As has so often been the case so far in my five and a half seasons in Portugal with Vitória, there’s a three-way title race happening. Benfica and Porto joined us on 35 points going into 2024 and the second half of my sixth season at the club.

We’re still competing on four fronts after progressing to the knockout round of the Champions League for the first time alongside the Taca da Liga and Taca de Portugal.

We’re looking to retain the Primeira Liga title this season, we’ve got some really good players at the club already but sometimes you can’t pass up an opportunity to bring in a next level player. One that could be a gamechanger.

Continue reading “Sempre Vitória | The Gamechanger” →

My Vitória side managed to win our first ever Portuguese Primeira Liga title in my fifth season in charge. Over the course of the season we were just that little bit more consistent than Benfica, pipping them to the title by two points. I’ve told the players that we should be challenging again but luckily the board just expect a top three finish to secure Champions League qualification.

After last season’s success I knew there would be vultures circling for my players. Vultures with heavy pockets lined with cash. What can you do when the elite of Europe come knocking for your hugely talented homegrown central defender?

Continue reading “Sempre Vitória | Losing your Young Star” →

Well then, what a bloody season. My Vitória side managed to win the Primeira Liga title for the first time in the clubs history, becoming only the sixth different side to win it. We finished ahead of Benfica by two points in the end in what was a two-horse title race, with Porto eventually finishing 16 points behind us in top spot.

We made it a domestic double a week later by beating Rio Ave to win the Taca de Portugal for the third consecutive season. The trophy haul now stands at one Primeira Liga win, three Taca de Portugal triumps, two Taca da Ligas and a Supertaca win.

Is a new era of domination about to begin?

Continue reading “Sempre Vitória | Season Five Review” →

Sorry for leaving things on a cliffhanger last time out. It was partly to build suspense but mainly because I hadn’t actually played the next match yet and it just seemed like a good place to move onto a new post!

The Benfica match shapes the league season. Lose and the title is all but theirs. Win and then do what’s required in our last three matches and the league title is ours for the first time.

Continue reading “Sempre Vitória | Season Five | Four” →

I should be happy heading into the last few months of the season top of the league. It’s a good position to be in but I know that Benfica have games in hand. I know Porto will come good at some point. I can see Sporting in 4th not far behind.

There’s a title race on. How will it end?

Continue reading “Sempre Vitória | Season Five | Three” →

The 2022 World Cup in Qatar is over and it’s finally time to get back to domestic and continental football. Brazil won the tournament, beating a very talented Dutch side 4-0 in the final, while Portugal finished 3rd. 37-year-old Cristiano Ronaldo finished top scorer in the tournament with eight goals and then bowed out of international football.

Enough about that though. The first part of the season went well for us, some have predicted that we’ll go on to win the league for the first time. Will we? I’m not sure but read on to find out how the transfer window and our matches across January went.

Continue reading “Sempre Vitória | Season Five | Two” →

It was a summer of squad overhaul. I didn’t plan on losing Branco and García so it’ll be interesting to see how we get on without them and how the young players making the step up from the B team cope with Primeira Liga football.

With the 2022 World Cup to navigate around it’s a busy start to the 2022/23 season. Read on as I serve up the first portion.

Continue reading “Sempre Vitória | Season Five | One” →

If you need a short summary of my fourth season at Vitória, we finished 3rd in the Primeira Liga and won the Taca de Portugal, Taca da Liga and Supertaca. Our first foray into the Champions League was a story of almost but not good enough. We picked up a couple of wins but ultimately crashed out in 4th place in a group that contained PSG, Spurs and Schalke.

If you want a bit more of a detailed look at season four, here’s the story of the season in stats. Get yourself caught up and then read on to see how we’re shaping up ahead of season five.

---

Continue reading “Sempre Vitória | Season Five | Preseason” →

Regression isn’t usually a positive. It is for me though in the context of my fourth season in charge of Vitória on FM19.

We slipped a league position to 3rd and were three points away from our total from the previous season too. We could have won a domestic quadruple, taking home the Primeira Liga, Taca de Portugal, Taca da Liga and Supertaca. It was only a domestic cup treble we had to settle for in the end. Coming up short in the league once again.

The league remains elusive and I’m fine with that. The challenge that Benfica and Porto pose along with Sporting and Braga, coupled with some of the incredibly promising young talent that we’ve got coming through at the club, keeps me coming back to the game.

Continue reading “Sempre Vitória | Season Four Review” →