The Portugal Cup clash between Benfica and Porto later tonight represents a perfect chance for the Aguias to destroy Porto's treble hopes.

Nothing can be as thrilling as lifting the League Title at the fortress of your arch-rivals, just like FC Porto did to the expense of Benfica two weeks ago, Andre Villas-Boas made history on that day as his side left a very 'dark' Estadio da Luz with the satisfaction of heaping more misery on their closest rival.

Villas-Boas has been a definite success with FC Porto in a season that has seen them go unbeaten in the league so far, and they are also looking absolutely lethal in the Europe League as well. Meanwhile, Benfica have had a mixed season so far, having to deal with the agony of losing out on their title bid although they too have been impressive in the Europa League.

 

Porto have been lucky to have a very systematic personality in the form of Villas-Boas. The rather hyper-active manager keeps on bombing instructions towards his players even though a particular match is just minutes away from it's ending. The players at Porto respect him and Brazilian striker Walter's post-match statement after last Sunday's win over Sporting justified it perfectly

Walter, who has been struggling to earn a place in the Porto team this season said: "They said that I was left out because I was going out at night, but that's not true. The boss said to me: 'If you don't arrive at the right weight, you won't play, and you won't be called up (to the squad).' And I ended up not playing for two months. I've managed to lose weight and he's giving me the chance to prove myself."

Having already guided his team to the league triumph, the 'T' word talk at Porto's camp might be rather significant indeed. However, watching how Manchester United were forced to diminish any treble hopes would have been a real lesson for them ahead of tonight's match. Nevertheless, even the former Academica manager refused to preserve his side's status quo by insisting that Porto will be going all out for a victory tonight.

“We’re going to the Luz in the certainty that if we are at our best level we can get a positive result there. Whether or not it will be good enough to turn around the tie, I can’t tell you, especially as Benfica are an extremely competent team and matches like these are tight and difficult for both sides.

"But our motivation is at a maximum. A final and prestige is at stake."

Speaking about prestige and pride, the pain of watching the Dragoes lift the league title at their own stadium must have been unbearable for Jorge Jesus and his men. Benfica are in a delicate situation ahead of tonight's match as they plan on whether to attack or sit back and defend their two-goal lead from the first leg.

As far as their very own Alan Kardec is concerned, there will be no defensive-minded tactics from the Aguias tonight as the striker sets his sights on making more history for a club of their stature.

“In classicos there are no favourites. Each game has its own story. Past defeats don’t mean much.

"We didn’t want FC Porto to win the championship in our stadium, but that game belongs to the past. We also had a good victory in their stadium, in the Cup.

"“We’re confident, calm and well prepared. We are leading in the tie but that does not entitle us to go onto the pitch to defend.

"We’ll go out as if it was zero-zero. We can’t take a relaxed attitude. We represent one of the biggest clubs in the world, steeped in history and great players.

"We have to honour the shirt and we also have our pride. We want to finish the season with our heads held high.

Anyhow, if there is one Benfica Vs Porto match that you should not miss, it definitely has to be this one simply because of the fact that it's a 'cup' match with more than pride and prestige at stake. Jorge Jesus and his troop will be eager to get one over Villas-Boas' men at the Estadio da Luz tonight and revenge will be on the air for all the Benfica fans tonight. A match designed to be a blockbuster by nature.