Benfica in chaos as Mourinho makes players stay at Seixal | OneFootball

Match assessment: “I apologize to Sp. Braga and to Carlos (Vicens). I can’t say they deserved to win. I have to say that Benfica deserved to lose. We were the ones who deserved to lose. We had a horrible first half, except for the first five minutes. From the moment João Pinheiro awarded a penalty that was clearly outside the box, there wasn’t a positive reaction, but rather an inexplicable negative shift. Horrible quality in ball possession, losing the ball and giving away counterattacks. Zalazar did well exploiting the space on the right side and the goal we conceded was unacceptable, not obviously because of Otamendi who was already on a yellow card. The first half was horrible on all levels—mental, technical. Unacceptable in a semi-final of a competition and under any circumstances, even in a pre-season game with Seixal or Amora. The second half was the opposite, inexplicable. The team was brave, aggressive, winning duels and pushing Braga back against the ropes. We believed, it was important to get the first goal and put more pressure on them. The third goal is inexplicable. We have to turn things around, but we can’t make defensive mistakes. Coming back from 2-1 isn’t hard, it was right there, we brought on Ivanovic and Cabral to give depth and presence in the box, and from a set piece far from the area we conceded the third goal. The cherry on top, those who deserve to lose showed it again.”

Collective and individual performance: “There are things that can be said internally and shouldn’t be said externally. Normally I don’t speak after games, today I spoke in a critical but calm tone. There were no doors slammed. I had a conversation that was a monologue, I didn’t feel they were in a place to open up, which they’ll have to do. There were unacceptable individual performances and very low output, which resulted in a very, very poor first half.”

Next challenge: FC Porto in the Portuguese Cup: “We’re going to play against the strongest team in Portugal at the moment. I’m not sure if João Pinheiro acts this way with all the team captains he referees. He seemed eager to send Otamendi off, maybe it looks good on his résumé to send off a world champion. One thing is an insult, another is a discussion. Sending off a player with the game already over and in those circumstances seems unreasonable to me. Going to Dragão with Tomás and a kid makes things even harder. Let’s hope that wounded pride and a sense of guilt will allow them to bring out their best. The game we played in Porto in the first round was solid, serious, and competitive. We were the only team that didn’t lose to them in the first round. Anyone who plays the way we did in the first half, with such low self-esteem, leaves a question mark.”

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