FC Porto visit Académico de Viseu to keep perfect league start | OneFootball

FC Porto travel to the Estádio Municipal do Fontelo for the fourth round of the league, where they will face Académico de Viseu from 6pm this Saturday (Sport TV1). The national champions go into this match after three straight 2-0 wins, while the newly promoted side began their Liga Portugal 2026/27 campaign with a 2-2 draw against Benfica.

FC Alverca, Rio Ave and FC Arouca were Porto’s victims in the first three rounds, all by the same scoreline. With nine points collected and no goals conceded, FC Porto lead on their own, two points ahead of Sporting, Santa Clara and Marítimo. Académico, meanwhile, drew at the Luz and at the Barreiros, both matches ending 2-2, before losing 1-0 at home to the Azorean side.

The match in Viseu therefore promises to be another stern test. FC Porto have not faced Académico in a league match at the Fontelo for almost 40 years. In their most recent league visit, in September 1988, Porto and the Viriatos could not manage more than a goalless draw. The overall record, however, is clearly in the blue-and-whites’ favour, with 13 wins and two draws in 15 meetings.

After several years without meeting, FC Porto and Académico crossed paths again in 2020. Since then, they have played four matches, two in Viseu and two in Porto. The last duel at the Fontelo came in the quarter-finals of the 2022/23 Portuguese Cup, with the Dragons winning 1-0 thanks to a goal from André Franco. Three years earlier, in 2020, the two teams had drawn 1-1 in the first leg of the semi-finals.

Tickets made available through the bilhetes.fcporto.pt platform sold out within a few hours, and strong backing from Porto fans is expected, with the away section dressed in blue and white.

FC Porto

Francesco Farioli expects “a very difficult match” against “a team that has already proved its worth”, one that “is brave without the ball and very well organised” and that “will give its life to get points”. Despite the respect for the opposition, the national champions want to extend their perfect run in the league. “We are here to win and we will do everything to achieve that.”

After another training session at the CTFD Jorge Costa, the Italian coach received confirmation that Cláudio Ramos and Martim Fernandes, now recovered, are available for the match. Farioli also stressed that the final stretch of the transfer window “cannot take the focus away from the game” against Académico de Viseu, in a match where it will be essential to “attack at the right time, with patience and intensity”.

Samu, Oskar Pietuszewski and Seko Fofana, who recently returned, remain unavailable. For Francesco Farioli, “it would be a huge step to get the result we want” at the Estádio Municipal do Fontelo, although “there are many challenges ahead in a game that will require a great deal of attention”. Pleased with what “happened with Nehuén Pérez and now with Borja Sainz”, the coach wants the team to take to the pitch “with the right approach”.

With the transfer market remaining in the spotlight until Friday, 4 September, Francesco Farioli also addressed the subject: “As I’ve already said, we are completely aligned within the Club and what we will do in the market depends on several factors and circumstances. As you know, the final days of the window are always hectic and many things can happen.”

Académico

Académico finished the last edition of the Second League in second place, securing a return to the top flight 37 years later. André Clóvis, the competition’s top scorer with 23 goals, and Soufiane Messeguem, the leading assist provider with 10, remain in the squad now coached by Bruno Pinheiro, with whom Francesco Farioli worked in Qatar.

Despite the departure of seven players, the Viseu club strengthened the squad with goalkeepers Ewerton (formerly of Barra-SC), Marcos Lavín (formerly of USL Dunkerque) and Juan Soriano (formerly of Leganés); midfielders Andro Babic (formerly of Velez Mostar), Alejandro Mestanza (formerly of Atlético de Madrid) and Cristian Ferreira (formerly of Argentinos Juniors); as well as forwards João Guilherme (formerly of EC Água Santa), Mohamed Bouldini (formerly of RC Deportivo), Valery Fernández (formerly of Real Zaragoza), Álvaro Zamora (formerly of Aris) and Paulinho (formerly of Wieczysta Krakow).

Ewerton, Robinho, Anthony Correia, Soufiane Messeguem, Cihan Kahraman, João Guilherme and André Clóvis were part of Académico’s starting eleven in the first three rounds. The striker has already scored twice and is among the league’s top finishers.

Refereeing team

Miguel Nogueira, from the Lisbon Football Association, was appointed by the Refereeing Council of the Portuguese Football Federation to officiate the match. The 32-year-old referee will have Paulo Brás and Nuno Pires as assistants, while Ricardo Baixinho will serve as fourth official. Pedro Ferreira will be the VAR, with Nuno Eiras as assistant.

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