Luís Campos hails Sérgio Conceição in Vitinha’s rise: “Crucial” | OneFootball

Luís Campos, PSG’s sporting director, highlighted Sérgio Conceição’s role in Vitinha’s development during a conference at the Portugal Football Summit. The executive pointed to intensity, physicality, and an understanding of the different phases of the game as decisive hallmarks in the midfielder’s growth. The admiration, however, went back a long way, and he assured: “He has always impressed me.”

Familiar with Vitinha’s path since his teenage years, Luís Campos drew a clear line between the talent he identified early on and the player who reached another level under the guidance of the then FC Porto coach. At the heart of his analysis was the competitive transformation brought about by Sérgio Conceição’s demands.

In the 2021/22 season, Vitinha played 47 matches for FC Porto, scored four goals and provided five assists. More than the numbers, Luís Campos valued the leap the midfielder made in intensity and in his understanding of the game.

“I have known Vitinha for a long time, since he was 15 or 16 years old. He has always impressed me,” he said. “Last year he was already among the three best players in the world and today he is considered one of the best. There is a Vitinha before Sérgio Conceição and a Vitinha after Sérgio Conceição who, in my opinion, was fundamental at the moment when he brought a different intensity to his game, a different physical dimension and, perhaps, a better understanding of the different phases of the game.”

Luís Campos’s view goes beyond recognising natural talent: it places the work done at FC Porto as the turning point. Sérgio Conceição thus emerges as a decisive figure in Vitinha’s transition from promising youngster to a player regarded as one of the best.

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