Henrique Maduro: “take to the pitch and keep it simple” | OneFootball

FC Porto’s Under-17 team hosts FC Famalicão this Sunday at 11am at the Estádio de Pedrooso in matchday seven of the Northern Series of the National Under-17 Championship, in a game broadcast on Porto Canal. Manuel Prata expects a highly demanding challenge and points to collective competence in every moment of the game, while Henrique Maduro highlights the group’s growing unity and the need to keep things simple. The midfielder summed up the mission: “go onto the pitch and make the game as simple as possible.”

With the ambition of continuing to grow, the young Dragons are preparing for another round of the championship. Manuel Prata, the team’s coach, is focused on what his side can add to its game, in a week in which the squad worked to fine-tune processes; Henrique Maduro, a midfielder, echoes that idea, calling for concentration against an opponent that does not allow for easy conclusions.

Asked about the level of difficulty of the match, Manuel Prata refused to look at the results already achieved by the opponent. The coach made it clear that the demand begins with the way FC Porto views its own room for improvement.

“We approach this game as a challenge of the highest level and we do not place value on our opponent’s results so far. It is a team we know very well, but we look at ourselves and want to do more,” he said. “This week we understood what we can still add to our game, how we can be more collective in order to win the three points.”

The message is one of ambition without overconfidence: knowing the opponent does not change the priority of improving Porto’s game. It is from that internal demand that Manuel Prata intends to respond to the challenge posed by FC Famalicão.

On his reading of the opponent, the coach acknowledged that there are specific aspects to anticipate, but once again placed the focus of preparation on the identity he wants to see on the pitch from the opening whistle.

“We know FC Famalicão very well, we know in which aspects they will try to hurt us, but we think about ourselves and what we want to bring to the game from the first minute, and we understand that we must be highly competent in every moment of the game.”

More than reacting to whatever the match may bring, the team wants to impose competence and clarity in every phase. It is an idea that links the immediate preparation to the broader objective of development.

Manuel Prata also spoke about the week of work and the desire shown by the squad. The coach highlighted the players’ hunger to improve and the ambition he sees in the group.

“The week went very well, we feel that all the players are hungry for more, with tremendous ambition to do things better so that we can achieve the goal of getting the players ever closer to reaching the first team.”

The horizon, then, goes beyond a single game or matchday: it lies in the sustained growth of each player. That urgency to improve is presented as the team’s daily driving force.

The heavy win over Leixões SC was also part of the analysis, but without any room for prolonged celebrations. For Manuel Prata, the previous result serves as a reference, not a refuge.

“It gives us confidence, but it is already part of the past. We look at the good things, we understand that there are things to improve, such as not conceding goals, but we are already looking at this new week with a new challenge and we always want to add something.”

The confidence remains, but attention quickly shifts to what still needs refining. Against FC Famalicão, FC Porto wants to turn that reading into a competitive response.

Henrique Maduro shared the coach’s caution when discussing the opponent. The midfielder did not hide the expected difficulty, but pointed to preparation for every possible scenario.

“It is a difficult opponent. We do not look at results, but rather at the game that will take place at the weekend, and we want to be prepared for everything.”

It is an approach without complacency, based on the idea that the game is decided on the pitch and not by recent history. For the midfielder, preparation must anticipate the complexity of the challenge.

On how to approach the match, Henrique Maduro insisted on one watchword: simplify. The midfielder valued the team’s starts in recent games and wants to carry that momentum into Sunday.

“It will be a complicated game, like them all. There are no easy games, but our duty is to go onto the pitch and make the game as simple as possible. We have started the last few matches very well and we want to take that into the weekend.”

In the player’s summary, difficulty does not call for complication, but for clarity in decision-making and faithfulness to what the team has been doing well. It is in that balance that the Under-17s want to find the path to the three points.

The home factor also stands out in Henrique Maduro’s preview. The midfielder invited the fans to turn out at the Estádio de Pedroso.

“Having the fans on our side is always an advantage and I want to invite them all to come to the Estádio de Pedroso.”

The support from the stands appears as an additional boost for a team that wants to make home advantage count. And that collective strength, the midfielder stressed, begins within the group itself.

Henrique Maduro highlighted the dressing room unity as a fundamental element for the team. The progress in that area, he said, has been one of the key features of their preparation.

“The team is together, the group is becoming more and more united. The coach has emphasised that unity is fundamental for us to get the three points and we are improving in that aspect.”

In the midfielder’s words, unity is more than a motivating idea: it is a tool to compete better. At the Estádio de Pedroso, FC Porto wants to bring it into the game.

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