Portuguese giant, FC Porto is in quite a period of transition. Third in the Portuguese championship last year, the Lusitanian club was unable to qualify for the Champions League. A failure for the Dragons who were transferred to the Europa League. Besides this, the presidential elections were eventful between the historic president Pinto Da Costa who lost and gave up his apron after 42 years in office and André Villas-Boas, the man who must embody the new FC Porto. Quickly after his victory, the former coach of Olympique de Marseille had to manage an open war situation with another legendary coach of the Portuguese club, Sérgio Conceição. A complicated period, which led to the departure of the man who has recently become the new coach of AC Milan.
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Naming Vitor Bruno on the Dragons bench, André Villas-Boas also had to deal with complicated finances which led to a tough summer. Thus, the Portuguese club did not spend more than 40 million euros with in particular the arrivals of Samu Omorodion (Atlético de Madrid), Francisco Moura (Famalicao), Deniz Gül (Hammarby), Nehuén Pérez (Udinese), Fabio Vieira (Arsenal) and Tiago Djalo (Juventus), the last three arriving in the form of a loan. Qualitative additions to a team which has taken on a very different face. Despite a difficult start to the season, a much more well-oiled team has emerged over the last few weeks and allowed the emergence of several talents.
Nico Gonzalez (22 ans)
Certainly the most established player on the team. Arriving in the summer of 2023 from FC Barcelona after a mixed loan to Valencia, Nico Gonzalez nevertheless failed to impress Sérgio Conceição at first, but fought to reverse the trend. Eventually, he got there and established himself as an indisputable player. The native of La Coruña simply raised his level this season and continued an exceptional year 2024 on an individual level. This season, the player who plays as a relay player in a 4-2-3-1 has scored 6 goals and 6 goals in 25 matches. His midfield tandem with Canadian Stephen Eustáquio works wonders and the Spanish midfielder is much freer in his offensive contribution. In Liverpool's sights and with a release clause of 60 million euros, he could well be one of the Portuguese club's next big sales. FC Barcelona also has a 40% resale clause.
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Otavio (22 years old)
Also installed in the FC Porto team before this season, Otavio arrived from Famalicao for 12.3 million euros last winter. A solid Brazilian central, he is one of the new faces of the Dragons defense since the retirement of legend Pepe. If he has had some approximations this season, he has demonstrated an ability to take FC Porto higher and coach Bruno Vitor is not mistaken: “we must exploit as much as possible the potential of a player who, as I have always said, seems to me capable of reaching a high level in Europe. I see what he can offer every day. Now he must understand that things will not always go well and that it is in times of error that he must stabilize.» His release clause is 50 million euros.
Samu Aghehowa (20 years)
A face already known for his stints with Granada and Deportivo Alavés, Samu Omorodion – now called Samu Aghehowa – joined FC Porto to everyone's surprise last summer. Targeted by Chelsea, the striker finally decided to join Portugal and it worked out well for him. Behind the monster Viktor Gyökeres of Sporting CP, he appears as the second best striker in the championship with 13 goals in 13 matches. He reached 18 goals in 21 matches in all competitions. There is no doubt that this summer again, he risks livening up the transfer window, he who has an XXL release clause of 100 million euros. Atlético de Madrid, which sold it for only 15 million euros, nevertheless set 50% on resale.
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Martim Fernandes (18 years old)
A pure product of the FC Porto team, Martim Fernandes has established himself as a starter this season where he benched Joao Mario. Much sharper in his lane, the right-back has distributed numerous caviars and already has 5 assists in 22 games. A great victory for him whose role last year under the orders of Sérgio Conceição was minimal (6 appearances, 1 offering). He particularly distinguished himself in the Youth League where he was one of the leaders of the team which reached the semi-final with Rodrigo Mora and Anha Candé. His release clause is 50 million euros.
Rodrigo Mora (17 years old)
Finally, it is certainly the nugget that FC Porto is hatching the most. Considered a genius for several years, Rodrigo Mora had crushed Portuguese and European football in the youth teams. From now on, it is adult football that will have to be careful. Finally installed in the first team this season where he has made 12 appearances, he has already scored 3 goals and 3 assists, settling into the end of 2024 as a starter. Strong man of the victories against Moreirense (3-0) and Boavista (4-0), he has already made everyone agree on his talent. His release clause is 45 million euros, but will reach 80 million euros when he turns 18. FC Porto has also been trying for a while to raise it to at least 100 million euros.
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Important for the sporting, but also economic future of FC Porto, these five players are essential in the reconstruction mission of the Portuguese club. FC Porto also has other nuggets ready to show up like Deniz Gül (20 years old), Gonçalo Ribeiro (18 years old), Gabriel Bras (20 years old), Gonçalo Sousa (18 years old) and especially Anha Candé ( 17 years old). Good news for the Dragons and André Villas-Boas after quite complicated last months.
Pub. the 02/01/2025 22:31
– UPDATE 02/01/2025 23:59
