Former attacking midfielder Ruben Mikael, winner of two Portuguese Cups with FC Porto, underscores the qualities of the Brazilian winger.
He played for FC Porto and Braga, but it was in Porto that he won the Portuguese Cup twice. Is it cool to climb those stairs of Jamor?
– It’s always special when we win, especially for those Portuguese who dreamed of climbing the stairs since childhood. Unfortunately, I didn’t win with the braga, but the taste would still have been the same if it had.
For FC Porto, is it more important to win the Portuguese Cup, in addition to the Super Cup and the League Cup, since the tournament ended?
– It wouldn’t be the Taça de Portugal that would save FC Porto’s season, but FC Porto had a good season, because it won the Taça da Liga, and the Supertaça was eliminated the same way it was in the Champions League, who knows, if they can’t reach the final , and fought for the title until the last day. Portista should be proud. I know that in a club like FC Porto not winning the championship is immediately considered a bad year, but looking at the teams I think Benfica had a more balanced team.
What match do you expect between Braga who are unbeaten at home, against the big boys, but have been weak away from the field, and the usually strong Porto team in the finals?
– It will be a good game to play. Sergio is not a coach who withdraws in the finals, his teams applied a lot of pressure from the start, while on the other side we see Braga playing beautiful and well-coached football. If the stadium is in good condition, it has everything to be an open match with chances for both sides.
He also won the League Cup final against FC Porto, with Braga, and Braga won his last three finals against FC Porto. Can this be weighed?
Every game has its own story. We also defeated Braga in the Europa League final, and then we beat a super team from Porto in the League Cup. It’s a cliché to say, but it’s the details that make all the difference. As President Bento da Costa said, the finals are not for playing, they are for winning.
Who is the player you are betting on to decide the final?
– In Braga, obviously, Ricardo Horta. It performs really well again and can make a difference, although sometimes gamers decide they don’t play much in these games. At FC Porto, Taremi is always a danger and I also believe in Galleno. If it’s a good day, break it all out. She has extraordinary abilities. If the first two or three moves go well for you, you lose your balance.
How do you feel on the eve of this final?
– The day before, all or almost all of the players were quiet. After lunch on the day of the final, you start to feel some tension in your stomach, which is good, because it makes you more alert. When the game starts, everything passes.
Does Sergio Conceicao’s experience in the finals against newcomer Artur Jorge as coach have anything to do with it?
It might help, but it won’t make a difference. You can train a series of situations and on the first move of the game there is a dismissal, someone is distracted or a less positive move and you end up scoring, and after that, it’s all over that you’ve trained.
Will you see the final?
Obviously I will.
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