João Brandão: “We’ve already shown we’re Portugal’s best B team” | OneFootball

After the 0-1 triumph over Sporting B in Alcochete, FC Porto B return to their home ground for the classic still to be played in 2025/26, which opens the 34th and final round of the Segunda Liga, against Benfica B, on Friday at 6pm, live on Porto Canal, at the CTFD Jorge Costa. João Brandão took the opportunity to assess the players’ development, highlighted the Dragons’ “pride” in being “the best B team” in the competition, and recalled that “FC Porto lives on victories, trophies and rivalry”. Going into this clash, FC Porto B sit sixth with 48 points, while Benfica B are ninth with 44. Ticket information is available here.

João Brandão

The win in Alcochete“The feelings were very positive, as I said at the end of the match. Above all, because we lived up to FC Porto’s values. It was a complex and difficult game, hard both to prepare for and to play, also because of the opponent’s quality. It was the first of two classics to close out this Segunda Liga campaign, and we were very collective. Our team’s great strength was its increasingly complete growth in terms of the game itself and the different moments of the game. We were very competitive in every moment of the match, and that was the first big step towards getting the win in a game that is always special, as all classics are. Then there is the natural way academy players come through, because they already arrive prepared thanks to the work being done throughout the academy, regardless of age group. They want it badly and understand that the setting is there for them. That setting is created by the environment lived and breathed in the B team, one of high standards and hard work, but also of valuing the players’ individual abilities. They have done that very successfully and have managed to bring new things to our game. In Francisco [Fernandes]’s case, he had the positional freedom he likes so much and the creativity he has in attacking play, which sets him apart from the others, but always within the collective. What pleased me most was his ability to understand the defensive and strategic side of the game and the way he quickly integrated into a group that welcomed him with open arms. João Brito and Gustavo Guerra have been working with us for some time, and this is a gradual, thought-out and planned process. It culminated in the debut of those two players, and hopefully it will be the first of many steps in a long, difficult and demanding journey.”

The best B team in the Segunda Liga“FC Porto lives on victories, trophies and rivalry. It lives on resilience and the regional identity we value so much here in the North. The pride of being the best B team is reflected in all of that. We look at every game as a challenge and as a step towards helping our players grow individually and collectively, but always with the aim of putting FC Porto in the best position possible. Nothing satisfies us more than being the best, game by game, training session by training session, and at the end of the championship. We know we will be the best collectively compared to the other B teams, and last weekend we showed that we are better, because we beat one of our rivals away and at home. Now we want to beat the second rival.”

Growing maturity and new challenges“Not too long ago, I said that the time was coming to set the team new challenges, even at a stage when we still had not secured survival. But the team gave me confidence, and we were at a level of maturity that allowed us to do that, and the players themselves were eager to see new dynamics and try new things. The challenge is to step out of the comfort zone, challenge them to do different things and make them better prepared for the future. We will continue to bring in new youngsters and we will keep looking for different dynamics, taking some risks, that is true, but I am sure the team is ready and eager for the game to come.”

Benfica B“It is a Benfica B side that has followed a path similar to ours, difficult at the start and then steadily improving. They clearly have players with vast experience in the Segunda Liga and even in the Primeira Liga, in other words, players with a different competitive maturity from our team, but that gives them no advantage. What will give one team or the other the edge will be the ability and energy put onto the pitch in those 90 minutes. We are going to face a rival in a special match in a very FC Porto way.”

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