Rui Borges dodges Benfica v Porto talk after Braga draw: "not my match" | OneFootball

Some phrases say more than they seem. When Rui Borges states, "it's not my game, I'm not worried about it, very honestly," the message is clear: the Benfica-FC Porto match stirs everything around, even for those who try to distance themselves. And when someone insists on not commenting on a classic of this magnitude, aren't they, in some way, already talking about it?

The statement comes in a tone of relaxation, almost of refusal, but opens up room for interpretation. "It's not my responsibility," Rui Borges also said, as if trying to close the subject before the conversation heats up. Legitimate? Without a doubt. But in football, where every word is weighed to the millimeter, it's inevitable to question what one is trying to avoid: the pressure, the noise, or simply the gravitational pull of a match where FC Porto continues to monopolize the debate?

There was another revealing passage. "I don't know what you are referring to, very honestly, to what it means to secure advantages." Here, Rui Borges counters the idea of competitive context and dismantles the question from its origin. He fulfills his role. But the essential remains: when talking about advantages, one speaks of the impact certain moments have on the pursuit of goals. And is there a more decisive, exposed, and scrutinized stage than a Benfica-FC Porto?

The coach also insisted that "it's part of it, it's the game" and evoked late plays, goals in the 90th minute, and draws beyond regulation time. It's a legitimate reading of football: unpredictability, emotion, and detail. However, it's worth remembering that when FC Porto is involved, that same unpredictability is often treated differently by the media. If it happens with some, it's mystique; if it happens with Porto, how many times is competitive merit not attempted to be converted into rhetorical suspicion?

Rui Borges added: "We have to see what we could have done better, or not, it's football, plain and simple." And here is an idea that deserves respect: looking inward before seeking external explanations. This principle applies to everyone. It also applies to those who, faced with the weight of a classic, prefer to downplay what's coming instead of recognizing its true dimension.

On the Porto side, the focus is as always: compete, respond on the field, and not waste time with peripheral noise. FC Porto doesn't need to fuel dramas to assert itself. It needs identity, demand, and competitive nerve—traits that distinguish it when the stage tightens and many around start measuring words.

In the end, that's what bothers and that's what counts. One might say "it's not my game." But when FC Porto takes the field, it almost always ends up being everyone's game. There are clubs that participate in the moment; and there is a club that forces everyone to position themselves before it. That club continues to be FC Porto.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇵🇹 here.