Arouca, 16th place, with eight points, will host Benfica this Sunday, third, with 25, in a match scheduled for 6pm, refereed by Luís Godinho, from the Évora Football Association.
The Arouca coach considered that this Sunday's duel against Benfica, in round 12 of the I Football League, is an “opportunity” for his team to “play within the limits” and show that it is competitive.
“It’s a fantastic opportunity for us. We are very motivated and have the prospect of playing a good game. We want to go in with the desire to win, being competitive and threatening the goal of a very strong opponent. This will force us to play within the limits”, analyzed Vasco Seabra.
The coach acknowledged that “this is Benfica's best of the season”, but considered that his team's focus has to be “on the good work done during the week” and on the processes they want to put on the field.
“It is true that Benfica is in a good phase, but that also forces us to do our best. We have to enjoy the game, and even though we know that we will also suffer, we can be happy if we believe in what we are doing”, he added.
The Arouca coach believes that his team “can surprise” the 'eagles' and shared the attitude he wants from his athletes.
Benfica's coach, Bruno Lage, reinforced the objective of closing the gap to Sporting in the 1st Football League by the end of the year and assumed that he has no margin for error to achieve this. A more viable reduction after yesterday's defeat, in which Sporting lost 0-1 to Santa Clara.
In a press conference previewing the visit to Arouca, in Seixal, the Benfica coach also clarified that the circle he held with the players after the victory at Monaco's ground “was neither a message to the inside nor to the outside”, but rather “a act of leadership” and a reflection of the “great joy” he experienced at that moment.
“We are happy with the victory, but we cannot be satisfied, because our ambition has to be more. That's why I've said that our objective in terms of the championship, by the end of the year, is to reach second place and reduce the distance to first”, insisted the coach of the 'reds'.
In this sense, he took advantage of a question about the management he has done of the squad, and particularly of Di María, to remember that, despite this medium-term vision, the team has to “simultaneously keep its eyes on the ball” and that this “is the Sunday game.”
See here, at the end of the match, the summary of the game:
