After what seemed like an eternity, Liga Portugal came back with a bang both on and off the pitch. Narratives are already being written, managers already looking for another job and a fresh crop of players are ready to catch our eye.
We’ve seen in the past teams left behind in the league in the early stages unable to get back out of trouble as well as teams like Boavista whose incredible start last year essentially kept them up, so although it’s only the second round, every game counts.
Barney Carter-Phillips brings you PortuGOAL’s preview of the weekend action in Portugal’s top flight.
Santa Clara v Porto
Porto kick the weekend off early on Friday travelling to the Azores to play Santa Clara. Despite no new signings we seem to be seeing a very different Porto under Vítor Bruno. Players like Iván Jaime and Danny Namaso brought in out of the cold have already made an impact with important goals. Jaime in particular looks to be brimming with confidence and set to have a big season. Midfielders Alan Varela and Nico González are not only developing as individuals but their relationship and understanding is clearly growing.
If we are looking for a weak point it may be in defence. The left-back position is still up for grabs. Wendell and Zaidu Sanusi are yet to come back into the fold, while Martim Fernandes who played there during pre-season, is fighting for a starting spot at right-back. The gaping hole left by Pepe seems to be filled by Zé Pedro, a player who did incredibly well to keep his place under Conceição last season and whose performances have warranted a start under Vítor Bruno too.
Santa Clara themselves got off to a flying start, continuing their dominant performances from Liga 2 last season. Nine of the players who beat Estoril 4-1 played in the final game of the previous campaign. Continuity after promotions has served teams well in the past and manager Vasco Matos will hope to continue their winning ways, even against Porto. The ex-assistant of Felipe Martins plays a similar system with inside forwards being overlapped by attacking full-backs. Brazilian MT shone last week on the left but also keep an eye on Lucas Soares on the other side who will want to exploit Porto’s left-back position.
Nacional v Sporting
Champions Sporting will also be travelling by plane this weekend as they go to Madeira to face CD Nacional. A dominant first game after the disastrous loss to Porto in the Super Cup showed us the standards they are setting themselves this season. Pote and Gyökeres could battle it out for top goal scorer this season and were ruthless as ever. The defence look formidable too and new club captain Morten Hjulmand was dominant in midfield.
CD Nacional will do very well to get a result in this game it feels. After a summer of lots of transfer activity the team seemed a little disjointed in their draw against fellow promoted club AVS. New signing Miguel Baeza returned to Portugal with a goal. Tiago Margarido at just 35 years old could be the next hot young manager just as Rúben Amorim was a few years ago. Having previously managed in Liga 3 before taking the Nacional job, this will be Margarido’s biggest match of his career so far.
Related: The Long Ball Futebol Podcast: One week gone and two Primeira Liga clubs in crisis!
Benfica v Casa Pia
Where to start on Benfica? The season already feels like it has reached boiling point with fans’ approval ratings of Roger Schmidt and Rui Costa at rock bottom despite a decent preseason and new signings. The 2-0 loss to Famalicão was an almost identical performance to one we saw last year with players not at it and the manager unable to influence things from the bench.
Casa Pia may be the ideal team for Benfica to play right now. The smallest team in the league lost a lot of players this summer and are yet to make any significant signings. Manager João Periera, the youngest in the league at just 32 years old, has a real job on his hands to keep them up this year. New striker Samuel Obeng could be the player to pin their hopes on if they are to pile more misery on Benfica.
Boavista v Braga
The biggest story of last weekend was Daniel Sousa’s dismissal almost immediately after Braga’s 1-1 draw with Estrela da Amadora on Sunday night. Carlos Carvalhal was taking training by Monday afternoon and fans are still waiting for the full story. Whatever the reason, Carvalhal feels like a safe pair of hands although he’ll be working with a squad that needs to realise its full potential.
Most people hadn’t given Boavista a hope in hell this season but surprisingly they came away victorious against Casa Pia in their opener. There always seems to be an element of nothing left to lose with Boavista who, due to a transfer ban, are working with a threadbare squad made up of several youth players.
Vitoria v Estoril; Farense v Rio Ave
Elsewhere there are several interesting match-ups, not least between Vitória and Estoril. Vitória have done incredibly well under former Moreirense manager Rui Borges both in Europe and in their first league game. Ian Cathro however had a baptism of fire and already has his doubters. He’ll be hoping his team can bounce back at the Dom Afonso Henriques and will welcome the return of countryman Jordan Holsgrove to the team. He will have a job to do against Vitória’s excellent midfield with Tomas Handel the pick of the bunch.
Other teams looking for better results this week will be Rio Ave and Farense who play each other on Saturday. With a squad full of new faces, Luís Freire needs things to gel quickly at Rio Ave. Farense have lost some experienced players this summer and José Mota will certainly have a harder job than last year to steer them clear of trouble.
Three players to keep an eye on
Alisson Safira (Santa Clara): The Brazilian striker (pictured, right) who impressed at B-SAD was never given an opportunity at Vitória. He was a key player for Santa Clara last year despite only notching 7 goals in 31 games. However he’s up and running early this year with a goal and assist in his first game.
Amine El Ouazzani (Braga): Originally brought in to add depth to the attack, the 23-year-old Moroccan has found himself as the main striker at Braga with Simon Banza seemingly following Abel Ruiz out the door. Braga had found a consistent goal scorer in Banza so will be hoping Ouazzani can do the same.
Iván Jaime (Porto): WIth two goals in his last two games Iván Jaime is back to his best. It will be interesting what place he will take up in this Porto team, particularly with the potential departures of Galeno and Chico Conceição. I feel he is most dangerous in the middle closer to goal but Vítor Bruno may have other ideas.
