Porto fans vote on Saturday: Pinto da Costa or André Villas-Boas?

Tomorrow, Saturday 27 April 2024, is set to be a monumental day for the future of FC Porto. Indeed, the visit of league leaders Sporting to the Estádio do Dragão the day after has been relegated almost to a sideshow this weekend for Porto fans.

Porto’s long-serving president Jorge Nuno Pinto da Costa and the pretender to his throne, André Villas-Boas, were once the closest of allies. But the two have become embroiled in an increasingly fractious election campaign, with insults and accusations flying from one camp to the other. 

PortuGOAL elaborates on the backdrop to Satuday’s election. 

Spicy weekend in store: Porto v Sporting & Benfica v Braga

For many people at the beginning of the season, Jornada 31 stood out as a potential season highlight with not one but two clássicos as Benfica were scheduled to play against Braga, and Porto against Sporting. Coupled with the fact that there would be only three matches remaining in the season, it had the potential to be a title and season-defining moment in the whole season.

The way things have panned out, the drama we hoped might have been there hasn’t really materialised with Sporting well ahead in the title race, but we could still see the Lions crowned champions if they win their game against Porto, and Benfica were to lose against Braga.

Whether or not this weekend does turn out to be a decisive one, the opportunity to watch Portugal’s biggest clubs against each other doesn’t come around too often, so the chance to watch two heavyweight matchups in one weekend is not to be missed. 

There’s a new must-have range of sports collectibles for Benfica and FPF fans; Alloy Collectors Metal Jerseys, a fantastic new and unique collection of innovative collectibles featuring iconic football clubs.

Each shirt, crafted in etched stainless steel, stands approximately 11cm tall and is perfect for on-shelf display. 

• Benfica
• Farense

Benfica took a big step towards securing second spot in the Primeira Liga after beating Farense 3-1 at Estádio de São Luís.

The Ángel Di María and Alexander Bah overload created the Eagles’ first goal in the 16th minute, Bah’s cross converted by Orkun Kökçü.

Farense equalsied seven minutes later, Mohamed Belloumi picking up a loose ball and smashing it past Anatolii Trubin.

The Eagles regained the lead in the 34th minute, a near identical goal to the first, Di María and Bah combining with Arthur Cabral converting the cross with a clever backheel.

Cabral hit the post before the break but Benfica made sure of the result in the 67th minute, Di María finding Álvaro Fernández who scored his first goal for Roger Schmidt’s side.

The result sees Benfica move eight points ahead of Porto and Braga with four games remaining, the Eagles trailing Sporting Clube de Portugal by seven points.