Paulo Bento has announced the Portugal squad for the Euro, there were plenty of surprises to go around, and apparently no room for Hugo Viana and Manuel Fernandes.
Portugal has plenty of talented players so I was amazed by the apparent lack of depth in this team. No cover for Fabio Coentrao? Maybe Bento thinks that Veloso can play at left back.
Let us go over the squad:
Goalkeepers:
Rui Patricio (Sporting) is the best Portuguese GK and will remain as such for the next few years. Beto (Cluj) is a good choice for backup and will provide decent cover for Patricio. As for the last GK spot which was given to Eduardo (Benfica), I believe that this should have been given to Quim (Braga) as he had a solid season and started every game for Braga.
Eduardo is a good player but barely played for Benfica this season. Overall, there were no surprises here as I believe everyone expected these 3 choices.
Defenders:
On defense, I honestly believe this is where Portugal has a weakness. The starters are all decent, especially on the flanks with Joao Pereira (Sporting) in the right side and Fabio Coentrao (Real Madrid) on the left, in the middle Pepe will be the rock of the defense, but who will pair with him?
Bruno Alves (Zenit) is the best choice here,but Rolando (Porto) will challenge him for a spot in the starting lineup. Ricardo Costa (Valencia) is the fourth choice for central defense but I believe he is here for his ability to play in all four positions at the back.
Daniel Carrico (Sporting) would have been in this list but lack of playing time this season at Sporting may have cost him.
Miguel Lopes (Braga) may be a surprise to some, but I think that this is a good choice. He was solid for Braga this season, and he will be a starter for Porto next season. Nelson (Betis) could have been a good choice as well due to his ability to play in right or left, as well as Silvio (Atletico Madrid), but both players were inconsistent all season long. On the left, as I mentioned earlier, Bento decided not to get a backup for Fabio Coentrao, so he left Eliseu (Malaga) at home. This is one choice that I do not understand as it seems that Bento believes that Veloso or even Ricardo Costa can play there, I hope that I am mistaken.
Midfielders:
In midfield Portugal is strong, with Raul Meireles (Chelsea), Joao Moutinho (Porto), and Miguel Veloso (Genoa). Carlos Martins (Granada) is a favorite of Bento, so the former Benfica player may even get the starting job over Veloso. The other two central midfielders to get the call were Ruben Micael (Zaragoza) and Custodio Castro (Braga).
Custodio is a good choice as the holding midfielder had a very solid season this year. The former Sporting player deserves a place in this squad. As for Ruben, well, lets just say that the man from Madeira did not play up to his potential. Honestly, I am shocked that Manuel Fernandes is not in this team. Manuel is one of the best box to box midfielders in Europe and I just cant understand how Bento overlooked him. Hugo Viana is another omission that I cannot understand. Viana just had maybe his best season ever with Braga.
Paulo Machado is another player who deserved another look.
Forwards:
This is where Portugal is at its strongest. With the worlds best player Cristiano Ronaldo leading the way, I believe that this team will provide a lot of attacking power and flair in this tournament.
Nani should be the man oposite to CR7, and Helder Postiga who is having a good season with Zaragoza should be the man in the center forward spot.
Ricardo Quaresma is a nice weapon to have coming off the bench, and may even compete with Nani for a spot in the first eleven. Silvestre Varela (Porto) just had his most inconsistent season, so I was a little surprised that he was called up, I was thinking that Vieirinha would be here.
Hugo Almeida (Besiktas) will be a back up to Postiga, and Nelson Oliveira (Benfica) the talented youngster is here for the experience as he is the future striker for this team.
I have to say that Ricardo Vaz Te (West Ham) had done enough to deserve a spot, but it was not meant to be.
It is little use to argue as to who should have been on the team, the team had been picked and that is that. All we can do now is support the team and hope for the best.
Tuesday, May 15, 2012
Thursday, May 10, 2012
Another wasted season
Another season is coming to a close, and once again Benfica fans have to watch Porto celebrate yet another Portuguese Liga title.
