidt told journalists.
After gaining a comfortable advantage in the first leg of the round of 16 of the Champions League, against the Belgians of Club Brugge (2-0 away), Benfica now has Boavista ahead of them and will try to restore the punctual distance to FC Porto , who placed two points behind the leader on Saturday by beating Rio Ave.
“We have to play the 90 minutes well in our stadium, against Boavista. We have to be disciplined and focused, with attacking football and defend very well. The results and classification are a result of how we play on the pitch and I think we have well played, we are confident, but we respect tomorrow’s opponents [segunda-feira] and all opponents of the championship”emphasized the technician.
The formation from Porto, coached by Petit, has varied its tactical line-up during the season, between a line of four or five defenders, so the “eagles” do not exactly know the opposite strategy and prepare for all possibilities .
“We don’t exactly know the opponent’s strategy because they played with three [centrais] or with four defenders, but we are prepared for both. We are used to it, because we have played more against lines of five this season [defesas] then four. There are differences, but we try to focus on ourselves. Boavista has a good team. We played well at Bessa [na primeira volta]we deserve the win [3-0] and now I expect another great performance,” he analyzed.
The recent performances of Chiquinho, who has been in the starting eleven since Argentine midfielder Enzo Fernández left for Chelsea, have been highlighted and the Benfica coach addressed the comparisons made with Frenchman Zinedine Zidane.
“I don’t know the reason for the name, but there are similar things, especially guarding the ball. He is very strong at that and that was one of Zidane’s great qualities, one of the best ever in midfield. I think that there are still a few.” games are needed to reach the same level, if that’s possible,” said Roger Schmidt, jokingly at first.
More seriously, the coach praised Chiquinho’s performance: “At the beginning of the season he had already shown quality, he didn’t have that many minutes and it was difficult to be an option, but he remained positive and used training to improve. When we see his profile, he can control the game, find the right position, make no mistakes, tactical behaviour, the first touch and pass, he can run a lot… He has more of a central midfielder profile than an attacking one. performed well and with confidence he is playing better and better. Chiquinho is a very reliable player and an example for his age, as he is not very young anymore, but he can still develop and raise his level.” .
Leader Benfica, with 53 points, receives Boavista, ninth, with 26, on Monday at Estádio da Luz, in Lisbon, at 9:15 p.m., in a meeting that closes the 21st round of the 1st Football League, with referee by Hélder Malheiro, of the Lisbon Football Association.
Source: DN
