Defeated by 1-0 in the first leg at home two weeks ago, the Guimarães team maintains "the ambition and the belief" of meeting Sporting in the final on May 26, with the notion that they have to be much more "acute and bold" to turn the tie around in the visit to the Estádio do Dragão.

"They are teams that are very motivated to be in the final. We are losing at half-time. We have to leave our comfort zone, to have great courage to take on the game. We have to show that we want to be in the final. We have to create a dent", he stressed, in the preview of the challenge scheduled for 8:15 pm.

Vitorianos and Portistas will meet for the third time in April, after the 'blue and white' triumph two weeks ago for the 'queen competition', in a game that the coach described as "very tactical", and the Guimarães success in the visit to Dragão for the championship (2-1), on April 7, in a clash in which the 'dragons' conceded more space, which his players took advantage of.

As the team coached by Sérgio Conceição "does not need to score goals to be in the final", the Minho team will have "a different strategic approach", to "have to provoke" the space that FC Porto will "try to close", he added.

Convinced that the spectators present at the Estádio do Dragão will witness "a fantastic, emotional, well-played game", Álvaro Pacheco also rejected that the opponent's crisis of results, given the two defeats and the draw in the last three rounds of the championship, could influence the game, relative to "a different competition", to which FC Porto "gives priority".

Asked about Taremi's return to goals and the possible difficulties that FC Porto's striker can create, the coach also stressed that his focus is "to motivate Nélson Oliveira, Jota Silva or Kaio César to understand how they can reach the goal".

Álvaro Pacheco also mentioned that the team will know how to deal with the absence of the injured Ricardo Mangas and João Mendes, who will stop for at least six months, after the fracture in his left ankle, suffered in Saturday's game with Farense (1-1).

"João Mendes was having an extraordinary season, with intelligence, 'perfume' and decision-making ability, but Vitória's squad has players with this character, capable of performing and helping the team. Not being available, we have to motivate these players to make history", he stressed.

Vitória de Guimarães faces FC Porto in the second leg of the semi-finals of the Portuguese Football Cup, scheduled for 8:15 pm on Wednesday, at the Estádio do Dragão, in Porto, refereed by Artur Soares Dias, from the Porto Football Association.