Luís Castro on Gabriel Mec: “Unpredictable first touch” | OneFootball

FC Porto have reached an agreement with Grémio for the signing of Gabriel Mec, an 18-year-old creative talent. The Brazilian player has been coached by Portuguese manager Luís Castro since the end of 2025. This season, he has made 32 appearances and played 1,452 minutes.

After the 3-1 win over Chapecoense on matchday 25 of the Brasileirão, Luís Castro spoke about the young talent, who is preparing to move to Portugal.

“He is technically very talented. He can turn to the right and to the left with the same ease. He is very unpredictable in the way he receives the ball and turns. A very spontaneous player in his finishing, and he is learning to be more effective in the defensive phase. He is clearly progressing. Whoever bought Mec’s services bought pure talent. I think he will stand out a lot as he matures his game,” he said in the press room.

Despite the praise, the attacking midfielder, who can also play as a winger, has lost ground in recent matches. Over the last eight rounds, he featured in only two games, for a total of 59 minutes. Luís Castro clarified that his reduced playing time was not related to a drop in form, but rather to changes in the tactical approach.

“Mec was a player who had just over 40 minutes last season and was very eager to compete. We made great use of that energy, together with his qualities, to develop him within certain game dynamics. Then we moved on to different dynamics and were working with him so he could fit into this new dynamic,” he argued.

The signing of former Benfica player Filip Krovinovic also helped reduce Gabriel Mec’s prominence in creative duties and in linking midfield with attack.

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