José Mourinho and the potential manager merry-go-round

So after a ninth league defeat in the opening sixteen games, Chelsea today decided to pull the trigger on manager José Mourinho. Seven months after emerging unchallenged to win the league title, Mourinho has left Chelsea for the 2nd time in his career. His sacking does have an element of surprise given that not too many Chelsea fans were calling for his head. In any case the Portuguese boss is no longer in charge and leads onto the many names that will inevitably be linked with the vacancy. His sacking will also trigger a merry-go-round with managers leaving their current jobs or coming back from breaks into jobs and managers coming to the end of their current contracts etc.
So lets have a look at what could happen after this announcement.

Next Chelsea boss (short-term):
First of all lets focus on who might take over as manager at the club. Guus Hiddink is seeming like the favorite to take over until the end of the season which will, if hired be the Dutchman's 2nd spell in charge of the club. Currently he is unemployed after a disastrous spell in charge of the Dutch national side.
Former Sevilla and Tottenham manager Juande Ramos has also been mentioned as a stop gap till the end of the season. The Spaniard has experience of being a caretaker boss having overseen Real Madrid in the 2008-09 season after Bernd Schuster was sacked. Ramos is also unemployed and most recently was in charge of Ukrainian side Dnipro.
Another current out-of-work manager who also has previous experience at the club is Brendan Rodgers. The former Swansea boss was sacked as Liverpool manager in October and was previously reserve team manager at Chelsea. His teams like to play decent football but he does appear be quiet down the list.

Next Chelsea boss (long-term):
Chelsea wont get their first choice long-term replacement right away. More than likely they will get someone to take charge till the end of the season and then go after an ideal candidate to take over. The names for this are quiet long.

One such manager might very well be available next summer and that is current Bayern Munich boss Pep Guardiola. Guardiola has been with Bayern for three seasons now and the signs seem to suggest he won't be hanging around for a fourth. He will be in demand with both Manchester clubs seemingly looking for a change next summer too. His cv does speak for itself, its littered with trophies but his main goal this season will be to add the champions league to his Bayern collection.
Would Carlo Ancelotti be tempted to do what Mourinho did and return for a 2nd spell in charge? The Italian is currently without a club and was rumored last week to have been offered the Zenit St Petersburg job next summer.
Staying with Zenit, current boss André Villas-Boas will be available next summer having announced his intention of leaving the Russian champions. Would he be interested or given the chance to make right in a 2nd spell?

Another manager who is currently employed is Diego Simeone at Atlético Madrid. The change in fortunes that Atlético have undergone since Simeone took over has been miraculous. It is no wonder he would be in demand by not only Chelsea but some of the other super clubs.
Other names that have been mentioned are Frank De Boer at Ajax, Rafa Benítez currently under fire at Real Madrid,

Merry-go-round:
So should Chelsea decide to go for Guardiola as their new long-term boss that would open the Bayern Munich job, although it is looking like that job will be open regardless. To replace Guardiola the Germans might end up going for Carlo Ancelotti or even José Mourinho. Both managers free next summer and it remains and interesting prospect of Mourinho in German football, having done England, Spain, Italy and Portugal. However if they do feel like hiring from within the Bundesliga then Roger Schmidt at Leverkusen and Augsburg's Markus Weinzierl have been mentioned in the past as potential successors to Guardiola.
If the hierarchy at Chelsea decide that Diego Simeone is their man, that opens up the Atlético job and I think it won't be short of interesting candidates. The throw a few names at random that might consider it are André Villas-Boas at Zenit, Eduardo Berizzo at Celta Vigo, Roger Schmidt at Bayer Leverkusen or maybe even Paco Jémez at Rayo Vallecano. Of the A-listers maybe Ancelotti would like a return to Madrid or would Mourinho consider Atlético?
Manchester City look like they may cut Pellegrini loose their hot seat. Would the Chilean fancy a return to Spain and take up the Atlético job or even the Valencia job if Gary Neville isn't given an extension at the end of the season.
Manchester United are also looking increasingly likely in dispensing with Louis Van Gaal and the names to replace him would be similar to the next Chelsea boss. Diego Simeone, Ancelotti, Guardiola etc.
Another club that looks increasingly likely to be on the market for a new boss is Real Madrid. Rafa Benítez has come in for criticism from fans and hasn't been a popular choice as manager since he replaced Carlo Ancelotti in the summer. I doubt Mourinho will go back given he left on quiet poor terms but the job could very well go to Ancelotti again or maybe some up and coming managers such as Berizzo at Celta or Schmidt at Leverkusen to throw a few names out.
What about in Italy. Inter Milan are currently doing quiet well under Roberto Mancini but the football isn't exactly pleasing on the eye. Would they consider a change?
Roma could be looking for a new boss quiet soon if Rudi Garcia can't reverse the shattering confidence of his players after that heavy trashing by Barcelona last month. That Roma job would be Carlo Ancelotti if he fancies a return to his homeland. Or maybe the Romans will go the old route and bring Fabio Capello back?
Over in Portugal, Julen Lopetegui at Porto is under pressure after their exit from the champions league. The former European champions could very well be in the market for a new name next summer, could Mourinho make a sensational return? more than likely the club will look within Portugal for their new boss and maybe Paulo Fonseca at Braga might return to the Dragao or Pedro Martins at Rio Ave is doing quiet well.
What ever happens over the next few months is sure to be interesting. Lots of dugouts are going to open up and lots of movement between dugouts is on the cards and we could be left with some interesting appointments next summer across Europe.