These are tough times at Benfica with many fans asking for the heads of Jorge Jesus and Luis Filipe Vieira. Personally, I believe that LFV is a good president. Benfica fans forget that when "Orelhas" got on board, the team was in financial ruins.
The problem is that he made promises that were not kept, the main one being when he said that Benfica was going to be the spine of the Portuguese National Team, meaning that Benfica was going to provide the majority of the players to the Selecao! Nelson Oliveira and Eduardo will be the only Benfica players wearing the Portugal shirt during the Euro Cup!
He also promised that Benfica was going to invest in their youth systems, clearly that has not happened, as Nelson Oliveira, Luis Martins and Miguel Victor are the only exceptions.
If you watch the Benfica youth teams, as I do in BenficaTv, you will see there is a lot of talent. Benfica should follow the examples of Barcelona, Lyon, Ajax, Arsenal, even Sporting, and bring one or two home grown players every season.
There were also signings that made absolutely little sense, such as the case of Emerson. Capdevilla was already signed to replace Fabio Coentrao, so it would have made sense to have Luis Martins as cover. Never sign a player who is going to block a young talented player.
What about Ruben Pinto? This kid is going to be a star. Arsenal is reported to be interested.Is he ever going to get a chance? Roderick Miranda? Is he not worth getting a chance? He started for Portugal in the Under 20 World Cup and looked solid.
Danilo Pereira and Sana are another two players from our academies who look to have promising careers, Benfica let them escape on a free transfer.
Hopefully Oblak will get a chance to stay in the team next year as Eduardo will not be returning.
More importantly is the lack of titles that Benfica has during the last 10 years, 2 Portuguese SuperLiga titles and one Portuguese Cup is not enough for this club.
As for Jorge Jesus, I thank him for the title that he won in his first season at the club, and the team has played some exiting attacking soccer, but it is time for him to go! He has made some stupid decisions, like insisting on Emerson over Cap, leaving Nelson Oliveira on the bench, the lack of rotation.
He should leave now, while he is still a hot name, Valencia and Sevilla are interested. I wish him well in his future endeavors.
These are tough times at Benfica with many fans asking for the heads of Jorge Jesus and Luis Filipe Vieira. Personally, I believe that LFV is a good president. Benfica fans forget that when "Orelhas" got on board, the team was in financial ruins.
The problem is that he made promises that were not kept, the main one being when he said that Benfica was going to be the spine of the Portuguese National Team, meaning that Benfica was going to provide the majority of the players to the Selecao! Nelson Oliveira and Eduardo will be the only Benfica players wearing the Portugal shirt during the Euro Cup!
He also promised that Benfica was going to invest in their youth systems, clearly that has not happened, as Nelson Oliveira, Luis Martins and Miguel Victor are the only exceptions.
If you watch the Benfica youth teams, as I do in BenficaTv, you will see there is a lot of talent. Benfica should follow the examples of Barcelona, Lyon, Ajax, Arsenal, even Sporting, and bring one or two home grown players every season.
There were also signings that made absolutely little sense, such as the case of Emerson. Capdevilla was already signed to replace Fabio Coentrao, so it would have made sense to have Luis Martins as cover. Never sign a player who is going to block a young talented player.
What about Ruben Pinto? This kid is going to be a star. Arsenal is reported to be interested.Is he ever going to get a chance? Roderick Miranda? Is he not worth getting a chance? He started for Portugal in the Under 20 World Cup and looked solid.
Danilo Pereira and Sana are another two players from our academies who look to have promising careers, Benfica let them escape on a free transfer.
Hopefully Oblak will get a chance to stay in the team next year as Eduardo will not be returning.
More importantly is the lack of titles that Benfica has during the last 10 years, 2 Portuguese SuperLiga titles and one Portuguese Cup is not enough for this club.
As for Jorge Jesus, I thank him for the title that he won in his first season at the club, and the team has played some exiting attacking soccer, but it is time for him to go! He has made some stupid decisions, like insisting on Emerson over Cap, leaving Nelson Oliveira on the bench, the lack of rotation.
He should leave now, while he is still a hot name, Valencia and Sevilla are interested. I wish him well in his future endeavors.
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