Farioli’s message at the Dragão: together with strength and passion | OneFootball

FC Porto began 2026 by reviving an old tradition, holding a training session at Estádio do Dragão in front of 26,855 fans. At the end of the New Year’s training and at the start of “a very busy month, full of decisive matches,” Francesco Farioli expressed that he was “very grateful for all the support” and eager to “always have the stadium full with the Porto family.”

“It’s important for us to keep up the pace and continue to take steps forward, but with the support of these people it will be easier,” declared the coach, determined to “keep working hard” and to “maintain this connection with the fans”: “They give us this unconditional love and now it’s time for us to give back to them.”

Attendance of 26,855 fans“It’s fantastic to have so many people at the first training session of the year. I think I said everything in my short speech in Portuguese: I am very grateful for all the support we have received since day one. We will carry this energy with us until the end of the season and hopefully we can always have Estádio do Dragão full with the Porto family alongside us in 2026.”

Demanding schedule“January is going to be a very busy month, full of important and decisive matches. We will fight to advance to the next round of the Cup and for the top 8 of the Europa League in two tough games, and everyone already knows how difficult the league matches are. It’s important for us to keep up the pace and continue to take steps forward, but with the support of these people it will be easier.”

Intense pace“This is our daily routine at Olival. When the fans and cameras aren’t there, the competition is even greater. It’s great, it’s what we need, and playing every three days, we have to work at full throttle. To play at a high pace, we have to train at a high pace. We play as we train. If the training sessions are good, we’ll always be closer to success.”

Connection with the fans“Starting the year with this feeling is something unique. We would love to train like this every day, because there’s more emotion, intensity, and adrenaline. It’s fantastic, on a rainy day people showed up, filled the stadium, and gave a lot of strength to the players. It’s a privilege, we have to keep working hard and maintain this connection with the fans. They give us this unconditional love and now it’s time for us to give back to them.”

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