"It's a question of mentality", but also "there is a lack of quality": Rabiola and FC Porto-Vitória

Tonight's FC Porto-Vitória game ends matchday 23 of the League, so the ball went to talk to Rabiola, a footballer who came up through Vitória and played for Dragão. Today, he is a coach for the AVS under-19s.

“It will be a balanced game. Porto are coming off a European elimination and, I think, they will be a little bit weakened”, says Rabiola, or Tiago Lopes, who retired from football in 2021/22, when he was wearing the Vila Meã jersey, in the Campeonato de Portugal.

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“Vitória, with its coach, an extremely intelligent person, will try to take advantage of this lack of confidence and this open wound that a European elimination brings to a team”, he adds, praising Luís Freire's work.

For Rabiola, who worked at FC Porto when the coach was Jesualdo Ferreira and the competition was Lisandro López, the club's problem is “a question of mentality”, although he also sees “some lack of quality”.

And he continues: “The process of changing coaches is never easy, the players are used to a system and dynamics. You have to be patient.” FC Porto, led by André Villas-Boas, replaced Vítor Bruno with Martín Anselmi

“Porto has accustomed us to responding in the most difficult moments”, he stresses. “They will try to respond to convince their fans. They are a demanding group of supporters who are used to winning. Porto have shown some weaknesses, it will not be an easy game.”

Rabiola, 35, also sees Vitória “on the rise”, as they have not conceded a goal in the last three games. “They have a defensive organisation that is more in line with what it should be.”

The FC Porto-Vitória match will be played this Monday, at Dragão, at 8:15 pm. The report is in Renascença .