After the Carolina Select game last week, the boys enjoyed a some what more relaxed week and with Halloween thrown into the mix also, it left the boys with only one real training session leading into this game. The task at hand though was fairly simple, win both your final games and potentially finish 3rd.
Maybe it was the lack of training the week prior that contributed to what followed, but Porto clearly were a little lost and maybe it was a case of 'after the lord mayors show' rather than inspiration regarding their performance against Carolina Select.
The game started with TU Man Utd quickest out of the starting gate and looking to impose their strength on the Porto boys and it was quick to see that they would have two lads up top to contend with all afternoon. Despite the dominance however from MU, there was no real penetration or end product and with this it left Porto very much in with a chance to take the lead when the rare opportunity presented itself.
It was eventually Man Utd that took the lead however as Man Utd broke through the midfield and defence with ease leaving the striker with a one on one with keeper Dani, who looked a little like a deer in the headlights as he failed to move off his line to close down the shot. 0-1. Normally this springs Porto into life, but again they just seemed a little flat. With the side starting with their traditional formation of 3-3-1, Coach decided to shake it up and go back to the formation that worked so well against Carolina Select. With this, Porto started to get some moves going and getting some shots off at the oppositions keeper. It was a break down the right wing that saw Porto equalise with a long shot from Remi that just skipped away from the keeper and found the bottom corner. With this MU came back strong, but the half finished 1-1
At the half time break, Coach called for a more lively approach and tried to stir the troops with a little poke in the right direction..
As the second half got underway, the Porto boys still seemed a little in bed and not their usual self. Normally second half of games is 'Porto Time' but it seemed today was not going to be that performance. Man Utd again dominated the proceedings as they seemed to find space after space to dribble and the Porto boys inability to make a tackle or close down the play was hindering them getting the ball. Eventually it was Man Utd that retook the league with again a dribble that took a player past 3 Porto boys to find the ball go through Dani despite his best efforts. Porto still looked beat and coach decided to shake the formation up again and put 2 lads in attack. This seemed to have an effect as the boys now started to get more shots and were looking dangerous, but on the counter attack, Man Utd finished off the Porto boys to go 3-1 in the lead. Porto did however get one back to setup a rousing finale, but it was not enough to steel the points or the draw.. FT 2-3
Coaches Corner
Something that has haunted us all year is focus and consistency. Despite the excellent performance against Carolina Select, it seemed the loss halted the great momentum of the Porto team and left them a little disjointed. That and the Halloween week all added to the display. However, despite us playing probably the worst we have all season, it must be said that we still proved a very tough unit to breakdown and get the victory against. This is the resounding positive that we can take from the game and learn from. even the mighty Barcelona can have an off day.. So I will put it down to just that!
