The rivalry of Benfica vs Porto can definitely not be matched by Tuesday’s Portugal vs Finland friendly. But Coach Paulo Bento defends his opinion of ignoring it.
Unlike England’s Fabio Capello or Germany’s Joachim Lowe have done, Portugal’s Paulo Bento has overlooked the importance of his players’ club football agendas. Even Sunday’s Benfica vs Porto match which could decide the Portuguese Liga’s title has had no impact on his squad choices for tonight’s Portugal vs Finland friendly.
Indeed, with Benfica being 13 points behind league leaders Porto, it is certainly easy to understand why Bento believes that is only a matter of time befor Porto claims the cup. So this can wait, can't it? The big gap between Benfica and Porto has considerably lowered the importance of Sunday's big match in Bento's opinion.
The manager prefers to switch his entire focus on his task, which is to secure a spot for the country in the Euro 2012 championship, and he is focused on achieving just that. Portugal’s Euro 2012 qualifying campaign is truly back on track but there is still a long way to go.
Paulo Bento and his men are halfway through their rocky path after having played 4 matches out of their 8 Euro 2012 qualifiers. Now the good news for them is that they could kick off the second part of their campaign on a high by reaching the top spot in Group H on match-day 5.
Portugal are actually only second behind Norway and a victory on June 4 against the group leaders will subsequently increase their chances of clinching automatic tickets for the Euro 2012 championship. Under Paulo Bento, the Selecção immediately did what they needed to do at all cost in the qualifiers – which was to bounce back.
3-1 wins against Denmark and Iceland in October last year delivered Portugal and their fans from the anguish of commencing the Euro 2012 qualifying campaign in a disastrous manner, with a 4-4 draw at home to Cyprus and a 1-0 defeat away to Norway. But these results – both the positive and negative ones – belong to the past now.
What Portugal must do is to look ahead and think about how to win their upcoming battles. Evidently, Paulo Bento is aware of that. The manager apparently has nothing more important in his mind than to help Portugal book their place in next year’s European championship.
This explains why he puts so much importance in Tuesday’s Portugal vs Finland international friendly. The Finns certainly cannot be compared to Spain, Argentina and Chile on paper – whom Portugal have all faced recently.
However, Finland’s seize has had no impact on Paulo Bento’s view of the match. The Portuguese coach has urged his men to respect their opponents tonight. In fact, there are specific goals that Bento wants to reach. Following Portugal’s draw against Chile and ahead of June’s crucial Euro 2012 qualifier against Norway, the coach demands nothing but a victory against Finland.
Portugal vs Finland presents Paulo Bento with the final chance to study his team and make his decisions in a bit later for June’s Euro 2012 qualifier at home to Norway. Should anyone allow themselves to be angry at Bento’s decision to build tonight’s squad without considering Sunday’s Benfica vs Porto classic?
Indeed, with Benfica being 13 points behind league leaders Porto, it is certainly easy to understand why Bento believes that is only a matter of time befor Porto claims the cup. So this can wait, can't it? The big gap between Benfica and Porto has considerably lowered the importance of Sunday's big match in Bento's opinion.
The manager prefers to switch his entire focus on his task, which is to secure a spot for the country in the Euro 2012 championship, and he is focused on achieving just that. Portugal’s Euro 2012 qualifying campaign is truly back on track but there is still a long way to go.
Paulo Bento and his men are halfway through their rocky path after having played 4 matches out of their 8 Euro 2012 qualifiers. Now the good news for them is that they could kick off the second part of their campaign on a high by reaching the top spot in Group H on match-day 5.
Portugal are actually only second behind Norway and a victory on June 4 against the group leaders will subsequently increase their chances of clinching automatic tickets for the Euro 2012 championship. Under Paulo Bento, the Selecção immediately did what they needed to do at all cost in the qualifiers – which was to bounce back.
3-1 wins against Denmark and Iceland in October last year delivered Portugal and their fans from the anguish of commencing the Euro 2012 qualifying campaign in a disastrous manner, with a 4-4 draw at home to Cyprus and a 1-0 defeat away to Norway. But these results – both the positive and negative ones – belong to the past now.
What Portugal must do is to look ahead and think about how to win their upcoming battles. Evidently, Paulo Bento is aware of that. The manager apparently has nothing more important in his mind than to help Portugal book their place in next year’s European championship.
This explains why he puts so much importance in Tuesday’s Portugal vs Finland international friendly. The Finns certainly cannot be compared to Spain, Argentina and Chile on paper – whom Portugal have all faced recently.
However, Finland’s seize has had no impact on Paulo Bento’s view of the match. The Portuguese coach has urged his men to respect their opponents tonight. In fact, there are specific goals that Bento wants to reach. Following Portugal’s draw against Chile and ahead of June’s crucial Euro 2012 qualifier against Norway, the coach demands nothing but a victory against Finland.
Portugal vs Finland presents Paulo Bento with the final chance to study his team and make his decisions in a bit later for June’s Euro 2012 qualifier at home to Norway. Should anyone allow themselves to be angry at Bento’s decision to build tonight’s squad without considering Sunday’s Benfica vs Porto classic?
