Farioli to rotate squad at Dragão to manage fatigue and Europe | OneFootball

With January approaching, FC Porto is preparing for a demanding period. The European commitments against Viktoria Plzen and Rangers are joined by the quarter-final clash of the Portuguese Cup against their eternal rival Benfica, at Estádio do Dragão.

With six matches scheduled in the first month of the year, FC Porto's coach, Francesco Farioli, may have to make rotations in the lineup to keep the squad in the best condition for the more demanding matches, namely those in the Europa League and the Cup. Therefore, it is likely that he will choose to rest some starters in the theoretically more accessible games.

Thus, Monday's match against AVS at Estádio do Dragão may bring changes to the Porto team. The undefeated league leader, with a five-point advantage over the second-placed Sporting, hosts the last-placed team, which is experiencing serious difficulties in 2024/25.

The club from Vila das Aves, already on its third coach this season, is still searching for its first victory in the Primeira Liga. They travel to the Invicta city after drawing with Nacional in the last round (2-2) and eliminating Vitória SC in the Portuguese Cup, although they also suffered a heavy defeat against Sporting in Alvalade about two weeks ago (6-0).

A confirmed absentee and a reason to smile

Despite the possibility of changes in the lineup, Francesco Farioli knows he cannot count on one of the usual starters. Borja Sainz, who was the only player to appear in all of the blue and white team's official matches this season (25), will miss Monday's match at Dragão.

The Spanish winger, who scored two goals in FC Porto's victory in Alverca – one of them a real stunner – is serving a suspension for accumulating yellow cards, after seeing the fifth card in the trip to Ribatejo.

On the other hand, Alberto Costa, who left at halftime in that game, will be available for this match, as well as the Polish Jan Bednarek, who has already served his suspension.

Estádio do Dragão far from sold out

As in previous weeks, FC Porto plays again on Monday night, as in the matches against Estrela da Amadora and the visit to Alverca.

The match against AVS takes place at 8:15 PM (Portugal Mainland time) on Monday, and Estádio do Dragão is once again not sold out – as was the case against Estrela da Amadora, when just over 31,000 fans were in the stands.

Since Tuesday is a working day for many of those traveling to Dragão, it is not surprising that the attendance for this 16th round match of the Primeira Liga, which will be officiated by Bruno Pires Costa, falls below expectations.

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