Dedic, the captain and Prestianni could leave; Silva after Benfica draw | OneFootball

He analyzed, in the press room at Tynecastle Park, the draw between Benfica and Hearts (1-1) in the second leg of the 3rd qualifying round of the UEFA Europa League. Check out everything the Benfica coach said after the clash in Scotland.

— "The first half was better than the second. In the first half we saw some very positive things: we managed to dominate, control the game well and create chances, with another shot off the woodwork. The number of chances wasn’t as high as in recent matches, but it was enough for us to go into half-time ahead. The second half was not positive. Basically, looking at both halves, we are much more satisfied with the first. The second half was not at the level we are capable of. We were already expecting some players to have some difficulty keeping up the game at the pace we wanted, and that was noticeable when we didn’t have the ball. We weren’t as aggressive on the ball as we have been in recent matches, and clearly there are players who need to build that capacity. They haven’t played enough minutes to be able to cope and play with the intensity, with and without the ball, that we want. We went through to the next round as we wanted, that was the objective, with a win at home [6-1] and a draw away [1-1]. We wanted to come here, win, and hold on to the result from the first leg, but we didn’t manage it. Overall, we got through the tie and, at the same time, it allowed us to see players and manage things. Not that we want to be in one game already thinking about the next one, but it allowed us to do that as well for Monday’s match."

Lenglet as captain

— "I wanted to be very clear and I gave you the five straight away and the hierarchy. You will hardly ever see, if we have the option, a goalkeeper as captain. Samu last year, contrary to what many people said, was already part of Benfica’s captains. A lot of people found it very strange that he continued this year. Maybe they expected me to arrive at Benfica and take the captaincy away from Samuel. Whenever possible, and whenever we think we should do it, Benfica’s captain will be an outfield player, regardless of the defined hierarchy. Being part of a group of captains is much more than just wearing the armband, it’s much more than that. For us, it is very important to have an outfield player as captain and whenever we want that and it is possible, that is what we will try to do."

Lenglet going off at half-time

— "It is linked to the planning. We have to be smart and cautious in the way we manage things. We are competing every three days. At this point in the season there isn’t much physical or mental fatigue yet, it will be more complicated in November, December or January, but at the same time we need to be cautious. Tomás still doesn’t have that many weeks of work, and even Lenglet himself didn’t start the first few days with us. After the result we got in the first leg and the excellent game we played, we knew we had to be serious and ambitious to try to win tonight, but at the same time it allowed us to do two things: give minutes to players I wanted to see in competition, because it’s different seeing them there, and I wanted to give them as many minutes as I could. We made seven changes, which always have an impact from one game to another. Of those seven players, six had not started a single match this season yet, and that was very important for us. We had planned to manage Enzo’s workload and that of the centre-backs. We had planned to give each of them 45 minutes, nothing happened to Lenglet. The objective was to give Manu the full 90 minutes in a position he knows, but where he hasn’t played as much, and at the same time manage the two centre-backs we currently have so we can give him competitive match practice."

Can Sudakov’s ability to adapt to these dynamics that Marco wants to implement earn him more playing time and a bigger role in Benfica’s attacking game?

— "That’s what we hope. We are giving him pathways and some positioning on the pitch so the ball reaches him in good conditions, as it did so many times tonight. If we count, especially in the first half, the number of times Sudakov managed to receive the ball between the lines, even inside the box at some moments, we understand that these are the pathways we want to give him. We want to make sure the ball reaches him in good conditions and he can get the better of his direct opponent. We managed that in the first half, even for Andreas himself on the left flank, and it was often through there that we were able to reach the final third. It seems to me we lacked a bit more sharpness in the final decision and above all greater aggression inside the box so that we could create even clearer scoring chances. We know Sudakov is a player with different characteristics from Ríos, who played on the other side of our triangle, or Leandro or Fredrik, when he plays. That is what we want to give the player in that position: not to roam across the front line and to be patient. That is where creativity has to come from, and other things that are important at this level."

