After a failed 2023/24 campaign, Louletano once again begins the Portuguese Football Championship with its sights set on promotion, while Lagoa and Moncarapachense want to escape the last five places, which implies relegation to the district level.
At the start of the fourth tier of national football, the Loulé team does not deviate from the declared goal of promotion to League 3, after, last season, the team was placed 4th in Series D of the competition, failing to qualify for the final stage .
«The objectives remain the same, we want to go to the climbing phase. We tried to make a stronger team and I think Louletano has the conditions to be in League 3", he told Sul Informação the president of Louletano, Toni do Adro.
Considering that «football is not an exact science», the director recalled that, in 2023/24, the team had quality, but «failed in two or three decisive games», which took them away from the top two places in Series D.
This year, more than a dozen reinforcements arrived. «We strengthened all sectors and tried to balance the team more. And we are investing a lot in training. Last year, we had four or five juniors training with the main team and this year it's the same», highlighted Toni do Adro.
Goalkeeper Igor Bissoloti (ex-Moncarapachense), defenders Luca van der Gaag (ex-Real), Guilherme Campos (ex-Lus. Évora), Jair Brito (ex-Lus. Évora), Sander Ramires (ex-Vit . Guimarães B) and Caiser Gomes (ex-Alverca), midfielders João Bandeira (ex-Barreirense), Tiago Sousa (ex-Farense under-23) and Gonçalo Pinto (ex-Alverca) and forwards Diogo Machado (ex-Pampilhosa) ), Nuno Martelo (ex-Ovarense), Jailson Gomes (ex-Serpa), Sibusiso Shibane (ex-Juv. Évora) and Chima (ex-Moncarapachense) are the reinforcements of the Loulé team, which retained Brazilian Leonardo Galbes as coach .
In 2023/24, Moncarapachense managed to reach the promotion phase, in which they finished fourth and last, but for this season, after a new revolution in the squad – with ten and a half guaranteed reinforcements –, the perspective is to guarantee maintenance, again under the technical command of José Bizarro.
«We have a new team and we will try to have the best championship possible. We can't aspire to promotion, because we don't have a grass field that would allow us to play in League 3. When we have that field – which the local authority [of Olhão] is moving to build –, then we can assume promotion as an objective» , he told the Sul Informação the club president, Nemésio Martins.
As a “club from a small town”, with no possibility of having a high budget, Moncarapachense will have a team within its means. «We don't have the strength to compete with other teams, based in large clusters, and we have to do things in our own way and on our own terms.»
The emblem of the municipality of Olhão has already secured goalkeepers Leandro Turossi (ex-Louletano), João Félix (ex-Benfica under-23), João Morais (ex-4 at Cubo), defenders Fabinho (ex-Imortal), João Gomes (ex-Sintrense), Eduardo Oliveira (ex-Damaiense) and Edu Silva (ex-Fontinhas), midfielders Pedro Mendes (ex-Praiense) and Diogo Machado (ex-Länk Vilaverdense) and forwards Isaías Cruz (ex- Vasco da Gama da Vidigueira), Diogo Motty (ex-Rabo de Peixe), Dedé (ex-Odiáxere), Ansu Fati (ex-Länk Vilaverdense), Omar Lopes (ex-Aljustrelense) and Alvarinho (ex-Anadia).
GD Lagoa, which started the season with the victory over Moncarapachense (3-0), in the Algarve Super Cup, returns to the national championships, 11 years later, but, among the Algarve clubs, it was the one that changed the least in the squad.
With around a dozen reinforcements for the new season, the objective also involves maintenance. «Our objective is just maintenance, no more than that. And it will be very good if we manage to maintain it, it is really our main objective», he said to the Sul Informação the president of the Lagoense emblem, defending district champion.
To face the transition between the two levels, the management led by Luís Dias and the coach, Roberto Alberto, who continues, decided to «maintain the backbone of the team», especially because the squad already had «several players with experience in the Portuguese Championship ».
For 2024/25, Lagoa has already secured the signings of goalkeepers Diogo Silva (ex-Tondela under-19) and Rafa Pires (ex-Mirandela), defenders Léo Dias (ex-Mirandela), Sunday Akoh (ex-Lamelas ) and Gonçalo Martins (ex-Ferreiras), midfielders Pedro Duarte (ex-Esp. Lagos), Chris Silva (ex-Moncarapachense), Leandro Ari (ex-Imortal) and Mário Rodrigues (ex-Farense under-23) and the forwards Tommy Batista (ex-Louletano) and Rosário Silva (ex-Quarteirense).
The first two classified will go to the promotion phase while the last five, out of 14 teams, will go down to the districts.
The first round includes the following matches: Moncarapachense-Comércio e Indústria, Estrela de Vendas Novas-Louletano, Lus. Évora-Lagoa, Barreirense-Moura, Serpa-Amora, Fabril do Barreiro-Sintrense and Operário-Est. Amadora B.
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