Undefeated in La Liga, with extraordinary numbers and a regenerated team. The Dragons are flying and now Thiago Silva is also arriving
Francesco Farioli is, with Vincent Kompany, the only unbeaten coach in the major European championships. His Porto leads the Portuguese championship with 14 wins and a draw in 15 matchdays, the best start in the Liga since 1972. And if we broaden the discussion to all competitions – national cups and Europa League -, the young Italian coach already has 21 victories (in 25 games): only Artur Jorge, Antonio Oliveira and Villas-Boas, current president of the club, have done better (22) with the Dragoes. Farioli is already making history, after getting into the wrong side of it last May, when he incredibly lost the Dutch championship with Ajax, wasting a 9-point lead with 5 matchdays to go on PSV who went on to become champions with one point more. A rationally inexplicable collapse, as if the spell with which Farioli had transformed the battered Ajacid car into a glittering carriage had suddenly been broken. The only wrong? Having raised the expectations of a club that was coming off one of the worst seasons in its history and which instead cherished the title. The Dutch fans now miss him more than ever – in the meantime Ajax have already changed another coach and are 16 points behind leaders PSV – while the goalkeeping family quickly fell in love with him.
the landing
—
Before the collapse in sight of the finish line, Farioli was on the telephone book of the sporting directors of all the big teams in Europe, his finger ready to make the call. The defeat wiped out his number. Not for André Villas-Boas. Who went beyond the mere result, he focused on the growth process and thought that, yes, the boy was the right man to rebuild Porto. The Dragoes were in the doldrums in the summer: third in the league, which in the Portugal of the triarchy is like finishing last, unable to beat Palmeiras, Inter Miami and even Al Ahly in the Club World Cup. A few weeks after the sad return from the United States, Porto found a new leader in Anselmi’s place. And a new life. In a few weeks Farioli reconstituted the technical, tactical and character foundations of the group. And the results so far are amazing.
super modern
—
The 43 points (out of 45), 5 ahead of second-placed Sporting, are the result of 33 goals scored and just 4 conceded, with 11 clean sheets: sensational data in 15 days. However, those who think that Farioli is a coach who only or above all focuses on the defensive phase are wrong. Porto plays super modern, intense football, very dynamic in its movements and combinations: someone has already defined it as an evolution of positional football. He knows how to defend in a low block (with the trick of the midfielder who lowers himself to form a five-man line) but the first thought is always to press high and attack again. And in this, Porto has found the ideal interpreter, the 19-year-old Danish Froholdt purchased for 20 million from Copenhagen, a tireless pressing machine and the next prized piece of the goalkeeping boutique. The others are the Spanish center forward Samu, the wingers Borja Sainz, Pepe and William Gomes (a 2006), the talented Rodrigo Mora, the 10 Gabri Veiga who returned from Arabia. The defensive bulwark is Polish: protecting Diogo Costa, the national team’s goalkeeper (who was renewed until 2030 yesterday), are Bednarek and Kiwior, taken from Arsenal.
here’s thiago
—
Silva On the market – and on the general management – Farioli found the full collaboration of the company, a listening ear to the needs that he had not had in Amsterdam and which caused the summer separation much more than the blurred title. And in fact Porto has already moved quickly to strengthen the team in January: the legend Thiago Silva has returned from Brazil, who began his European adventure with the Dragons 21 years ago, the young Polish prodigy Pietuszewski (2008 Jagiellonia winger) should be the next addition.
the elite
—
Due to his ideas and his ability to revolutionize the teams he joins, Farioli is destined for the elite of European football. A significant victory (the championship, but there is also the Europa League…) would add the credit he deserves: the pain suffered against Ajax will be useful for him to complete the last step. At Porto they hope so.
© ALL RIGHTS RESERVED