Ahead of next Saturday's FC Porto-Famalicão match, counting towards the I Liga, Desporto ao Minuto recalls the last time Famalicão beat the dragons in the 'invicta' city. It happened in 1993, in a match that went down in history not only for the result, but also for extra-game reasons - an RTP journalist was attacked on the pitch by FC Porto fans, including Vítor Catão. 

It all happened live on national television. Moments after the 0-1 defeat at Antas, Vítor Catão jumped onto the pitch and ran towards Paulo Martins, a journalist for the public broadcaster, attacking a production assistant along the way.

RTP staff tried to calm things down, but Vítor Catão's brother and father also came onto the pitch to take part in the brawl, armed with an iron bar. Vítor Catão tried to flee the stadium, but the three were eventually identified by the PSP. In the stands, another RTP journalist was the target of an attempted assault and was spat on. 

Pinto da Costa regretted the incident shortly afterwards, in an interview with RTP, calling it "sad". The incident earned FC Porto a one-match ban the following season. The journalist who was attacked was with José Vieira, the man-of-the-match that night. The former central defender scored the only goal of the night (and of the season) and witnessed everything. He recalls the episode in an exclusive interview with Desporto ao Minuto: 

"It was a match marked by the twists and turns it had. It was at the end of the match, interviews used to be done on the pitch back then. The journalist was interviewing me on the pitch, and the fans attacked him with an iron bar. Back then, it was almost forbidden to win at the Antas stadium. It wasn't forbidden, but it was very difficult," he says. 

José Vieira recalls a match marked by Famalicão's "luck", as FC Porto's shots all went wide. "I remember going on the bus and Lila, a very funny guy, said to me: 'Today, we have to get on the bus quickly. And I don't know if it will be enough, because all the windows will be broken'. It was one of those days when the ball wouldn't go in for FC Porto. All the gods were on our side that day. They could have been there all day and they wouldn't have scored. We felt a lot of pressure, the Antas stadium was always difficult," admits Vieira.

José Vieira scored the only goal of the season at the Estádio das Antas

Those were different times, when "teams were already entering Antas in fear", along with "the pressure that the referee was under throughout the match". The goal, following a corner, in the 64th minute, was a great cause for joy for the ex-player, now 54 years old:

"It's a goal that will forever be etched in my memory and in the memory of many football fans who follow the sport. Playing in Porto at that time was very difficult, with Fernando Couto, Jorge Costa, Kostadinov, they were a very strong team and rarely lost at home. Curiously, I started that game on the bench, I came on after ten or twelve minutes due to an injury to a colleague, Celestino. I was supposed to start but I had a physical problem in the middle of the week," he begins by saying, also recalling another previous episode. 

"One or two other weeks before, we had played at Luz. I hit the post, but we lost 1-0. José Gusmão, our coach, said to me: 'at Benfica you hit the post, but here you will score a goal'.. And he was right. Things happen, sometimes, when people believe. He was an important person for me," he reveals. José Gusmão would go on to become national coach at the Athens Olympic Games in 2004. 

   Miguel Ribeiro is doing an excellent job at Famalicão.

The Famalicão of that time and today is very different. Between 1991 and 1995, José Vieira played for the club as a player. He returned in 2013/14 as a coach, in the Campeonato de Portugal. Over the course of 30 years, Vieira has seen a great evolution in the club.  

"The conditions are completely different. Dr. Miguel Ribeiro [president of the SAD] was the son of my sports director, Mr. Custódio, who was part of the Braga Football Association. Miguel would go with us to the games and to the training sessions. He grew up in football. He is doing an excellent job at Famalicão, he has been at a high level. They were even national junior champions recently," he analysed. 

Now, on Saturday, Famalicão can repeat a feat that has remained unchanged for 31 years. "FC Porto is going through a less good phase, but it is still FC Porto, with very talented players. Famalicão is a team that has had ups and downs this season, however, they have managed to get some victories, they are in a good phase [now with Armando Evangelista]. It's a matter of things starting to go well. They may eventually get a good result. Famalicão is a team that is growing and can make life difficult for the so-called big teams," concludes José Vieira. 

The first clash between the two teams took place in the distant year of 1946/47, in the I Divisão Nacional. Over the years, the superiority of the Porto club over its 'neighbour' from the Braga district has been imposed, with 21 victories in 28 games. FC Porto is, in fact, in its best ever run, with nine consecutive victories over Famalicão in the last three years. 

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