“One of the best assistants of FC Porto”, already as head coach, played a major role in the transfer of Mario Yardela to Sporting in 2001/02. It was one of the strongest ideas not previously discussed face-to-face in yesterday’s release of the documentary series Irony of Fate, in which Pinto da Costa talks about his 39-year presidency.
“Things were not going well, such is the life of the coaches, but he was the man who correctly marked his time at FC Porto,” said Pinto da Costa of Octavio Machado, recalling in detail the process he went through with Mario Jardel. : “He suddenly found himself free and expressed a desire to come to Porto. We said yes, it was even Reinaldo Teles who picked him up at the airport. He left there already with his FC Porto scarf, in the afternoon he even bought an apartment in Porto, and then everything was ready for completion the next day. That night, Reinaldo Teles and I went to the Tivoli hotel where the team was, and told Octavio and his assistant Rui Oliveira that there was a chance Jardel was coming and they thought they didn’t want to. I remember they said they had a team set up to play in 4x4x2 and Jardell was not suitable for this setup. First of all, it was the influence of the teacher, he understood that this was not so. It was clear that there was no point in hiring a player the coaches didn’t want. ”
The blue and white leader also recalled the recruitment process of Jose Mourinho, who was about to return to Benfica when he moved to Porto: “It was three in the morning, I woke up Dr. Adelino Caldeira to come and sign Mourinho. It was decided that he would stay in Leiria, he would not come soon … “
