Fernando Sá: “We need to get much closer than we did in the first half” | OneFootball

The presentation of FC Porto's basketball team took place this Tuesday night at the Dragão Arena, the venue for the last preparatory match before the official start of the season.

Following the preparatory game against CB Coruña (79-86), Fernando Sá stated that it is possible to “take very positive things from the first half and very negative things from the second,” pointing out “some resignation” and “lack of commitment and intensity.” Before the trip to Bulgaria, and aware that the mission “is extremely difficult,” the Porto coach approaches the qualifying tournament for the Champions League “with great seriousness to try to secure qualification.”

Two distinct halves“We can take very positive things from the first half and very negative things from the second. The lack of commitment and intensity, regardless of whether the shots go in or not, which is normal at this stage of the season, because things still don't have the necessary quality. There was some resignation considering what the game forced us to do, with the change in Coruña's aggressive and defensive stance. This is what we have to work on, we had a difficult pre-season, with many players sick, which has slightly hindered our development, and this was noticeable in the second half offensively, but defensively there is no great justification for it.”

Focus on the Champions“We have to get much closer to what we did in the first half, in defensive intensity, in the number of rebounds and assists. We finished the first half with ten more rebounds than them and, in the end, we lost by two in that aspect. We finished with 15 assists and only made six in the second half. There are a series of parameters that we have to continue, and we approach the Champions qualification with great seriousness to try to secure the classification. We know it's extremely difficult, there are 24 teams, only three qualify, but we will do everything possible to qualify.”

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