Academica sign Adrien Silva on loan

Adrien Silva, 21, signed by the Academic end of the season, arriving at Coimbra on loan from Sporting.

Adrien Silva, who will wear the jerseys Académica 28, wove his first declarationsas the player ”Briosa, “ showing himself glad to go to dress in black.“I am very happy to be in Academic. I came to help the club achieve its goals andwill do my best to help ’Briosa. “ People sent me confidence and it’s up to me toprove them right, “he said the player to the Academic Web site.The midfielder also revealed that some players already know that the Academic and was urging with Hélder Cabral.

“It’s always good to have friends to play at the club. I know Bischoff and Helder(Cabral). It will be good for me and I will have to adapt fast. I tried to inform me,especially with Helder (Cabral), who only told me good things about the club, “he added.

The young footballers spoke of his first impressions on the Academic and left amessage to supporters.

“The conditions are very good. It’s a club humble, friendly and welcomed me well. I hope to have the unconditional support by the fans, not just me, but especially the team. This is fundamental and the fans know they are very important for we finished the initial building of the ”students” in the market in January.

19 January 4 Permalink

Pre-Season Wins on Presentation Day

Today would prove to be a day of celebration for one very young new member of the FC Porto team. James Rodriguez, who just celebrated his 19th birthday with the club back in Germany on the 12th, scored his first Porto goal during the pre-season meet up with Ajax today at the Dragão. With spped increasing down the wings for Porto, a goal was immeninet and it would come sooner rather than later. A major mistake by Ajax keeper Vermeer in the 13th minute would allow Hulk to beat him in speed before crossing the ball in to James for the one and only goal of the match. Joao Moutinho and Fernando Belluschi would also be major protagnoists in the match today, providing activity in the midfield that would get the team going offensively. Although Porto played a superb match there were still laps in play where Ajax would test the Dragons on defending however, Helton would be there time and time again to make his presence known in the goal.  

With another succesful match Porto coach Andre Villas-Boas, while hailing his team for their work in the match today, also noted that there are things that also need to be improved by his side previous to the beginning of the season. The Porto coach declined to comment on Moutinho stating that he rather talk of his team collectively rather than talking about certain individuals. 

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18 July Permalink

“We want to be champions on Sunday”

Benfica saw their title hopes grow even bigger with a 2-3 win over Academica on Monday. Benfica took the lead with a 2nd minute goal from Weldon. Academica came back to score the equalizer through Diogo in the 28th minute. Benfica would take a small lead just before halftime with another Weldon goal in the 41st minute, allowing them to come back into the second half with the confidence. There wouldn’t be anymore goals till the final stages of the game, with an 81st minute goal from midfielder Ruben Amorim. Academica would make it very nervous for Benfica by scoring in the 88th minute, putting that extra bit of pressure on the league leaders. Luckily Benfica held out to get the win and allow them to remain 6 points off of Braga. Even without a few of their main players, Benfica are still on their way to becoming champions. 

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22 April Permalink

Lisboa derby

Monday saw the always explosive derby between Benfica and cross-town rivals, Sporting. Sporting started off the better team, taking charge and making it hard on Benfica to really get something going in the first half. What seemed like a game that was going in Sporting’s direction would eventually crumble apart. The game itself was filled with a lot of petty tackles and far too many challenges. The majority of the game was spent stopping to take freekicks and while I would have liked to see another Carlos Martins screamer, it was becoming a bit annoying to hear the whistle for every little thing.

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17 April 1 Permalink

“our goal is to become champions”

