Farioli eyes feat at the Dragão only André Villas-Boas managed | OneFootball

The fourth clássico of the season between FC Porto and Sporting will decide a place in the Portuguese Cup final, with the chance to reach Jamor and fight for the trophy against an opponent who is, theoretically, weaker than either the dragons or the lions, and who will be known on May 24, after the other semi-final between Torreense, from the Second League, and Fafe, from Liga 3. The Lisbon side go to Invicta with the advantage, following the 1-0 win at Alvalade, so FC Porto will only go through with a victory by two goals. A Porto win by the minimum margin will take the tie to extra time and, if necessary, penalties.

The first leg was played in early March, and it would not be an exaggeration to say that a lot has changed since then, especially in the last week, which was particularly tough for the Lions, who were knocked out of the Champions League by Arsenal and beaten by Benfica, a result that greatly complicated their ambition of winning a third straight title.

It is true that FC Porto also bowed out of the Europa League last Thursday, in Nottingham, but the eight-point lead they now hold over Sporting in the league – which could become five if Rui Borges’s side win their game in hand – with only four rounds left, gives Farioli greater peace of mind to think about a possible “double,” four years after Sérgio Conceição last achieved that feat at the blue-and-white club.

In his first season at the Dragão, the Italian coach will try this Wednesday to do something that only André Villas-Boas, now the club president, has managed: overturn a two-legged Portuguese Cup semi-final. Fifteen years ago, in the historic 2010/11 season, Porto had also lost the first leg, then at home, against Benfica (0-2), before turning the tie around with a 3-1 win at the Luz, at a time when away goals counted double, and then going on to win at Jamor against Vitória de Guimarães.

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