The coach Roger Schmidt assumed this Thursday that a victory against FC Porto, tomorrow, increases Benfica’s chances of being champion of the I Football League, but he stressed that the championship has not been decided.
Asked if the title will be given to the ‘incarnated’ in the event of victory over the ‘dragons’, Schmidt was emphatic in answering that “of course not”, but acknowledged that having 13 points more than the rival in this stage leaves the your team at an advantage.
“If we win, the probability of being champions is higher than if we don’t. Of course it’s an important match, but as long as we’re not really champions, I don’t feel like we are already. That is impossible for me. “, shot the coach, in Seixal, at a press conference prior to the classic.
The German coach also refused to name a favorite to win Friday’s game, saying the working group “is only focused on the game plan and what they are going to do on the pitch.”
More than once, in the approximately six minutes that the press conference lasted, he acknowledged that it was “a very important game”, but he refused to say that it was “the most important” since he arrived at Benfica, preferring to consider it as “a great opportunity”.
“The most important game is always the next one. That is why it is the most important game, because it is the next one. That it is special, it is quite clear, but we have already played [outros] important games this season. But we have a great opportunity, I see it more like that, because for the fans it’s a great match”, commented Schmidt.
Regarding FC Porto, the German refused to point out just one strong point and assumed that his team has to be prepared to face an opponent who “will give everything to have a great game”, but he returned to focusing on his own team.
“what do we need tomorrow [sexta-feira] we do not focus on a strong point [do FC Porto] in particular. We have to be prepared and respect the opponent in all his tactical moves, but above all we have to believe in ourselves and focus on ourselves. That’s been the key all season.”
Benfica will receive FC Porto on Friday, in a match of the 27th round of the 1st Portuguese Football League, starting at 6:00 p.m., at the Estádio da Luz, in Lisbon, with the refereeing of Artur Soares Dias (AF Porto ).
In case of victory, Roger Schmidt’s team increases the advantage over the ‘blue and whites’ to 13 points, who can be surpassed, in second place, by Sporting de Braga, but they also have the possibility of reducing the disadvantage to seven points for the championship leaders.
Source: TSF
