Portuguese Football in English
Sérgio Conceição cut a frustrated figure after his AC Milan side were beaten by Feyenoord in Rotterdam in the first leg of their Champions League play-off tie.
The Portuguese boss walked out of his post-match press conference after just one question following the defeat, while star forward Rafael Leão conceded that the Rossoneri showed less desire than their Dutch counterparts.
Las Palmas striker Fábio Silva is the leading Portuguese goalscorer across Europe’s big five leagues, having re-energised his career in Spain’s La Liga with the Canary Islands side.
On-loan from Wolverhampton Wanderers, Silva gave an interview to The Athletic earlier this week in which he discussed a season which has already seen him score against both Real Madid and Barcelona on the road, while touching on some of his experiences following a big-money move to England.
Brest 0-3 Paris Saint-Germain
French champions Paris Saint-Germain all but secured their place in the last-16 of the Champions League with a comfortable victory over fellow Ligue 1 side Brest on Tuesday evening.
Portuguese midfielder Vitinha opened the scoring in the play-off clash from the penalty spot and received glowing praise after the match from manager Luis Enrique, who described the former Porto man as the perfect embodiment of a midfielder.
Milan 3-1 Roma
João Félix came off the bench to make a goalscoring start to life with AC Milan, as the Rossoneri advanced to the semi-finals of the Coppa Italia with victory over Roma at San Siro.
A Brace from Tammy Abraham in the first half set Milan on their way, but Artem Dovbyk’s goal after the break gave Roma hope. Félix and Rafael Leão were both introduced for the latter stages, with debutant Félix clinching the win with a classy finish.
João Félix is the biggest name from Portugal to move during the winter transfer window, sealing his loan to AC Milan from Chelsea in the last hours before the deadline. Félix was the third Portuguese to make a high-profile move to Serie A during the mid-season market, following Juventus’ double swoop on defenders Alberto Costa of Vitória and Chelsea’s Renato Veiga.
Meanwhile, André Silva joins his third Bundesliga club in Werder Bremen, while two familiar faces headed to Brazil in the shape of Cédric Soares and Gonçalo Paciência, Jota made an emotional return to Scottish giants Celtic and Anthony Lopes brought an end to his lengthy career with Lyon.
