João Brandão: “We've already shown we're Portugal's best B team” | OneFootball

After the 0-1 triumph over Sporting B in Alcochete, FC Porto B return to their own turf for the classic still to be played in 2025/26, which opens the 34th and final round of the Segunda Liga, against Benfica B, on Friday at 6:00 pm, live on Porto Canal, at the CTFD Jorge Costa. João Brandão took the opportunity to assess the players’ development, highlighted the Dragons’ “pride” in being “the best B team” in the competition, and recalled that “FC Porto lives on victories, trophies and rivalry.” Heading into this clash, FC Porto B sit sixth with 48 points, while Benfica B are ninth with 44. Ticket information is available here.

João Brandão

The win in Alcochete“The feelings were very positive, as I said at the end of the match. Above all, because we lived up to FC Porto’s values. It was a complex and difficult game, complex to prepare for and to play, also because of the opponent’s quality. It was the first of two classics to close out this Segunda Liga campaign, and in it we were very collective. Our team’s great strength was its increasingly complete growth in terms of the game and the different moments of the game. We were very competitive in every moment of the game and that was the first big step towards achieving victory in a game that is always special, as all classics are. Then there is the natural way academy players emerge, because they already come prepared thanks to the work done throughout the academy, regardless of age group. They want it badly and they understand that the context has been created. That context is created by the atmosphere lived and breathed in the B team, one of high standards and hard work, but also of valuing the players’ individual abilities. They have been doing it very successfully and have managed to bring new things to our game. In Francisco [Fernandes]’s case, he had the positional freedom he likes so much and the creativity he has in attacking play, which sets him apart from the others, but within a collective framework. What pleased me most was his ability to understand the defensive and strategic dimension of the game and the way he quickly integrated into a group that had its arms open to welcome him. João Brito and Gustavo Guerra have been working with us for some time and this is a gradual, thought-out and planned process. It culminated in the debut of those two players, and may it be the first of many steps in a long, difficult and demanding journey.”

The best B team in the Segunda Liga“FC Porto lives on victories, trophies and rivalry. It lives on resilience and on the regional identity we are so fond of here in the North. The pride of being the best B team is represented in all of that. We look at every match as a challenge and as a step to help our players grow individually and collectively, but always with the goal of putting FC Porto in the best position possible. Nothing satisfies us more than being the best, match by match and training session by training session, and at the end of the championship. We know we are going to be the best collectively compared to the other B teams, and last weekend we showed that we are better, because we beat one of our rivals away and at home. Now we want to beat the second rival.”

Growing maturity and new challenges“Not long ago, I said the time was coming to set the team new challenges, even at a time when we still had not guaranteed survival. But the team gave me confidence and we were at a level of maturity that allowed us to do that, and the players themselves were eager to see new dynamics and try new things. The challenge is to step out of the comfort zone, push them to do different things and make them better prepared for the future. We will continue to bring in new youngsters and we will continue to want different dynamics, taking some risks, that is true, but I am sure the team is ready and eager for the match to arrive.”

Benfica B“This is a Benfica B side that has had a similar journey to ours, difficult at the start and then improving. They clearly have players with vast experience in the Segunda Liga and even in the Primeira Liga, so they are players with a different competitive maturity from our team, but that does not give them an advantage. What will give one team or the other an advantage will be the ability and energy put onto the pitch in those 90 minutes. We are going to face a rival in a special game in a very Porto way.”

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