Farioli: “In August, teams showed more courage against FC Porto” | OneFootball

Was the victory achieved through persistence? “Certainly, we knew how difficult it was to come here where they had won all their games, on a small pitch with little grass. They decided to fall back into their own half, so naturally there are fewer opportunities, we had to wait for our moment and maximize our chances. It’s an important result.”

What went wrong in the first half and what was decisive in the second? “It’s very clear to me. We’re entering a different phase, teams are starting to fear FC Porto, they decide to defend deeper and deeper. It’s different from the games in August when everyone was braver and pressed us higher up the pitch. We’re entering a phase where the games demand quality, patience, quality, and efficiency. The matches are tighter, we have to be more patient. We need to improve. We’re in a process, and if we believe the rebuild is done in 16 weeks, we’re far from reality. We have to work and push, and the results are important.”

Is the team going through a weaker phase or are the opponents offering greater resistance? “It’s not that, when we have the ball, they drop back, drop back, drop back. There’s less space, fewer possibilities to get into the box with the combinations we used to make. We have to keep calm, find the momentum, find solutions. If we concede a goal, we could lose. That’s the reality. We’re in a new phase, happy to see FC Porto viewed this way, on one hand, but on the other, we have to work… Now we’ll analyze Braga, a team doing incredible work in Europe and they’re strong in the league as well. Next weekend we’ll have a great game at home.”

Do you consider this was the most demanding match? “It was a tough game. But we already knew that before coming here.”

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