The shock league champions

Leicester City's 2-1 victory over Chelsea on Monday saw them retake top spot in the English Premier league after 16 games played. They sit with 35 points, two ahead of Arsenal, four ahead of Manchester City, six ahead of Manchester United and astonishingly twenty ahead of defending champions Chelsea. The question on everyone's lips right now is "Can they win it?".

For someone who is frankly sick of the same teams winning the major trophies every year this is something that would be terrific to see. However many point out the potential stumbling blocks such as squad depth, rivals recruitment in January and plain old luck.

Previous examples:
If Leicester were to win the league they would be very much one of the shock champions in Europe in recent memory. In the top five European leagues I can only think of one occasion where a team similar to Leicester came out of nowhere to challenge for a league title and actually did the unthinkable and win it. To take it further I can think of one team that were newly promoted and won the league in their first season up, totally out of the blue.  From the top of my head I can think of one more where a team came out of the blue, challenged for the league till the bitter end and cruelly lost the title.

Montpellier 2011-12:

The first example is of course Montpellier and their astonishing Ligue 1 title win in 2011-12. The plucky side from the south coast had pipped Carlo Ancelotti and his big spending PSG side to the title by three points.
In that Montpellier squad that season was Oliver Giroud, Younés Belhanda, Remy Cabella and John Utaka to name just a few. Montpellier had a group of talented players acquired for very small money. Giroud was signed from Ligue 2 side Tours, Belhanda came from the youth system, Cabella likewise and Utaka was signed from Portsmouth amid their financial collapse.
Ligue 1 at the time was under a period of extreme competitiveness. Since Bordeaux ended the Lyon dominance in 2009, Marseille and Lille had won the league but both sides were in the upper echelons of the league for a few years. Montpellier the season before their title win finished 14th, in fact they were a Ligue 2 side in 2008-09.
Giroud ended the season joint top scorer with 21 goals which resulted in a transfer to Arsenal while Younés Belhanda was the creative force in the team as well as a goalscorer. The similarities with Leicester are uncanny. The Foxes this season have a striker in terrific form and a creative force hitting his fair share of goals and assists.
The downside to Montpellier's title victory was it put their star assets in the shop window. Like mentioned above Giroud was sold for just under €10 million, Belhanda left the following year for around €10 million. However this is where Leicester are different from Montpellier. The cote-d'azur side had the sell players to cover themselves financially as the French league doesn't have anywhere near the same revenue as the English Premier league. Leicester this season will earn at least €100 million by staying up which is pretty much guaranteed now so they won't be needing to sell their prized assets like Montpellier did.

Kaiserslautern 1997-98:

Kaiserslautern had won promotion to the Bundesliga in 1996-97 by winning the 2. Bundesliga title by ten points. No one could've predicted that the club would be celebrating winning another title twelve months later.
They went into the 1997-98 Bundesliga campaign eager to stay up and build from there. The team were under the guidance of Otto Rehhagel (who in 2004 won the European championships with Greece). Bayern Munich were the defending champions and obvious favorites to win it again. Kaiserslautern got off to a mighty start for a newly promoted team, winning six of their opening seven games. By the Christmas break they had done the double over Bayern Munich (1-0 away and 2-0 at home) and lost just three games. They threatened to throw it away late in the season with three draws in a row but in the end they managed to get over the line by two points from Bayern Munich. Kaiserslautern had become the first and so far only newly promoted team in Bundesliga history to win the title first year back up. 21 goal striker Olaf Marschall and the 11 goals from Jürgen Rische contributing in no small part to a historic triumph. 
The red devils as they are nicknamed haven't won the title since and it was their 2nd overall. They currently find themselves in 8th in the 2. Bundesliga. 