José Neto

— "We felt it was the right moment for him to start, his debut in European competitions for a young player. A player who is very intelligent, not only on the pitch but off it as well, who understands well what we want and who will naturally have to grow. It is better for him to grow while competing than not competing. And whenever we can and feel it is the right time to give him the opportunity, we have to do so. He had a good pre-season, he is a player in whom we at Benfica have a lot of belief. We believe he can become a very important player for the club. A player who turned 18 in April, very young, like Banjaqui, Anísio, Miguel [Figueiredo]. Gradually being able to give them games and moments of competition at this level is important for them to keep growing. And tonight was the moment for Neto. He had some difficulties, he felt a pop in his shoulder in the first half. A first half with some good moments on the ball, helping what was the triangle on the left side with Sudakov and Andreas. Also in the moment of the goal, where he managed to move into a more central area and then had the ability to pick out the pass to Lukebakio. That is what we want to give him, often building with a back three with him as the most advanced-positioned player and then freeing himself into the channel to complete our triangle. In defensive moments he knows he has to grow in terms of the aggression the game demands, but he is a player we believe in a lot."

Amar Dedic

— "The market has zero influence on my decisions. If at any moment I am told that player A, B or C is no longer a Benfica player, that is one thing. Until I’m told that, for me there is no market that controls my decisions, and I can guarantee you that. My objective is always to look at what is in the best interests of Sport Lisboa e Benfica. As for Dedic, that was the decision that was made. I care very little about what is going on behind the scenes, which is also normal in this transfer window. We want players and other clubs want players too, that is part of the market, and it has zero influence on my decisions and on what I think is best for Benfica. It will absolutely be that way until the last day and the last minute of the transfer window."

You said today’s game would serve for assessments. What certainties do you leave with, and what will you take from it for the rest of the season?

— "I said it would be a game to look at players. This is not about tests or not tests. I already know them in training, obviously I did my analysis before arriving, but I need to see them in competition. I need to see how they react to positive moments, less positive moments, moments of pressure, which today was not as great because of the result we had. The very good work we did in the first game allowed us to do this with more calm and more confidence in this game. Changing seven players from one game to the next when we are at the start of the season, getting to know the ideas of a new coaching staff with some players arriving, all of that perhaps requires a bit more consistency in the starting eleven, and we decided differently. I liked the first half in many moments, I didn’t like the second half as much, and we will analyze it all together so they understand why the first half had many positive things and the second not so much. And now we move on to the next one, Casa Pia, which is the most important thing.

Possible departure of Dedic

— "You have information, you are better informed than I am, so that is also normal, it is part of your job. I am not going to comment on what appears in the media. I made the decision I felt was best for Benfica and it will always be that way. Benfica’s interests will always come above everything else while I am sitting in this chair and am Benfica’s coach, without any doubt whatsoever."

You have Prestianni in good form, Schjelderup started, you chose to use Lukebakio, and there is also Kaminski, who cost Benfica 17 million. Isn’t that a lot of financial effort for a third or fourth option?

— "You said Prestianni was in good form... no. Prestianni is in great form. ‘Also in good form’ sounds far too little for what he has been doing. I know it’s only a glimpse, there have only been a few matches and, as you have also been saying, very easy ones. But the reality is that he is in very, very good form. He has been a player I have really enjoyed watching, not only in matches. Obviously the game is the final test, but also in terms of his daily application, his work in training, the heart he has, the soul he puts into the game. I really like this type of player and that is exactly why, during pre-season, he showed signs that as soon as his suspension ended he would be a key piece for us, and I am very pleased. And if we are Benfica and we want to win games and approach competitions with ambition, it is not enough to have just one or two good players. If we want to be competitive on Saturday or Sunday and then again on Thursday, we need a lot of people working and fighting for places. I understand your analyses, they are yours and you are fully entitled to make them. I’m not going to stand here commenting on the price of player A, B, C or D because that is not my job with you, regardless of how much I respect your questions. What matters to me is that there is competitiveness, that Benfica are capable of fighting for places and that there is competitiveness during the week, because that is the only way players grow. If a player is too comfortable, he certainly will not grow, and I like them to have doubts, to feel doubts, because only then can we become better."

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