Sorry for the lack of updates, my real life has taken control and I haven’t had much time to devote to the boys. So here is a quick recap of where we’ve been and what we’ve done and what to expect in the next few days. Two weeks ago this Sunday saw the boys play Sporting Braga, current holders of second place. Everyone played down the game, saying it was not the deciding factor. While that is true, it was an important game to win to ensure we mantained a good record and to see us keep first place. The only goal came just moments before halftime with a freekick headed in by captain Luisao. That would be all it took to see that Benfica are now six points ahead of Braga. There are still a handful of games to play and it could easily be neck and neck again soon enough. The following weekend saw Benfica take on Naval. Naval got off to a quick start, scoring in the 2nd and 11th minute, thus providing pressure on Benfica and to keep them on their toes. They of course responded, starting in the 15th minute with a goal from Weldon. Just 3 minutes later saw the next goal, again from Weldon. All was level and Benfica were getting the boost they needed. They would continue to push and to dig, Di Maria providin the 3rd goal in the 38th minute leading the team into halftime winning. It wouldn’t mean they were done, the final goal being scored by none other then Oscar Cardozo in the 55th minute. Cardozo is now tied for top scorer in the league wtih Falcao, for 20. This Monday Benfica play Sporting and while Sporting are not a threat, it is still the Lisbon derby meaning it will most likely be heated. One can almost feel bad for Sporting after the season they’ve had, however that doesn’t mean I hope for a close game, not by any means. I’m sure despite Saviola and Peixoto’s injuries we will be okay. The only other noticeable injury is Julio Cesar who suffered a head injury in the defeat to Liverpool. A rest is needed for him and will see starter Quim back in the line up. 

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9 April 1 Permalink

A toalha não será atirada ao chão.

It’s been half a week since the Dragons were together as a complete group, facing Sporting in their week 21 match up. The dragons despite coming off a good week last week would take a harsh tumble against the lions and would suffer a heartbreaking 3-0 defeat at the Alvalade on Sunday. Although the loss would further the gap between the current champions and Benfica and Braga ahead of them, Jesualdo Ferreira would refuse to signal the loss as the end of their title race stating, “The result is a consequence of the exhibition. We had a bad game. Sporting were happy at the very beginning of the game. We had errors and were not able to respond. The moments of the goals were decisive. We lost this game with merits of Sporting and our demerits. Still we are champions. While the points allow us to pursue this objective, we will continue to fight. We closed a cycle of 15 games with a single defeat. The three points are in good hands. This was the first week since January 2nd without a game in half of the week. All teams go through these situations, especially those who play with the pace and intensity of our playing. I will not talk about the appointment of the arbitrator, because then people would say he was putting something on the victory of Sporting. We lost, period. “

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4 March Permalink

Taca da Liga semi-final

Tuesday saw the semi-final of the Taca da Liga between Sporting and Benfica. It was a game full of controversial moments and big goals as Benfica won 4-1 sending them through to the final where they will face Porto. That game should also be one to watch with both teams playing well but also for the fact that it will be a Classico game. There will be more on that later on with both Jas and I covering it (obviously) so be sure to keep your eyes open for that.

The first controversial moment was a foul on Ramires that led to Joao Periera’s red card. From there Benfica had a freekick that was headed in by David Luiz in the 7th minute putting the away side up 1-0. From then on Benfica dominated posession, being a solid team and breaking down whatever chance Sporting had of regrouping and trying to mount a challenge. In the 29th minute Ramires scored Benfica’s second goal with a gorgeous pass from Cesar Peixoto that seemed to snake its way throught the Sporting defenders. Some would say that the game was well and truly over from that point on.

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10 February Permalink

Carlsberg Cup, derby style

Tomorrow sees the semi-final of the Carlsberg Cup. Not only is the semi-final, but it is a derby as well with Benfica and Sporting facing off at the Stadio Jose Alvalade Some of you might remember last years eventful final which saw terrible refs, bad sportsmanship, and all around drama (though with Benfica and Sporting playing, no one would expect anything less). This year we will hopefully see a cleaner game and a game that doesn’t feature questionable calls.

Benfica will go into this match fresh from a 1-1 draw against Vitoria Setubal. Not a great match nor a great result but the team still is going into the match being the front runners. We still can’t be too cocky of course, though we want to retain the trophy. The players to watch out for would have to be Oscar Cardozo, Fabio Coentrao, Javier Saviola, and Angel Di Maria, all of whom can be dangerous on the ball and quick when in possession. If there is one thing Sporting should do is limit the chances of Cardozo, Saviola, and Di Maria, though that is no small feat. Do that and you’ll have a chance.

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8 February 2 Permalink