Rui Vitória: "We do not go into a state of euphoria"

"We did not make a scene because we won other matches by 1-0 and now we do not go into a state of euphoria because we beat Braga by 6-2" – this was how Benfica’s coach, Rui Vitória, reacted when bridging the gap between the last match in the Liga NOS and the away match at Aves, scheduled for 9:15 pm on Friday.

Benfica meets Aves again almost three months after the Liga NOS win at the Estádio da Luz. What differences do you expect to find in the opponent?

It is a different competition. We know that this is the last round of this stage and Aves and Benfica are the only teams of Group A that have the chance of going through to the final four. I believe Aves is very motivated to get there. They will want to win because it is the only chance they have, and we will want to win too.

Benfica is in a winning streak. What work has been done to make the results so different now?

In fact, there were a few internal changes in our daily work, but I will not explain them here. The fundamental change was this: if we want to change something, we also must change ourselves. It was a thought from all the players, being aware of what we had to do. To be even more rigorous, to be permanently demanding, to be more and more united, to believe in what we are doing, not to divert our focus.

Could this game with Braga have served to convey the message that it was Benfica's turning point this season?

Every match is important. It was a match we really wanted to win because our opponents were ahead of us, they have a lot of quality and it was also a challenge for us. We made a good impression and we had a very good display. It was an important game, but that is all it was. We did not make a scene because we won other matches by 1-0 and now we do not go into a state of euphoria because we beat Braga by 6-2. We put in a good performance, we played well, with confidence, but it is not enough, we have to continue our work.