Sporting academy graduate surprises, backs Torreense at Jamor | OneFootball

Pedro Nuno da Silva Canoa, born on 14 September 1977, in Torres Vedras, into a Benfica-supporting family, chose Sporting to complete his development after taking his first steps at Lourinhanense.

In the 1990s, the opportunities for players coming through the Lions’ academy to reach the first team were not comparable to those of today, and he ended up making his name as a senior player with Torreense. On the eve of the Portuguese Cup final, a match that leaves him torn, he nevertheless told A Bola who he would like to see climb the steps at Jamor.

“I spent ten years at Sporting and 14 at Torreense. It’s difficult, they are two clubs that mean a lot to me, at different stages of my career, but honestly, I’d like to see Torreense win at Jamor, it would be a paradigm shift in Portuguese football, showing that teams from lower divisions can reach a final and even win it, as happens in England. We know the resources are different at the various competitive levels, but I think it would be a good image for Portugal for Torreense, from Liga 2, to win the Portuguese Cup,” he began.

Looking back, he recalls arriving at Sporting at just 13 years old: “I was watched several times by Mr. Aurélio Pereira at Lourinhanense, I was a bit hidden away on the edge of the Lisbon district, I also had an offer from Benfica, but I chose Sporting, because of the club’s values and the way the whole process was handled. I completed my youth development there, became national champion at under-15 level in my first year, and was a youth international up to the under-18s".

"He never managed to reach the first team, where his references were Figo, Peixe, Paulo Torres, Filipe, Marinho, Oceano, Paulo Sousa, but Sporting marked an important part of his growth: “When I arrived, the senior team’s coach was Marinho Peres, there wasn’t as much room for academy youngsters, players with experience were valued more than an 18-year-old with quality. Besides, there wasn’t this business side to things either, there were only two agents, Manuel Barbosa and José Veiga, Jorge Mendes came later", he also said.

Having reached the peak of his senior career at Torreense, he now does not hide his emotion at seeing, 70 years later, the blue-and-maroon team return to the Portuguese Cup final: "Deep down, I’d like Torreense to make history, Sporting already have plenty of cups (laughs), it would even be interesting in terms of mentality, to show that it isn’t always the big clubs that win and are present in the biggest moments and on the biggest stages", he concluded.

Meanwhile, the Alvalade club is looking to win a trophy this season, while the team from Torres Vedras is aiming to make history in the competition.

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