Everything José Mourinho said ahead of Rio Ave v Benfica | OneFootball

The focus of his team shifted to the championship this Friday, now preparing to face Rio Ave in Vila do Conde this Saturday, with an eye on recovering ten points from the leading Porto, whom they lost to in the Classic (1-0).

"The morale is high due to the confidence we gained from a very well-played game, except for the most important part: the result. There is sadness that must gradually transform into determination, strength, and energy. We played a demanding game in the North two days ago. We returned to the South, go back to the North, and will play against a good team. We are motivated to respectfully 'chase' the two teams ahead of us. After the draw in Braga, we want to return to winning ways in the championship," he began by saying in exclusive statements to BTV.

Challenges against Rio Ave: "It's a tough team, doing well and calm, in a position where they are not worried about looking down, as I had already said about Estoril. They look upwards with stability. It's a physical team, with many experienced, strong players and quality attackers. Normally, it's a team that defends with a low block, a compact line of five trying to counterattack dangerously. They played a great game in Barcelos. It's an opponent with enough arguments for us to have a tough game," emphasized the experienced 62-year-old coach.

José Mourinho was also challenged to explain Richard Ríos's injury, suffered during the match at Estádio do Dragão, ensuring he will not be an option for the next three games, against Rio Ave, Juventus, and Estrela da Amadora, without mentioning the match against Real Madrid.

"Richard Ríos? Obviously, he's not well... It's an injury that's hard to predict how long it will take. When the decision is non-surgical, it needs some time to strengthen the area, to feel more comfortable, in order to play. Without wanting to anticipate, but speaking within what is most immediate with Rio Ave, Juventus, and Estrela da Amadora, I would say he is 100% out of these [games]," he confessed.

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