Vítor Pinto: Samu should cry less and make rivals weep instead | OneFootball

FC Porto experienced yet another frustrating night in the Europa League, marked by a “bizarre” goal conceded, a lack of composure, and, above all, yet another missed penalty by —the second in a row, a burden that is affecting not only the result but also the team’s morale.

In Vítor Pinto’s analysis, it was highlighted that in the league, FC Porto has been synonymous with control and defensive effectiveness, relying on “14 clean sheets,” a statistic that sometimes decides matches by the narrowest of margins.

Anxiety playing against 10 men and the weight of the missed penalty

The match was also conditioned by the competitive context: with one more player, FC Porto ended up “clearly showing a lack of calm at various moments,” observes Vítor Pinto. This analysis points to a problem that goes beyond the tactical level, being above all mental and related to the management of decisive moments.

Samu-aghehowa.26468/latest”>Samu was once again at the center of criticism. After the miss in Guimarães, coach Farioli kept his trust in the striker, but his performance on the pitch did not justify the decision. For Vítor Pinto, Samu “should have had his head in the right place” and ended up shooting “without any sense,” referring to a hasty and poorly controlled decision.

The player’s reaction at the end was also commented on. Vítor Pinto linked the episode to the way individual mistakes take on a media and emotional dimension, suggesting that

Despite the draw and another stumble, the competitive outlook can still favor FC Porto. Vítor Pinto explained that the draw could be “more or less punishing” depending on the results of the other teams in this round. The team was in seventh place, with Sporting de Braga right behind, in a clear race for a top-8 spot that guarantees direct access to the round of 16.

However, there is an external factor to consider: the teams that could overtake FC Porto face each other, which could mitigate the damage and keep the team in the desired position. Matches like Roma–Stuttgart and Braga–Nottingham Forest (with a Braga win) could help FC Porto “still finish this round in the top eight.”

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