Farioli aims to restore Porto’s defensive solidity without Jakub Kiwior | OneFootball

The dragons maintain the best defense in the championship – only seven goals conceded in 21 games – but some permeability in recent weeks has already cost them five points. Without Jakub Kiwior and with Martim Fernandes in doubt due to a right foot problem, Francesco Farioli will have to alter the quartet that protects Diogo Costa, in an attempt to regain lost stability.

The Italian coach, often praised for building solid defenses – similar to his work at Nice and Ajax – wants to avoid repeating the worst series of conceding goals at Choupana, already in four games, recorded between the end of October and the beginning of November (Nottingham Forest, Moreirense, Sp. Braga, and Utrecht).

Recently, the dragons conceded goals against Rangers (at home), Casa Pia (away), and Sporting (at home). Against the Scots, they started losing but managed to turn it around; this did not happen in Rio Maior, where they were defeated.

At Choupana, Farioli's team will face one of the top scorers of the competition, Chucho Ramírez, and an opponent that has collectively created many difficulties for title contenders – Benfica and Sporting only defeated Tiago Margarido's team in stoppage time, and Nacional already triumphed in Braga.

These signs demand a zero-tolerance approach from Porto, especially since Benfica won in the Azores and reduced the lead to four points.

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