Alan Varela left out for tactical reasons, available for Moreira de Cónegos | OneFootball

The grimace of pain captured by the television broadcast when Alan Varela was substituted against Nottingham Forest gave the impression of an injury, but the player wearing the number 22 jersey only complained of a knock in his last play and is available for Francesco Farioli for the game the day after tomorrow, against Moreirense.

Alan Varela’s substitution in the 58th minute, making way for Gabri Veiga, was a tactical decision by Farioli, who preferred to keep Pablo Rosario on the field until the end. The coach felt that the Dominican Republic international was performing well, with a high pass completion rate and good reading of the game, which allowed him to recover a significant number of balls: in 58 minutes, Alan Varela recovered four balls, while Pablo Rosario, playing the full match, recovered one more.

The reinforcement wearing the number 13 jersey was a direct request from Francesco Farioli and ended up being the big surprise in FC Porto’s starting eleven against Nottingham Forest. During the week’s training sessions, the coach assessed that Rosario was better prepared physically and mentally than Gabri Veiga to face the English opponent, which has greater financial resources.

Also due to the versatility that motivated the request for his signing by Francesco Farioli, Pablo Rosario is now the 12th most used player in FC Porto’s squad this season. Although he had already been identified by Porto’s scouting before the coach’s arrival, the confidence Farioli places in the midfielder is clear.

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