The Vitória Gazette
Market16 Apr 2029
Fintelman hands in a written request
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Vitória can pretend not to have heard.
Squad16 Apr 2029
Tempers go at Vitória
Lawan was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
Boardroom16 Apr 2029
Graduation day at Vitória
5 boys move up, and somewhere in the building the people who coached them at twelve are quietly having the best morning of their working year. Nothing about this shows up in a result and it is why the academy exists.
Market16 Apr 2029
One of our own: Paulo Porto joins the Vitória first team
Clubs spend fortunes looking for players and occasionally find one down the corridor. Paulo Porto is that, and the reception he gets on his first appearance will be different in kind from the one any signing receives.
Market16 Apr 2029
André Santos steps up from the Vitória academy
There is no fee, no unveiling and no agent on the steps. André Santos has been at this club since he was a boy and is now, formally, one of the first-team squad — which for a local readership beats any signing of any size.
Market16 Apr 2029
Vitória promote Neyzinho from within
The academy exists for exactly this morning. Neyzinho has come through every age group the club runs and has now been handed a senior number, and the people who coached him at twelve will be the proudest in the building.
The dugout16 Apr 2029
Mateusinho gets it from the manager
“Nobody here is above being told.” It was not said with a name attached, but the dressing room can count, and so can everybody who was listening.
Boardroom16 Apr 2029
A promise the Vitória board did not keep
There was a commitment, there was a date, and the date went past. Trust at a football club takes years to build and one afternoon to spend.
The dugout16 Apr 2029
Baralhas has become a man the manager trusts
Nobody at Vitória will say this on the record and the team sheets have been saying it for weeks. There is a small group in every squad who get picked when the fixture is difficult, and he has joined it.