FC Porto have 13 wins from 13 in domestic competition this season, and that is the story of their start. They are also perfect in the league, with 11 wins from 11, a five-point cushion over Benfica and Sporting nine points back.
Domestic control
The scale of the run is striking on its own. Porto have won every domestic game across the league, Supertaça Cândido de Oliveira and League Cup, and they have done it while scoring 27 league goals and conceding only five. Their +22 goal difference in the Primeira Liga fits the same pattern: they are controlling matches and finishing them off.
Francesco Farioli has still kept the message tight. Speaking to A Bola in weekly meetings with journalists at Olival, he said: "Even so, and as Francesco Farioli does not hesitate to say in the meetings he holds weekly with journalists in the press room at Olival, nothing has been won." That is the right note for a team with a perfect domestic start but no title trophy in hand yet.
Europe is the missing piece
The contrast comes in the Champions League. Porto have three points from four matches and sit 26th in the standings, a record that sits well below their domestic standard. André Villas-Boas put the point plainly to A Bola: "It is far from being a perfect season, considering the team's performance in the Champions League."
The home victory over Napoli eased the defeats to Manchester City, Betis and PSV Eindhoven, but it did not erase them. Porto are doing exactly what they need to do in Portugal, and the league numbers say they are in complete control there. Europe remains the place where this start still looks unfinished.
Written by Sam Whitfield with AI-assisted research, cross-checked against 1 outlet. How we work →
