"Respect Tirsense and confirm our presence at Jamor"

PREVIEW

Ensuring their presence in the final of the Portuguese Cup with a “good showing” is the goal of the eagles, as coach Bruno Lage said in his preview of Benfica-Tirsense, the second leg of the semi-finals of the Portuguese Cup, scheduled for 8:15 pm on Wednesday, April 23, at the Estádio da Luz.

What impact can the 5-0 lead from the first leg have on tomorrow's game?

We know we had a good result in the first leg of the play-off, but what's most important for tomorrow is that we confirm our presence in Jamor, because that's what we want. To respect Tirsense, to talk about Tirsense and to seal a final that has been eluding us for some time. We haven't won the Portuguese Cup for 8 years, and in the last 10 years we've been in the final 3 times, so tomorrow we want to seal it with another good display, another good game, respecting Tirsense, who have had a very good run.

Tomorrow [Wednesday], will Benfica be very different from what we've seen in terms of the players they choose for the game? Will you end up giving them chances? I'm also asking you about Tomás Araújo and Di María. They - at least, that's what it seemed to us - came off injured against Vitória SC, and I'm looking ahead to ask you if you're sure you'll be able to count on both of them for what will probably be the most decisive game in the league, against Sporting.

They're both physically available for tomorrow's game. So I'm not going to shy away from what I've been saying over the last few days, especially now that it's tattooed on our captain's head. So, it's one day at a time, and it's one day at a time that we manage both our personal lives and the life of the club. So the present, and the future, is the game with Tirsense. To present the best team based on what the players have been doing. I don't like to talk about opportunities so much as I like to... I always analyze what the players are doing, both on and off the pitch, and I can assure you... because I'm very happy with him, even though he hasn't played much recently, but tomorrow he'll start, and that's Arthur Cabral.

Benfica already have a big advantage, and have talked about this dream of being in Jamor and winning the Portuguese Cup. There's been a lot of talk about the fact that this final might not be in Jamor. Yesterday [Monday], Rui Borges was talking about the beauty and spectacle of Jamor. Benfica and Sporting have already met this year in Leiria, and they really gave a great lesson in sportsmanship in the stands and everywhere else. What does it feel like, as a coach, for example, to be in a final and not be able to play in Jamor?

Look, don't get me wrong, you're already doing the Benfica-Sporting final, and I, out of respect for Tirsense and Rio Ave, am only talking about myself. Ever since I started my career, many years ago, I promised myself I would never go to Jamor to watch a Portuguese Cup final. I wanted to play in the Portuguese Cup final. As you know, 4/5 years ago I helped the team reach the Portuguese Cup final, then I didn't have time to play in it, I had other things to do [laughs]... In the meantime, I have to remind you that I went there once when Belenenses were playing at Jamor. I know all too well what it's like to play in a Jamor final, which is why I started this conference with exactly that. We want to be at Jamor.

You've already helped Benfica reach a final, but you didn't get to play in it. Do you feel that's missing from your career? Bruno [Lage] who comes to Benfica, saves Benfica, is a champion, has already won the League Cup...

No, I didn't save Benfica. I helped the team win titles, that's my job. I came with this objective, that's what I said from day one, and that's what interests me right now: to help the team play a great game tomorrow [Wednesday] and seal another trip to the Portuguese Cup final in Jamor.

At the end of the match with Vitória SC, he admitted that Florentino's yellow card was a strategy. Meanwhile, Sporting's coach, Rui Borges, has already reacted and said that it is something punishable, something that is illogical. I ask you: what comments do you have on the Sporting coach's statements? And I'd also like to ask you about Di María, if the injuries he's suffered in 2025 could have a bearing on the decision to renew his contract.

You know the name of Benfica's coach, and you know the name of Sporting's coach. I'll ask you a question: do you know the name of Tirsense's coach? Don't you? [Smiles] You've prepared to come to a [press] conference for the semi-final of the Portuguese Cup and you don't know the name of the next opponent I'm going to face... You see, it's because of this that I have this [notebook] and I have the reports here... and I even have them here, I'm going to show them to him, because he deserves both the photo and the record of what they did. Emanuel Simões, 45, and the record they [Tirsense] made in the Portuguese Cup. You know, Guimarães is in the past, and I think the most important thing is for us to talk about what Tirsense have done. Because... look, I'll give you two examples here. It was curious that we talked about these players at the end of the game... Jorge Silva, who is Fábio Silva's brother - he was my player at Wolverhampton, he's even having a great season in Spain, and just last weekend he beat Atlético Madrid. Jorge [Silva], who plays for Tirsense, has played for Benfica, FC Porto and Lazio. There's another kid here, Rodrigues, Daniel Rodrigues... Sporting and a national team player. Do you know what they both said about this game? It was a unique opportunity to make a name for themselves, to show themselves, because these games change careers. So today, with all due respect to your question, I want to talk about Tirsense, I want to really appreciate what Tirsense have done, the players, their coach, and tomorrow the respect I have for Tirsense is to prepare for the game in the best possible way and win the game. Regarding Di María, the record I have is of a champion who has, this year [2024/25] - in addition to his CV - 2512 minutes, is the 11th most used player in the squad, and has 15 goals and 8 assists. We don't make decisions based on the moment, because three or two months ago the question was - I don't know if it was you or a colleague of yours - how much longer will it take us to renew Di Maria, and today it's already questioning whether the player is fit to play in the future. The player isn't injured, he's physically fit to play tomorrow, he felt discomfort like Tomás [Araújo] did, we made the best decisions during the game to win.

Allow me to return to Guimarães to ask you if you feel, looking at what happened, that you could have done things differently, not least because at the end of the game you admitted that at this point everything is management, regarding the issue of yellow cards. Then ask you about Renato Sanches, who has only played 416 minutes this season. As a coach, is he still a player you want to keep for next season, even taking into account the words of Benfica's President, who said that he was a player you were sure you would spend money on?

Don't get me wrong, but the present, and the immediate future, is Tirsense. I understand, I respect your questions, if you want to bring some of them to the next conferences I'll be happy to answer them, not least because next month, if everything goes well tomorrow, I'll be here talking to you at least 11 times. We'll have more press conferences. Today's topic is Tirsense.