Ball – Schmidt warns FC Porto but assumes: “Continuing at this level we can be champions” (Benfica)

After an auspicious start to the season in Benfica, where he was an outstanding leader in the league and managed to qualify for the Champions League, Roger Schmidt was invited by UEFA to the Elite Coaches Forum, which took place on Monday in Nyon. Switzerland.

And the German coach did not hide his satisfaction at the excellent moment Luz is going through, but he left a warning of what the season is lacking.

“Continuing at this level we can finish the tournament as national champions, and that is our main objective. There are only 13 games, and we have many more games to come. Nothing is done or achieved, we are competing with other high level teams and there are always surprises in the league, and there are Many good teams. We saw last season, for example, how many points FC Porto finished… We know there is a lot of quality, we can’t stop because we have a few points at the top,” he said, continuing.

“We remain humble, we want to be in shape and we want to do our best to keep progressing, that is the challenge we are facing.

We’ve done a good job so far, so we’re eight points ahead, but we have to keep going. Honestly, we haven’t achieved anything yet. What we have achieved so far is reaching the group stage of the Champions League and then qualifying for the Round of 16. Something is the result of our work, as we are still competing in all competitions. In my opinion, we have been able to play good football, consistently, in the last month, which gives us confidence,” said the German, who also spoke of his arrival in Portugal and Benfica.

“The start at Benfica was great too. I felt welcome, the players have been very dedicated since pre-season, with a lot of strength in training and we were able to put together a team with our style of play. We started to focus on match after match, we got into a good moment and things are as they are today. The challenge now is to maintain that level, keep working hard and not lose focus. We also need to remember what we did to be at that level.”