Football Season Guide

After the departure of two times champion Jorge Jesus, there were many doubts on whether Rui Vitória would be able to deliver in his first time as a big club coach. Truth was that he delivered pretty good. Benfica got hold of third championship against a very competitive rival Sporting. This year, they will attempt something never achieved before by the Eagles: O Tetra, that is, four league titles in a row. From all Big Three, Benfica is the one that seems to be closer to ideal at this stage. While rivals are still dealing with normal market difficulties, Benfica is almost done with buying and selling. Two very important players left: last year’s unquestionable rookie of the year Renato Sanches, and ever so important attacking midfielder Nico Gaitán. No matter how important these departures might be, Benfica moved fast in the market and seemed to have not only covered the departures but also improved in some other positions, as well as improving squad depth. The biggest expectations goes perhaps to Carrillo, The former Sporting winger spent almost one entire season without competitive matches, after a dispute with the Lions. Red fans are hoping for him to start where he left in last season’s debut when he was almost unstoppable during a handful of matches. Benfica has high hopes on him being the x-factor for this season, such as Gaitán has been over the last years. Cervi and Zivkovic are also very good prospects for the winger positions. Guillermo Celis and André Horta are expected to be fighting for the spot left available by Renato Sanches in the midfield. Celis as a more battling midfielder; Horta as a classic skillful number ten. Grimaldi had a very good pre-season and is expected to give Eliseu a serious competition for the role of left full-back. The Spanish gives the team more dynamism and passing quality to the left flank.