The resurgence of Club Sport Marítimo | OneFootball

Club Sport Marítimo are not your typical club within the Portuguese football pyramid.

The ‘Lions of the Almirante Reis’ are one of few to break the traditional hegemony of FC Porto, SL Benfica and Sporting CP – conquering the Campeonato de Portugal a century ago. Founded in 1910, the club’s name pays homage to the maritime industry in which many of Marítimo’s early players worked.

From the docks of Funchal, Madeira, Marítimo travelled the seas to conquer the mainland and thus, O Maior das Ilhas (The Biggest of the Islands) was born.

Thenceforth, Marítimo were largely impeded by financial disparities and political segregation. Excluded from the mainland’s national league system until 1973, Marítimo instead dominated locally, amassing over 60 regional trophies within the confines of Madeira.

After winning the second division title in the 1984/85 season for the second time in their history, Marítimo would not be relegated from Liga Portugal for 38 consecutive campaigns. During this period of unprecedented representation for the autonomous regions of Portugal, Marítimo would participate in European competitions on nine separate occasions, subsequently being recognised by the International Federation of Football History and Statistics (IFFHS) as the fifth-best Portuguese club of the 21st century.

As we head into the second half of this 2025/26 campaign, Marítimo look set to conquer their third Second Division title and make their highly anticipated return to the pinnacle of Portuguese football. Sporting B (who cannot be promoted) and Académico de Viseu currently sit seven points behind the Madeiran giants, with seven points separating 5th from 18th in an exceptionally competitive division.

Kevin Fernandes reports on the factors behind Marítimo’s commanding campaign, three years after their unfortunate fall from the top flight.

Unfancied ahead of new season

Pessimism surrounding the mythical Estádio dos Barreiros (known as the Caldeirão, or cauldron) was at an all-time high heading into the 2025/26 season — and with good reason.

Ivo Vieira had returned to secure survival in the campaign prior, extricating a mediocre 12th place finish as the fourth manager to take charge. To add insult to injury, Vieira would depart claiming that he was seeking a sporting project overseas, only to subsequently take charge of first division Tondela.

Perhaps the heartbreak rolled on from their inaugural season back in the second tier. Marítimo needed three points on the last day of the season to bounce straight back to the top flight, as third-place AVS lost to Tondela. But Viseu’s André Clovis broke Maritimista hearts cementing an insufficient 2-2 draw as island rivals Santa Clara (from the Azores) and Madeiran rivals Nacional were promoted.

Enter Vítor Matos

While Marítimo marked his first senior head-coaching role, Vítor Matos has been studying coaching since he was 15, instantly captivated by José Mourinho’s iconic Porto side.

Seven years later, Matos joined Porto to coach at youth level from the Under-9s to the Under-17s while working as an analyst for the Under-19 and B-teams (eventually returning to become assistant manager at the same level).

Many may recognise Matos from his time at Liverpool as the club’s elite development coach, integrating as an important cog in Jürgen Klopp’s staff, and subsequently, Matos’ stint as Pep Lijnders’ assistant at Red Bull Salzburg following Klopp’s emotional departure from Merseyside.

However, Matos is making a name for himself as a disciple of Klopp’s evolving “heavy metal football” philosophy, with the 37-year-old implementing that footballing philosophy seamlessly.

Heavy metal football comes to Madeira

Marítimistas were instantly captivated by the aggressively positioned 4-3-3 and the intense counter-press that funnelled opponents wide while congesting central areas, with Marítimo quickly becoming synonymous with a front-footed, combative identity.

Upon arrival, Matos said: “A club with Marítimo’s history carries a commitment to victory. I want to win and make an impact at this club,” while later adding that he wants “every supporter to leave the stadium looking forward to the next game.”

Matos’ Marítimo controlled matches more effectively than any other side in Liga 2, posting an exceptionally low PPDA (passes per defensive action) of 6.49 – a clear indication of their refusal to allow opponents sustained spells of possession.

Stubbornness out-of-possession never prejudices Matos’ ambition in-possession, however, as Marítimo sat second for possession with an average of 55.6% per 90 (as per Sofascore).

Conceding significantly less shots and goals than the opposition, the fans rejoiced saying “the cauldron is back!” and believing this philosophy, and crucially, results, could lead to promotion.

Fans flood back, Vítor Matos poached by Swansea

The faith is tangible. Marítimo’s crowds outstrip every other Liga Portugal 2 club and even 13 teams in the top flight, a reflection of one of Portuguese football’s most devoted fanbases.

Six wins, two stalemates and three losses were enough to catapult Marítimo to top spot and convince Swansea City to pay his one-million-euro release clause – after a mere 145 days at the club.

In theory, a huge blow to Marítimo’s momentum and aspirations, with flashbacks to João Pereira’s thankless task at Sporting post-Ruben Amorim flooding the memories of Portuguese football aficionados.

However, the reality has been very different.

