Deco recalls Antas clash: “FC Porto was love at first sight” | OneFootball

Deco went back to the time when he was playing for Salgueiros to recall the moment he decided he wanted to play for FC Porto. The former midfielder remembered the impact of the atmosphere at the Estádio das Antas, Mário Jardel’s goals, and the path that would eventually lead him to the dragons. It all began, he assured, as “love at first sight.”

Before becoming one of the standout figures in Porto’s team, Deco was won over from the stands. The emotion of a clássico, which he believes was against Benfica, sparked an immediate ambition in him, one that would later be fulfilled on the pitch.

Recalling that first contact with the blue-and-white world, the former player highlighted the intensity coming from the stands and Jardel’s starring role. It was in that setting that he plainly voiced his desire to one day wear the FC Porto shirt.

“I watched an FC Porto match, I think it was against Benfica, Jardel scored goals, it was at the old Antas stadium, a game full of emotion, with the fans buzzing, and then I said: ‘I want to play here,’” he said. “And that was it. It was love at first sight.”

The first chapter of that connection came while he was still wearing the Salgueiros shirt, when Deco faced the team that had impressed him at the Antas.

“Then I played for Salgueiros against FC Porto, it was my personal experience against them, and then it happened,” recalled Deco, who would eventually join the dragons and become one of the team’s key figures.

The memory draws a direct line between that initial fascination and the fulfillment of his wish. First as a spectator, then as an opponent, and finally as an FC Porto player, Deco saw that impression turn into a defining journey.

His relationship with the club, however, went through a moment of uncertainty after winning the UEFA Cup in 2003. Barcelona, which Deco regarded as a dream, showed interest in signing him, leading the midfielder to feel that the time had come to leave.

“The first few years didn’t go well, but then we won the UEFA Cup and Barcelona, which was my dream, came in, and I thought I had to go,” he explained.

The move did not happen at that time. Pinto da Costa, then FC Porto’s president, placed the decision in José Mourinho’s hands, but the talks left Deco in limbo.

“The president said that if Mourinho allowed it, I could go, and I would go speak to Mourinho, and he said the same thing — that if the president allowed it, I could go.”

Amid those back-and-forth answers, the midfielder remained at FC Porto. His dream of playing for Barcelona was postponed, while his link with the dragons lasted for another season.

His stay came with a promise from Pinto da Costa: Deco would be allowed to leave the following year. The start of that season was not the most positive for the player, but the ending brought Champions League glory and renewed Barcelona’s interest.

“The following year I started badly, but then I started playing well, we won the Champions League. Barcelona came back, I thought it was impossible, but Pinto da Costa was true to his word, he said he would do it and he really did what he had promised.”

In 2004, after winning the Champions League with FC Porto, Deco finally fulfilled his dream of playing for Barcelona. His farewell also confirmed that the promise made had been kept, bringing to a close a journey that had begun with a spontaneous declaration in the Antas stands: he wanted to play there.

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