“Heart in the stands, lungs on the pitch”

PREVIEW

It's with the team “united, in a good mood and with a huge desire to offer victories” to our fans that Benfica head to the match against Santa Clara, on matchday 5 of the Liga Betclic, at the Estádio da Luz. 

What kind of game and what kind of opponent do you expect to face tomorrow [Saturday, September 14] at the Estádio da Luz?

A very competent opponent, who have had a very good start to the season, with three wins so far. What I'm basically hoping for, after looking at the opponent, is to look at what we can do. That's what we've done over the last two days, preparing the team, looking at the team, understanding what the team has been doing and what we can do tomorrow [Saturday, September 14] with two days of work. I'm expecting a dynamic game from us, attacking, creating lots of chances to score, that's what we've worked on over the last two days.

What is the availability of internationals? Many have made long journeys and only arrived a few days ago. What are your first impressions of Amdouni and Aktürkoglu?

The impressions were good. For now, everyone is available, except for the injured. Everyone arrived well, arrived with energy, everyone trained well yesterday [Thursday, September 12] and today [Friday, September 13]. And those were my first impressions. Coming together, feeling that the team is together, united, with a good atmosphere and with an enormous desire to bring victories to our fans.

After your first spell at Benfica, you said in an interview that you thought of João Félix to revolutionize Benfica's football on a return trip home. I'd like to ask you if you've thought of the next João Félix, or of a player in the squad, or from the academy, who could fulfill that role. In that sense too, you promised here at this table to play attractive, attacking football in your second spell at Benfica. Does that involve the 4x4x2 and dismantling the midfield duo that has always played, Leandro Barreiro and Florentino?

What I thought was to get to know the players, because there really are a lot of new players and a lot of incoming players. The only player who worked directly with me at Benfica was Tino [Florentino], and I had already worked with Renato Sanches at Swansea. It was getting to know the players, looking at the players a bit, understanding the dynamics, so... More than looking at the player who could come in and fit into the system I like to play in, it was looking at all the players and trying to idealize a team.  What I said, because I said it many times, because I know what the fans like... The fans like to win, they like to play well, they like the team to create chances and they like goals. What we're going to do in this first phase, and what I promise in this first phase, is to work hard, to make the team develop, so that the team reaches this state, which is the state we want and what the fans want.

Can you tell us what tactical system you have in mind for the team you want to build?

More than the system, it's different dynamics, because we have to make the team grow, especially in attacking terms and create more chances. That's what we've done: based on what we know of the players, we've tried to link them up and, based on positioning, how we can create a different dynamic that meets my ideas.

Speaking of players and style of play, what characteristics would you like to see in Benfica's midfield? How do you see Kökcü's position, as a second attacking midfielder or as a third midfielder supporting the striker?

I see him playing as a second midfielder or as a third, with the two roles you just mentioned. That's exactly what I see. He can either play in one position or the other, but he has to do both: he has to be a linking midfielder, and he has to be a man who gets closer to the finishing zones. If you look at what I did here, my first midfield, if I'm not mistaken, was Fejsa and Pizzi, then Samaris and Gabriel, then Tino [Florentino] and Samaris... More important than the characteristics of the players is that they have a position where they don't cancel each other out. That's what's important. That's why we work a lot on positioning, and then, to use your expression, how they link up, or how they're going to find the other players further forward.

What is Aursnes' position in Bruno Lage's Benfica? In the last two years, the only players to come out of Benfica's academy who have been consistent fixtures in the first team have been António Silva and João Neves. They've established themselves in a solid way. Do you think, given that you're known for focusing on training, that this is an acceptable number, or do you think there will be more focus on Benfica's youth system?

I have to have training time with Fredrik [Aursnes]. I feel he's very intelligent, so it was very easy for him to play in several positions. I have an idea, from what I've seen, but I have to test it first and see how he'll work with the others in that position. The other question... When you tell me that António Silva and João Neves were bets and then, in the same sentence, you say that we're going to have a bet again... The gamble... it all depends on the players. There was a bet on two players who came in, who made a name for themselves, who helped the team win a championship. One has since left and the other has stayed. Now we have to look at what we have, keep working and see if we have one or two players who can help us now. This is the moment. Our focus, our main concern, and I'm going to link your question to what is immediate. There are things that have to be done immediately, others a little further down the line, and those come with time. Right now it's Santa Clara, and the great news, at least for me, today, regardless of the other situations, is that the Estádio da Luz is full. That's a huge feeling. When they told me today [Friday, September 13] that the Estádio da Luz is full, that they're going to support us, what came to mind was what I was talking about at the presentation, which is this feeling of being a Benfica fan. I feel that tomorrow [Saturday, September 14] our heart will be in the stands and will help pump, because our lung will be on the pitch and will help us win games. That's our responsibility at the moment. Me and the players. We have to run, work, play well and make our hearts beat for us.

Do you feel more protected today with Rui Costa than you did when you took over the coaching team with Luís Filipe Vieira? Has your job of uniting the club become more difficult after Luís Filipe Vieira's interview?

Starting with that, I was happy that former president Luís Filipe Vieira recognized that in 2019 he had a good coach, a coach who trained intensively and a coach with a language that was accessible to the players. I wasn't the one who told him, it may have been some players who told him, it makes me happy to hear him and feel the man he was inside. Maybe it was players like Rafa or Grimaldo, who until recently went public about it. That's what I want to highlight from the interview. The other thing I want to highlight from the interview is that we all have to be together, in the words of former president Luís Filipe Vieira. That's the starting point. I know that this year is going to be difficult, especially because of what is happening outside the training center, outside the day-to-day dynamics of the team, because of the elections. But that's political stuff that I'm not interested in, I'm a coach. And what I feel at the moment is that I have to shield the team from these situations, I have to train them to make them grow as a team and that's what I promise: to work, work, work so that the team plays the game we want them to play. Regarding the situation of the current President, many years ago, I think in the 2008/09 season, I was a U-15champion - youth development director: Rui Costa. In 2018/19, I was national champion with the first team - sporting director: Rui Costa. And now, the only thing that has changed, because the relationship is fantastic, is that I now call him President.