Vitinha reveals chats with Villas-Boas: “Now and then there’s a challenge…” | OneFootball

Vitinha did not hide how “very happy” he was to see FC Porto return to winning trophies and claim the national title in the season that has just ended. In an interview with the newspaper O JOGO, in this Thursday’s edition, the Portugal international, who has not yet joined the national team’s preparations for the 2026 World Cup because he was involved in the Champions League final, admitted that he speaks regularly with president André Villas-Boas.

“I was very happy, very happy. I kept following everything, as I usually do. I also spoke with some people inside the club and understood what was changing, and I was truly very happy for everyone there, for the fans, for a whole club that deserved this and that did the right things in the right way to go down this path. It might not have happened, but fortunately it did,” Vitinha began, stressing that the Dragons are on the right track.

“If you are doing things the right way, if you are taking the right steps and at the right pace to get to a certain place, even if you do not get there, you should not change course and you should be happy with what you are doing. But when you do manage to put the cherry on top of the cake and win the Liga Portugal title, it is even more perfect. And now, just like me individually, in the Champions League with my club and with the national team, there is no stopping, and FC Porto will not stop either. You have to want more, you have to keep going like this,” he said.

Vitinha ended up revealing that he exchanges messages with Villas-Boas and that, in the meantime, he has already received a challenge.

“We talk every now and then, the president is five-star, incredible, and also a top person. We talk on WhatsApp, we exchange messages, congratulations back and forth, because fortunately we have both won things. And every now and then, a challenge gets thrown in there, a little dig, so to speak, but from both sides, because we both love FC Porto and we would both like that to happen one day,” he confessed, leaving open the possibility of wearing the FC Porto shirt again in the future.

Portugal, the clear contender

After winning his second Champions League, Vitinha will now leave PSG behind for a few weeks and focus solely on the national team, assuring that Portugal are “clearly contenders” to win the 2026 World Cup.

“Contenders, clearly. The most accurate thing is to say that we are contenders. We are clearly there along with another four, five, six national teams that are strong and can win the World Cup. But we are not going to count our chickens before they hatch. There is still a very long road ahead, there is preparation to be done, adaptation as well to the United States, Mexico and Canada, and to the high temperatures, which will also be very important, as well as the pitches. There are these factors,” explained the Portuguese midfielder, also admitting that he has no problem dealing with pressure.

“I think it is a positive thing; Portuguese people should expect that from our national team, they should expect a team with ability, because that is what we have: we have a lot of potential and players of great quality playing for major clubs. We have to make that effective in the national team, a team like the one we were in the Nations League, one that can win titles, one that can aim for major trophies and go far. That is what we are going to try to do. There is great responsibility, but we embrace it and accept it with great pleasure,” Vitinha concluded.

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