Crunch time for Portugal’s Big Three
From Wednesday 6 March to Thursday 13 March, Sporting, Porto and Benfica play a series of matches that could prove decisive for the success or otherwise of their seasons, and which could also be absolutely pivotal for the future careers of the three current coaches of Portugal’s three major clubs.
Rúben Amorim’s Sporting face a tough schedule but he is arguably the coach who has the most to gain. Benfica’s Roger Schmidt has on paper the easiest fixtures but desperately needs to avoid any slipups to prevent further weakening his fragile position. Porto’s Sérgio Conceição will be eyeing a huge Champions League scalp in the shape of Arsenal, where a triumph will likely have far-reaching consequences ahead of the club’s upcoming presidential elections.
Sporting Clube de Portugal
Atalanta (h) 06/03/2024; Arouca (a) 10/03/2024; Atalanta (a) 14/03/2024
“This is the most complete Sporting team since I’ve been here,” said Rúben Amorim today, ahead of the Europa League last-16 first leg against Atalanta in Lisbon tomorrow evening. The Lions are enjoying a terrific season, topping the Primeira Liga with a game in hand and earning plenty of plaudits for the exhilarating football they have produced thus far in 2023/24.
However, Sporting are just one point above Lisbon rivals Benfica and face a tougher looking run-in compared to the Eagles. Sporting host Benfica and travel to Porto in April. Before that, however, the Lisbon club must negotiate another extremely testing encounter when they travel to high-flying Arouca on Sunday. Daniel Sousa’s team are in sensational form having won 6 of their last 7 matches (including victory against Porto), scoring 20 goals in the process. The game is sandwiched between the two legs of the Europa League last-16 tie against Atalanta, on the back of a series of exhausting recent matches, meaning mental and physical fatigue could also enter into the equation. The Arouca match will therefore require intelligent squad management and the right motivational words from Amorim to keep his team on course for a memorable season.
The immediate focus, however, is on European football and a third meeting this season against Serie A outfit Atalanta. The two teams were in the same Europa League group earlier in the season, with the Italian team responsible for what Amorim called “our worst 45 minutes of football this season,” as they completely dominated their Portuguese opponents in the first half of the first game in Lisbon, going into the break 2-0 up. But the way Sporting reacted – the game ended 2-1 – and principally the excellent showing in the return match when Sporting were unlucky to come away with just a 1-1 draw, will give Amorim and his squad hope of getting past Gian Piero Gasperini’s side.
Should Sporting do so and manage to knock out Atalanta, and remain top of the pile at home by this time next week, the burgeoning reputation of Amorim will continue to soar, fuelling ever increasing speculation that he is being lined up for a move to one of Europe’s superclubs.
🔴 🇵🇹 Expert insight from @PortuGoal1 on Ruben Amorim:
— This Is Anfield (@thisisanfield) March 5, 2024
💎 He's "almost been a bit a 𝙢𝙞𝙧𝙖𝙘𝙡𝙚 𝙬𝙤𝙧𝙠𝙚𝙧" - "you really cannot overstate what a job he’s done at Sporting."https://t.co/TL6TaGSBhi
Benfica
Rangers (h) 07/03/2024; Estoril (h) 10/03/2024; Rangers (a) 14/03/2024
“It was a disaster. We were not good enough physically, mentally or tactically, and as the coach I’m the one responsible for that,” admitted Benfica Roger Schmidt after the humiliating 5-0 defeat to Porto on Sunday evening. Despite going into the game top of the standings, the German coach has been the target of heavy criticism throughout the season, with positive results usually the fruit of individual brilliance from the likes of Ángel Di María, Rafa Silva or David Neres rather than coherent team performances. Not even the star players could save Benfica from an awful Champions League campaign though, where only a last-second goal in the final match against Red Bull Salzburg avoided a complete European blowout and rescued a place in the Europa League.
Schmidt has turned a deaf ear to the criticism, often directed at him from Benfica’s own fans, but there was nowhere to hide after Sunday’s embarrassment. Nonetheless, Benfica are the current champions, Schmidt got the side playing exceptional football last season, and with a favourable schedule, a second successive title is certainly not out of the question.
A week is a long time in football, and in one week’s time it is not inconceivable that Benfica are back on top of the league and into the quarter-finals of the Europa League. That would likely reverse the current narrative surrounding the coach.
No doubt stung by the withering criticism directed at them this week, Benfica’s players will surely be out to make amends on Thursday when they welcome Scottish league leaders Rangers to the Estádio da Luz. “We need to understand what happened today and draw conclusions,” said president Rui Costa after the final whistle had blown at the Estádio do Dragão. “We are still alive on all fronts. The championship was not lost today. We have to react on Thursday and that’s what we’ll do.”
FC Porto
Portimonense (a) 08/03/2024; Arsenal (a) 12/03/2024
“I’m delighted about the performance and the result,” said coach Sérgio Conceição in the post-match afterglow of the Clássico dressing-down given to Benfica. “But I’m also annoyed that the quality of our play is not reflected in the points difference between us and our title rivals.”
Indeed, the tactical astuteness and effervescence of Porto’s football that translated into fantastic results against Arsenal and Benfica in recent weeks is at complete odds with the frequent lapses in concentration and apathetic showings that have proved costly in several matches against Portugal’s lesser lights throughout the season. As a result, Porto remain well off the pace in the title race, necessitating plentiful dropped points from both Sporting and Benfica to be in with a chance of claiming what would be a 4th title in seven years under Conceição.
However, Porto certainly appear to be on an upward trajectory. The signing of centre-back Otávio from Famalicão has solidified the defence, the excellence of Alan Varela and the emergence of Nico González has dramatically improved things in midfield, and the stardust provided by in-form Galeno and Francisco Conceição up front has given the Dragons a new lease of life.
When the draw was made for the Champions League, nobody gave Porto much of chance against Arsenal, but the sharp uptick in form of the Blue and Whites, along with the first-leg advantage they take to London, has many more Porto fans believing they can overcome the English giants than in the preceding weeks and months. Should they do so, Conceição, already well regarded on foreign shores for his consistently impressive results in Europe, may prove to be a viable alternative to Amorim for some of the continent’s biggest clubs who will be looking to fill a vacancy in the dugout next season. On the domestic front, it could also seal the deal for Porto president Pinto da Costa, whose admiration of Conceição and vice-versa is public knowledge, to win the upcoming presidential elections over André Villas-Boas.
Moreover, if Porto maintain the level they showed on Sunday, with Sporting facing stern tests before visiting the Dragão in late April, and before that a Lisbon derby where at least one of the sides from the capital will necessarily drop points, a late charge for the title may not actually be such a distant dream after all.
What’s the picture in one week’s time?
The demand for Portuguese players and coaches shows no signs of slowing down, exemplifying the quality of the game in the country. To get tickets to watch Sporting, Benfica, Porto or any other Primeira Liga match, visit the https://
It promises to be a fascinating week of football that will dictate how far the Big Three’s European ambitions can reach, that could have a big bearing on an intriguing Primeira Liga title race and that may have huge implications on the future careers of Rúben Amorim, Roger Schmidt and Sérgio Conceição.
As ever, keep tabs with all the action as it unfurls at PortuGOAL.net.
By Tom Kundert