Real Sociedad 2002-03:

A title tilt that deserved a much happier end than what happened. Real Sociedad had come out of nowhere to challenge for the league title. At the time La Liga was also very competitive with Deportivo and Valencia having won the title in the previous three seasons. In 2001-02 Real Sociedad ended up 13th as they did the season before. So there wasn't really much warning that they would have a mighty tilt at the title. A very good start to the season was the foundation for a terrific first half of the season. The txuri-urdin were leading the way for much of the campaign. A dip in the new year invited Real Madrid back into the race but the galacticos themselves hit a patch of bad form which allowed Real Sociedad to re-take top spot in April.
La Liga in this campaign didn't end till late June and it was in June that the title tilt ended cruelly. A draw with Valencia was followed up by the crucial defeat at Celta Vigo which allowed Real Madrid to go two points clear going into the final game. Real Madrid won at home to Athletic Bilbao which rendered Real Sociedad's victory over Atlético a victory in vain.
What Real Sociedad had in the team was a pair of strikers that complimented each other. Turk Nihat Kahveci and Serb Darko Kovacevic had between them hit 43 league goals. The team also featured a young Xabi Alonso in midfield and a goalkeeper in Sander Westerveld who enjoyed a good season between the sticks. The Basques were relegated four years later and these days are in the all too familiar doldrums of mid table in La Liga.

Outside the Top 5 Euro leagues:
There have a few examples outside of the top 5 European leagues of teams coming out of nowhere to win the title. Bursaspor in Turkey became only the 2nd side outside of Istanbul to win the Turkish Super Lig title in 2009-10. Previously Bursaspor finished 6th and 13th. They haven't won the league since.
Croatia saw NK Zagreb claim their only league title in 2001-02 to become only the 3rd team to ever win the Croatian league title. To date they are the only side outside of Dinamo and Hajduk to have won the title.

Verdict:
The common theme with these champions (and in Real Sociedad's case near miss) is that they were very much one off success stories. All the sides mentioned above haven't won or challenged for their respective league titles since. Another theme is the stars of the successes were sold either immediately after or within two-three seasons of the triumph, suggesting that the clubs were happy to cash in on the success. Leicester however are substantially more rich than any of these teams and have the finances to hold onto their star assets and possibly build on their success.

Reaction to Europa League Last 32 draw

As with the champions league draw today, the last 32 was also drawn for the Europa league. It gave us some intriguing ties as well as some talking points. Here we go.

Draw in full:
Valencia v Rapid Wien
Fiorentina v Tottenham
Borussia Dortmund v Porto
Fenerbahce v Lokomotiv Moskva
Anderlecht v Olympiacos
FC Midtjylland v Manchester United
Augsburg v Liverpool
Sparta Praha v Krasnodar
Galatasaray v Lazio
FC Sion v Sporting Braga
Shakhtar Donetsk v Schalke
Marseille v Athletic Bilbao
Sevilla v Molde
Sporting CP v Bayer Leverkusen
Villarreal v Napoli
Saint Étienne v Basel

A few standout ties there with Dortmund v Porto having the look of a champions league knockout tie. In fact you could make the same case for Villarreal v Napoli and Galatasaray v Lazio.
The English sides have a mixed draw. Manchester United will be happy with theirs as FC Midjylland aren't as strong as some of the other sides that United could've been paired with such as Dortmund and Valencia. Tottenham face Fiorentina again at the same stage as last season where the Florence side emerged victorious and Jurgen Klopp returns to Germany with Liverpool to face Augsburg.
La Liga sides in the main have handy ties on paper. Sevilla will be relatively happy with Molde and Valencia can be happy with Rapid considering who they could've drawn. Only Villarreal have a really tough draw. Napoli will be a stern test for the yellow submarine to overcome but it should make for a fascinating tie with both sides playing a lovely brand of football.

A big talking point was the draw of Fenerbahce v Lokomotiv Moskva. UEFA have again this season banned Russian and Ukrainian clubs from meeting in both competitions but in light of recent events the meeting of Turkish and Russian clubs in this tie has the potential to be a real cracker on and off the pitch. Football wise Lokomotiv topped their group while Fenerbahce finished behind Molde in theirs.

Reaction to Champions League 1st Knockout round draw

Today the draw for the 1st knockout round in the Champions league was made and it threw up some tasty and interesting match-ups. The headline grabbing tie was Arsenal drawn to face Barcelona..again.

KAA Gent v Wolfsburg

Gent's historic champions league campaign continues and no matter who was going to be drawn was going to be tough for the Buffaloes. Manchester
United's conquers Wolfsburg will await the Belgians in the next round. Gent who cam through a tricky group that featured the more experienced Lyon and Valencia will fancy their chances of creating more history against the Germans.

As for Wolfsburg well they'll be more than happy with this draw. They avoided the more tricky group runners-up in PSG and Juventus. In this tie it is difficult to see much more than a Wolfsburg victory so I'll go with that but Gent will not be a cakewalk.

AS Roma v Real Madrid 

A tie that many years ago would've been very difficult to predict, is slightly more easier these days. On current form Real Madrid will have to be favorites. Roma just about managed to qualify and didn't impress along the way while Real Madrid came through a very easy group pretty much unscathed. Roma's form recently has hit a turn for the worst which began with a 6-1 thumping by Barcelona, while Real Madrid may have slipped off the pace in La Liga they still will fancy their chances here. An easy Real Madrid victory.

