João Gabriel slams Benfica mainstay, asks: can he carry on? | OneFootball

João Gabriel once again became highly critical of the current management at Luz. In a post published on the social network LinkedIn, the former communications director of Benfica again took aim at Rui Costa, as he had done previously, and questioned the Eagles president’s ability to remain in office in light of the most recent events.

"Does Rui Costa have the conditions to continue? He is the one who must answer that!" he began by writing. "The presidential box at Luz today reflects what this Benfica board has been. Those who helped build the club’s history deserve every respect and recognition, but the presidential box is — should be — a space for representation, affirmation, and building the future. That is where relationships are established, where the club’s weight is reinforced, and where Benfica is projected. New or better contracts, lobbying, strategic partnerships, institutional influence. Remaining closed off in the past is to ignore the demands of the present and compromise what Benfica can and should be in the future", the former executive pointed out.

"While at Alvalade or Dragão we see the Prime Minister, ministers, mayors, and relevant figures from society at national and international level, at Luz we witness, game after game, a massive presence of former players (and almost always the same ones). A clear sign of the lack of institutional work, which then forces them to go running to Parliament", João Gabriel continued.

"Rui Costa’s leadership at Benfica is today going through a moment of evident tension. The signs of wear are piling up, the mistakes are visible, and the criticism is growing. But there is a line that should not be crossed: that of the hasty delegitimization of a president who, less than half a year ago, was reinforced by two emphatic votes from the members", pointed out the former member of the Reds’ board.

"At a democratic club like Benfica, legitimacy is not an abstract concept nor something that can be shaped according to sporting frustration. Despite the erratic management, without a clear and consistent strategic line, consolidated liabilities that increased by 189 million in five years, the loss of influence in sporting bodies, and an expensive and ineffective transfer policy, the temptation for forceful responses is growing. It was from this frustration that, this week, a petition was born calling for an Extraordinary General Assembly with a destructive character", João Gabriel concluded in a post published on the social network LinkedIn.

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