If Benfica beat FC Porto, will the title be transferred? “You already know my answer… Of course not. It’s the 27th matchday. We’re 10 points ahead, and that’s obvious. If we win, the chances are better than if we don’t win. It’s an important game, but until we are champions, I don’t feel champions,” replied Roger Schmidt, addressing the derby of the 27th round of the I Liga, Friday, at Estádio da Luz (6 p.m., BTV) this Thursday.
Benfica is the leader of the championship and has ten points more in the standings. Will it become a favourite? “I’ve already answered the favorites’ question several times. It’s not for me to say who the favorites are. We are completely focused on the game we want to play, on what we want to do on the pitch. The situation is clear: we have 10 more points and we play against FC Porto at home, we cannot ignore that it is an important match for both teams, it is a great opportunity for both teams, at the end of the 90 minutes we will see how the things are”, replied the red coach, hoping for “a nice game, between two teams with a lot of quality”.
Asked if tomorrow’s derby is the most important since he took charge of the team, Schmidt said “nim”: “It’s a very important game, but for me it’s not the most important game. The most important thing is always the next one, and tomorrow is therefore all the more important. We have already played great games since qualifying for the Champions League… We were under a lot of pressure and tomorrow we have another great opportunity. That’s how I see things. It is a great game for the supporters of Benfica and FC Porto. As a coach, my job is to prepare the players and we have to play at our best, that’s what we’re focused on.”
If you could take advantage of one of FC Porto’s strengths, which one would you use? “I’m not going to talk about that. FC Porto is a very good team, very strong individually, with a very experienced coach who has won a lot of games in recent years. We have to be prepared for a very focused team that will do it.” everything to make a good game. We know each other well, we know how they play, how they defend… We don’t have to focus on anything concrete, we have to be prepared and respect the opponent. very focused and believe in ourselves, that has been key all season. There are always adjustments to be made in relation to the opponent, but tomorrow we play Benfica”, promised the German coach.
Less exuberant and available to deal with the various problems than usual, the Benfica coach also refused to respond to that irony of fate that FC Porto won a year ago at Estádio da Luz and celebrated the title. Something Benfica can (almost) do this year: “What happened last season is not important to me. I have already said everything about that matter.”
Source: DN
