After years of bringing in raw talents from South America, Porto have gone back to the drawing board on their transfer policy and are now nurturing plenty of homegrown starlets. Writing for Sportdec, Tom Kundert explains why they’ve made the switch, and how they are now seeing the results after a barren few years.

The re-emergence of Benfica, spiralling debt and a succession of failed coaching appointments have combined to leave FC Porto in the unusual position of playing catch-up in Portugal. Last season, the Dragons plummeted to a new low, finishing 15 points behind champions Benfica and 13 behind Sporting, as well as bombing badly in Europe.

The sudden and dramatic fall is a stark reminder that in football, like in life, no matter how far ahead of the pack you are, if you stand still you will soon be overtaken.

Porto will attempt to take their excellent domestic form onto the European stage in midweek as they welcome Italian powerhouse Juventus to the Estádio do Dragão.

Nuno Espírito Santo’s team have clocked up six straight victories in the past month and are unbeaten this season at home in all competitions (13 victories and 5 draws in 18 matches). However, they are yet to face a team of the quality of Massimiliano Allegri’s side, winners of the last five Serie A titles and Champions League finalists in 2014/15.

Juventus expert Adam Digby, author of “Juventus: A History In Black & White” tells PortuGOAL what the Dragons can expect on Wednesday night.

Gameweek 22 entered with an intense rubbing of the hands from the northern sector of Portugal, especially after Friday night’s showing from Nuno Espírito Santo’s FC Porto side, who welcomed Tondela, currently at the foot of the table, to the Estádio do Dragão.

The hosts didn’t disappoint the home crowd and powered their way to the top of the Liga NOS table, albeit momentarily, via a 4-0 victory, as they waited in anticipation for Benfica’s potentially tricky away fixture versus Sporting de Braga.

Between both fixtures and still in the distance of this race for the title, Sporting were matched up against Rio Ave in a game that marked Rui Patrício’s 400th appearance for the Lions. The goalkeeper put the occasion to good use, as his team came away with a 1-0 win to hold onto third place.

With the baton placed firmly within the Eagles’ grasp, Benfica kept up with the pace of their rivals – just – thanks to Kostas Mitroglou’s winner in the 80th minute that defined a hard-earned 1-0 victory for the current league leaders. Here’s how the action unfolded.

Benfica 1-0 Borussia Dortmund

A memorable match in Lisbon saw Benfica escape with victory despite being outplayed for 90 minutes by an impressive Borussia Dortmund side.

Kostas Mitroglou's goal early in the second half, a succession of glaring misses by the normally lethal Aubameyang and a wondrous goalkeeping display by Benfica No.1 Ederson mean the Portuguese champions will travel to Germany in three weeks with a precious lead in the tie.