Porto end season against Santa Clara, Farioli wants full commitment | OneFootball

With no longer any chance of reaching the 91-point mark in the league, a record set by Sérgio Conceição in 2021/2022, following the unexpected defeat in Vila das Aves against the bottom side, FC Porto now turns its attention to the final game of the season, a match in which Francesco Farioli wants total commitment from everyone in the home clash against Santa Clara.

The coach did not hide his irritation with the setback in Matchday 33, a game in which he felt there was some complacency from certain players after he opted for a so-called “second string” lineup. Lack of aggression and poor finishing were the reasons pointed out by the man who brought the national title back to FC Porto, although, between the lines, he went even further in his criticism of the behavior of certain players.

“We have to be the team we’ve been in the other games. It’s not usual to see FC Porto lose and concede three goals. Last week we got a ‘soaking’ that felt good [because of the title], this time not so much. We are playing at a level where we cannot afford distractions. You saw the way AVS celebrated every play... Our aggression, our desire to attack the ball, our finishing... I don’t know how many touches we had in the opposition box, but I think it was more than 50. And the balls that went across the face of goal... There we need to be aggressive enough to turn those chances into goals,” lamented Francesco Farioli, clearly displeased with the display by the blue and whites away to already relegated bottom side Aves SAD.

The eight changes made to the starting eleven compared to the match against Alverca — which ended with the Dragons winning their 31st title — did not have the desired effect. The drop in intensity, when intensity had always been the trademark of the new national champions in 2025/2026, allowed Aves SAD to grow into the game and literally bring the dragon down to the ground.

The complacency felt by the players in the days following the title celebrations in the Portuguese league cannot, in Francesco Farioli’s view, take away focus from the commitments FC Porto still had ahead of them. That did happen against Aves SAD, but the Italian coach is now demanding a strong response from his players in the celebratory match in front of the blue and white fans, where the aim is to reach 88 points.

Francesco Farioli is said to have been harsh in his halftime team talk in the last match, but after drawing some conclusions about certain players, he should return to the formula used against Alverca; that is, relying on the usual starters for the match that will close the national champions’ season on Saturday afternoon at the Dragão.

After suffering their second defeat in the competition — the first had come already in the second half of the season, in Rio Maior, against Casa Pia — FC Porto exposed defensive frailties rarely seen this season, as they conceded three goals in a single match, something only V. had managed in the League Cup.

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