FC Porto-Alverca: first match point for the Dragons' 31st title | OneFootball

After the 1-2 win over Estrela da Amadora in Reboleira, FC Porto return home aware that they are one victory away from securing their 31st national championship title. To do so, they will have to beat FC Alverca in a sold-out Estádio do Dragão on matchday 32, the third-from-last round of the league season. Going into this round, the Dragons lead the table, seven points ahead of Benfica and nine ahead of Sporting.

There are three finals left in the country’s main competition, and tonight’s could confirm the major objective for 2025/26. To achieve that, the team coached by Francesco Farioli will have to make their status as the best home side in the competition count: in 15 matches, Porto have recorded 12 wins and three draws, for a total of 39 points out of a possible 45. FC Alverca, meanwhile, have picked up 13 of their 38 points away from home.

In the first half of the season, in Ribatejo, FC Porto won 0-3, with a brace from Borja Sainz and a goal from Alan Varela. It was the 11th time the two clubs had met in history, always in the league, the only competition in which they have faced each other. The record is clearly in Porto’s favor, with eight wins, three draws, and no victories for the Ribatejo side. The last FC Porto-FC Alverca match was played on April 25, 2004, at the Estádio do Dragão, and ended in a 1-0 win for the blue and whites thanks to a lone goal by José Bosingwa.

FC Porto

Fully aware that a win would seal the long-awaited title, Francesco Farioli said that “the focus is on the match, with no distractions and no time to think about celebrations,” especially as they will be facing an opponent that deserves full “respect” for “the season they are having.” In his preview of the team’s penultimate home game of the season, the Italian coach assured that “this is not a day to lower the intensity.”

“With the results we saw this week, we learned that the match is not over until the final whistle,” Francesco Farioli added, for whom the outcome of FC Famalicão-Benfica, which precedes FC Porto-FC Alverca, is irrelevant: “Whatever happens before our match will not change the team’s approach or spirit.” That is why the coach expects the Dragons to take the field “with an impeccable attitude” and with the Ribatejo side “at the center of our attention.”

After another training session at the CTFD Jorge Costa and after learning that he still cannot count on injured players Nehuén Pérez, Luuk de Jong and Samu, the blue-and-white coach said he was “very grateful to this group of players and to the people I have been working with for months,” but stressed that “now we have to stay focused on every detail; nothing will change in the final 18 days of the season.” “Focus and commitment” are therefore essential.

Matching the points record “is a potential objective,” but to get there “we need to take a few steps,” and this is the next one. “That game there can be a good reference for the different tactical scenarios, and I am sure this one will be different because we had a week to prepare and this may be a moment for them to try new things. We have to be bold and smart to find new solutions,” concluded Francesco Farioli.

FC Alverca

Going into matchday 32, FC Alverca sit in a comfortable 15th place with 38 points, have already mathematically secured survival, and head to the Dragão on the back of three wins and two defeats in their last five games. In their ten most recent matches, they have suffered only two losses. In the previous round, the Ribatejo side hosted and beat FC Arouca 2-1, with goals from Naves and Marezi.

Against the Arouca side on April 24, the starting lineup featured Matheus Mendes, Naves, Sergi Gómez, Bastien Meupiyou, Nabil Touaizi, Isaac James, Rhaldney, Lincoln, Figueiredo, Chiquinho and Sandro Lima. From the bench, coach Custódio Castro brought on Diogo Spencer, Steven Baseya, Vasco Moreira, Davy Gui and Marezi.

The 38 points collected so far by FC Alverca come from 10 wins, 8 draws and 13 defeats in 31 matches, with a goal tally of 34 scored and 49 conceded. Spanish-Moroccan right-back Nabil Touaizi and Serbian forward Marezi are the players most used by Custódio Castro, both with 30 league appearances, while Marezi is also the team’s top scorer, with nine goals.

Refereeing team

David Silva, from the Porto Football Association, was the referee appointed by the Arbitration Council of the Portuguese Football Federation. The 32-year-old official will be assisted by Carlos Campos and Nélson Cunha, while Miguel Fonseca will be the fourth official. Pedro Ferreira will be on VAR duty, with Nuno Eiras as assistant.

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