All ready. The final four of the Taça de Portugal 100 anos FPP has been confirmed. The Barcelos Municipal Pavilion opened its doors, this Friday, April 26th, for the teams’ first contact with the stage where the semi-finals and final of the hockey queen competition will take place this weekend. national.
FC Porto/Fidelidade, UD Oliveirense/Simoldes, SL Benfica and OC Barcelos trained this Friday at the Barcelos pavilion, in what lovers of the sport consider one of the greatest hockey cathedrals.
After the training, a press conference with a joint presentation took place with the four finalist coaches, Ricardo Ares, from FC Porto/Fidelidade; Edo Bosch, from UD Oliveirense/Simoldes; Nuno Resende, for SL Benfica; and Rui Neto, from OC Barcelos. It took place, with the trophy already in the spotlight, in the middle of the Barcelos Municipal Pavilion, where from today onwards the artists will shine.
Statements from those present:
Ricardo Ares, coach of FC Porto/Fidelidade
“Expectations are high. In this competition, every game has been a final since the first day and now, having arrived here, we are going to enjoy it. But the focus is on the semi-final, because if you don’t win… there is no final. That’s all we think about, game by game to get to the final and win. I think the details will be vital. We all know each other and have faced each other, but the past is the past and what counts is who competes best in the present. Our task is to take the Cup back to the Dragon Museum.”
Edo Bosch, coach of UD Oliveirense/Simoldes
“The four teams hope to lift the trophy. We are in a spectacular hockey environment, in a historic pavilion, we will do our best to be happy tomorrow and on Sunday. To reach the final we have to focus on this game against FC Porto. And it will be the details that will decide who goes through to the final. We want to be very happy, we are very focused on this objective.”
Nuno Resende, SL Benfica coach
“This is a special pavilion that hosts a special competition. We have the home team ahead of us, it will be a difficult game, but our expectation is to reach the final, and for that we need a participation against Benfica. All four coaches that we are here, we work with and we are fortunate to be in clubs with good squads and great conditions, it seems natural to get to this Final Four, but it is the result of a lot of work. Playing against OC Barcelos is always special, it will be a very difficult and decisive game for both teams. We haven’t won the Cup in almost a decade, but a club of Benfica’s size has the ambition to reach the finals and be able to win them, that’s what we’re going to fight for.”
Rui Neto, OC Barcelos coach
“Each of us has the best expectations of winning. Let there be three great hockey games, because we will have a full pavilion and we want to provide great shows. It will be the fourth game in a month and a half with Benfica and, of course, there will be no secrets. Therefore, the details can be decisive, it will be very balanced games. I don’t believe in favoritism because we play at home, all teams are used to these environments. Of course it’s good to have the public supporting us, it can help balance things out, but it won’t be a decisive factor.”
Final Four Schedule:
Saturday, April 27th
Semi-final 1, at 12pm: FC Porto – UD Oliveirense
Semi-final 2, at 4.30pm: SL Benfica – OC Barcelos
Sunday, April 28
Final, at 4pm: Winner of semi-final 1 – Winner of semi-final 2
