Farioli readies Diogo Costa for FC Porto's XI in the Super Cup | OneFootball

It’s like riding a bike: once you know how, you never forget. With that principle in mind, and benefiting from his knowledge of the team and Francesco Farioli’s working methods, Diogo Costa is speeding up his preparations to take on the increasingly likely role of first-choice goalkeeper for FC Porto. The keeper will have completed only three training sessions when he takes to the field the day after tomorrow, in the Super Cup.

The captain returned to Olival yesterday and took part fully in the training session with the rest of his teammates. It should be remembered that Diogo Costa, after representing Portugal at the 2026 World Cup, where he was one of the national team’s standout players, was granted permission by FC Porto to extend his rest period. During that time, most of his teammates were already working hard in pre-season, including his usual backup.

Even so, Cláudio Ramos was the main candidate to guard the goal in the first official match of Porto’s season. However, he suffered a significant setback when he picked up an injury, according to our newspaper’s findings, in the members’ presentation match against Aston Villa, played last Saturday. The medical department only revealed yesterday that the goalkeeper has a muscle injury in his right thigh, having chosen to wait for the results of the tests carried out. According to the information gathered, he will not recover in time to be an option against Torreense.

Given this scenario, and although Farioli still has João Costa and new signing João Afonso available, everything points to the coach handing Diogo Costa the responsibility of defending the goal in the Super Cup starting eleven. Confidence in the number 99 is total, both from his teammates — after all, he is the team captain — and from the coach himself. Diogo will therefore be tasked with taking on the leadership on the pitch and, if they beat Torreense, lifting the trophy.

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