The Portimonense coach yesterday asked his players to concentrate on every detail of Saturday's game against Benfica, noting that the struggle for the title of the Portuguese Football League does not concern the people of the Algarve.
“This is not our business. What the others can do and the fights they are involved in, that does not concern us at all”, said Paulo Sérgio, in the preview of the 32nd matchday, when asked about the possibility of the 'incarnates' get closer to the 38th national title in case of victory in the Algarve.
Aware of the “potential” and “the enormous quality” that Benfica presents, the Portimonense coach has a game plan prepared to fight for victory.
“We know that there are times when we will have the ball and there are times when we will have to be more pragmatic, the game will provide us with all of that over the 90 minutes. We have to be very concentrated in every detail and in every moment of the game, because it is our intention to fight for the points that are in dispute”, he guaranteed.
Now with maintenance guaranteed, Paulo Sérgio noted that “the attitude at work has been good” and that the concern of the technical team he leads is that the players “stay connected”, because the season is not over yet.
“Portimonense is calm in the standings. But, as professionals, and on the eve of the game, you should always be a little tense, so that we know what we are going to do. The championship is not over yet, there are nine points up for grabs and our intention is to try to make the most of those nine points”, he stressed.
As for the opponent, Paulo Sérgio said he was focused on the “very strong Benfica” he saw in the last round, when he beat Sporting de Braga (1-0), and not on Benfica who had several consecutive defeats about a month ago.
“I'm focused on Benfica, which was very strong, very capable, in what was the last match against a team of superior quality, such as Sporting de Braga. Our focus is on the best Benfica, not on the other that stumbled ”, he pointed out.
The Estádio Municipal de Portimão will have a predictable 'full house', mostly with 'red' fans, a scenario that the Portimonense coach is used to whenever there is a visit from a 'great'.
“I think it's normal when the 'big' clubs come here, it doesn't change. The 'big' club comes here and, naturally, there are many more people in the stadium than us, but that doesn't influence what our work is. Obviously the opponent feels much more supported, he plays as if he were at home, but he influences us little, he cannot influence us. We don't control that, we have to control our tasks, our organization, our intentions, knowing the opponent's intentions to counter him well and compete”, he stressed.
Portimonense, ranked 13th with 34 points, receives the leader Benfica (80 points) this Saturday, at 18:00, at Estádio Municipal de Portimão, in a game with refereeing by Artur Soares Dias (Associação de Futebol do Porto).
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