Bruno Pinheiro plots perfect plan to upset Francesco Farioli as Porto visit Académico de Viseu | OneFootball

Bruno Pinheiro faces friend Francesco Farioli for the first time as rivals when Académico de Viseu host Porto at Fontelo on Saturday at 18:00. He says his side must be perfect to spring a shock.

They built their friendship in Qatar and at Aspire Academy, crossing paths with youth national teams. Lino Godinho, now Farioli’s assistant at Porto, worked under Pinheiro with Qatar’s under-19 and under-20 sides from 2017 to 2019. According to O Jogo, Farioli called it a tough game and kept his ideas to himself.

Pinheiro has parked sentiment for the 90 minutes, urging his players to match or better Porto’s aggression. He argues Porto are superior in most league games, use that superiority to suffocate opponents, and are extremely aggressive without the ball. He accepts his team cannot mirror Porto’s approach and expects to adjust quickly to their pressing.

Even so, Viseu have a plan, and their top-flight return already includes a 2-2 draw at Benfica. Porto create many defensive duels, so winning them could raise Académico’s possession, otherwise they risk long spells without the ball.

He says defensive patience will be vital, waiting for moments to win the ball and break in transitions that might trouble Porto. He adds they will need a flawless display, for Porto not to have much luck, and officiating without major incidents that might not penalise them. He hopes a combination of factors delivers a first win and makes them the first side to score against Porto and not concede.

Source: O Jogo

“Artificial intelligence was used to assist in creating this article based on reporting from the original source quoted.”