Moita maintains motivation

The recipe for success was repeated with Miguel Moita, assistant coach of Leonardo Jardim for 16 years, journeying from Chaves to Al-Rayyan and winning titles in Greece, France, Saudi Arabia and the UAE.

Shortly after arriving at the infamous Aeroporto Cristiano Ronaldo, Moita was clear with his intentions: “One thing I’ve told the players is that, despite the discourse regarding change, I don’t want this to be seen as a change. We want this to be a continuation and I want to make the most of everything that was being done well previously.”

In an interview for MaisFutebol, Moita had previously declared: “I don't like teams that focus too much on defence and only think about defending. A team that spends the whole game defending is a massacre for everyone.”

And it shows as Marítimo have yet to taste defeat as they have shown empathic form under the stewardship of Miguel Moita:

“Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery”

Still mirroring Klopp’s Liverpool, patience often prevails in-possession while urgency defines out-of-possession phases. The defensive midfielder is responsible for mopping up loose balls across lesser protected territory, while often dropping to form a defensive three.

One full-back can invert and build-up play effectively while the other has license to bomb forward and provide an outlet to the byline. The central midfielders must be comfortable in all zones, as fluid triangles are formed, and all players can rotate to create doubt in man-markers.

The supporting attackers must be capable of taking goal-scoring responsibility, as there is no recognised fox-in-the-box or designated poacher.

From Fabinho and Vladan Danilović, Georginio Wijnaldum and Raphael Guzzo to Martín Tejón and Phillipe Coutinho, parallels can certainly be drawn between the roles of certain players in a similar system.

High-quality and deep squad

Marítimo boast one of the deepest squads in the division, composed of many talents meriting first division football.

26-year-old Samú Silva has been voted Liga 2 Goalkeeper of the Month on three separate occasions this season. The Portuguese shot-stopper looks unflappable defending the Marítimo goal, boasting top-level reflexes and coverage in 1v1 situations.

Ahead of Samú, Marítimo possess two imposing defensive stalwarts in captain Romain Correia and Danish academy product Noah Madsen. Born in France and a former representative of Porto B, Correia excels as a traditional central defender in aerial duels, whereas Madsen has garnered interest from Sporting, VFL Wolfsburg and FC Midtjylland.

Following the footsteps of Dylan Collard and Moisés Mosquera, Madsen immediately eased concerns regarding Marítimo’s defence upon promotion from academy level. The 24-year-old, while relatively inexperienced for his age, is incredibly dominant in duels and comfortable when stepping forward to anticipate play in any zone, equally when feeding progressive passes between the lines.

Playing at a higher level seems inevitable for Noah Madsen.

Three-pronged attack

Ahead of rotated midfield and full-back options, lie the three attackers injecting excitement into the veins of Maritimistas. Carlos Daniel is currently Marítimo’s top goalscorer with seven goals in 11 starts, acting as a false nine under Moita in the absence of a clinical, traditional striker. Comfortable in between the lines and when box-crashing, the return of the former Portugal youth international and Marítimo B regular to Funchal has been fruitful.

Spanish born, Moroccan youth international Simo Bouzaidi made an instant impact upon arrival, scoring the winner on his debut away at Felgueiras within three minutes on the pitch. The 26-year-old is enjoying his most productive season of his professional career, becoming Marítimo’s top assist provider as a constant threat down the right flank with his trickery and audacious dribbles.

Exciting talent Martín Tejón

On the other flank, stands 5’5” former Valencia CF prodigy Martín Tejón. Tejón deserves to be recognised amongst the elite in Portugal for pure technical ability, as his ball-control and ability to manipulate defences is second-to-few.

His goal collection speaks for itself, and Tejón is often the difference-maker for Marítimo.

The 21-year-old is one to watch. What he lacks in physical presence, he compensates for with silky playmaking. One moment of magic is all that is needed for the authoritative Marítimo in possession phases and defensive solidity, so the influence of Tejón cannot be understated.

Moita has also maximised ball-winning defensive midfielder Vladan Danilović, box-crashing midfielder Raphael Guzzo and Azorean defender Paulo Henrique, all key to Marítimo’s solidity and unpredictability.

Academy prospects such as the direct winger Francisco Gomes (son of former Zenit midfielder and Portuguese international Danny) and versatile midfielder Rodrigo Andrade have also been given minutes, as former Liga Portugal players fill out the ranks (including Honduran international Alberth Elis, Adrián Butzke, Ibrahima Guirassy, Igor Julião and Afonso Freitas).

Club Sport Marítimo is an example of a club that was always too big to remain outside of the pinnacle of the domestic football pyramid for an extended period, and finally, it seems like the sporting project of Os Verde-Rubros will propel them back to the heights of competing diligently at Portugal’s top table and in the mix for qualifying for European competitions.

Portuguese football will be all the greater with Madeira’s finest and their passionate fans back in the top division.