Winter signings spur FC Porto to crucial win in Braga | OneFootball

FC Porto continue on an almost unstoppable march in the 2026/27 title race, keeping their two Lisbon rivals seven points behind, largely thanks to the growing impact of the players signed in January — something that was once again clear in the win in Braga.

Oskar Pietuszewski provided the assist for the equaliser against Sp. Braga, scored by William Gomes, before Seko Fofana netted the winner in the match that closed the 27th round and was seen as the toughest test remaining for the leaders until the end of the championship.

The strong performances of the signings brought in by Francesco Farioli's team are clear, especially when compared with the players José Mourinho and Rui Borges also brought in during the winter transfer window.

Oskar Pietuszewski, with one fewer game but almost half the minutes (452m), has posted much stronger numbers, already totaling three goals and two assists in decisive moments for FC Porto.

The young Pole arrived quietly, but over the last month he has turned into one of the league’s standout players, with direct involvement in almost every FC Porto match, with the exception of the first leg of the cup semi-final against Sporting: he provided the decisive assist in the win over Rio Ave (1-0), opened the scoring against Arouca (3-1), scored again against Benfica (2-2) and Moreirense (3-0), and last Sunday set up William Gomes for the goal.

Seko Fofana (366m) and Terem Mofi (351m) have also made their mark. Despite playing fewer minutes, they have scored as many goals as Rafa Silva — two each.

The context is different as well. FC Porto lost Samu and Luuk de Jong before the transfer window reopened, so it is only natural that there is now more room for the new players to break into the starting eleven, especially in attack. Even so, in defence Thiago Silva has also taken advantage of the rotation between the Polish pair Bednarek and Kiwior to rack up appearances (8) and minutes (638m) in this return to FC Porto.

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