Paris Saint-Germain v Chelsea 

A repeat of the clash at the same stage last season. Chelsea will have revenge on their minds as it was a late PSG victory that ended their European campaign last season. Domestically both sides are in totally opposite form. PSG are currently 17 points clear in Ligue 1 while Chelsea's form and season has been well documented. In Europe however Chelsea haven't showed as much malaise in their form. They topped a potentially tricky group and will consider themselves unlucky having drawn probably the strongest runner-up side. For PSG nothing less than progress will be on their minds. It is Europe where the season hinges on success or failure and this could well be a very tight and interesting tie. I'll stick my neck out on go with Chelsea on away goals.

Arsenal v Barcelona
A tie that seems to happen every season. Arsenal managed to qualify from what was on paper a very easy group but their early form in this competition meant they were always going to set themselves up for a mountain of a tie at this stage. Barcelona were unchallenged in the group and will be overwhelming favorites for this tie. Barcelona made light work of Manchester City at this stage last season and could do so again if their front three are firing on all cylinders come February. Arsenal's best hope is to make use of the home advantage by taking a lead to the second leg but it's a tall order. A comfortable Barcelona victory.

Juventus v Bayern Munich
One of the stronger sides that Bayern could've got and it makes for a fascinating tie between the German and Italian champions. Bayern came through their group with the minimum of fuss while Juventus emerged from the most difficult group in the last round. The Italians are back in form and back in the Serie A title race after a slow start and while it's hard to predict what kind of form they will be in when this tie comes around in two months time it'll surely be a close tie. Bayern will be favorites for obvious reasons such as the attacking flair they have but Juve have a chance here. However I think Bayern will just about get over the line.

PSV Eindhoven v Atlético Madrid
Atlético would've been the side most would like to have avoided and needless to say PSV would've preferred someone else. Not many will give PSV much hope of getting the better of Diego Simeone's very hard-working side. The Dutch side will have to make home advantage count before a tricky away second leg if they are to have any hope of progressing to the last 8. The Spanish side have an array of attacking options but recently did lose holding midfield general Tiago to long term injury and this could be an area for PSV to work on. Atlético to be too strong and progress.

Benfica v Zenit St Petersburg 
Not the easiest tie to predict. Zenit stormed their group but haven't exactly light up their domestic league this season while Benfica started strongly but finished poorly in their group and are in hot form domestically. Script writers may be looking at former Porto winger Hulk to score the goals that knock Benfica out of Europe or maybe their own former players Axel Witsel or Ezequiel Garay. The advantage might be with Benfica when you factor in that Zenit will be on a winter break from competitive football from until the 1st leg in Lisbon. Benfica to qualify.

Dynamo Kyiv v Manchester City
Dynamo Kyiv finally negotiated a group stage for the first time since 1998-99 when they reached the semi-finals. Any repeat is likely to be very tough for them this time around especially since they have drawn Manchester City. City will be favorites and have the better players to cause Dynamo problems. However the first leg is in Kyiv which might give Dynamo some hope, not many teams will fancy the trek to Kyiv to play in sub-zero temperatures in February and this might give Dynamo hope. However I can see Dynamo getting something from the home leg but do see City progressing.

Reaction to the European Championship draw

So as you might have heard, the European Championship finals draw was made today. First reaction from an Irish view is quiet tricky. The seeding for the draw meant we couldn't get some really tasty ties like for example Romania v Hungary, Republic of Ireland v Northern Ireland or even Ukraine v Russia. We still have some interesting games and group though. So here we go.

Group A:
France
Switzerland
Romania
Albania

The hosts got a very favorable draw as expected. The French seem to be on the rise once more and shouldn't face any issues in winning this group. Who joins them in the last 16 however isn't as clear cut. Switzerland would be many people's favorites to join neighbors France but Romania will definitely have something to say about that. You can't completely rule out Albania either as they make their finals debut. I'll throw my lot behind Romania to get 2nd here.

Group B:
England
Russia
Wales
Slovakia

England came through qualifying with a perfect record and this group is a lot tougher than it first seems. The local derby game with Wales will be tough game and Russia are a solid team while Slovakia had a fantastic start to their qualifying group. I'll go with England and Russia in the top 2 with Wales getting 3rd.

Group C:
Germany
Poland
Ukraine
Northern Ireland

Germany will qualify from this. Behind them like Group A will be tricky to predict. I can't see Northern Ireland getting 2nd which leaves us with Poland or Ukraine. I think Poland have more tournament experience but Ukraine do have a handy squad with some dangerous players. I'll go with Poland to finish 2nd and Ukraine to qualify as one of the best 3rd placed sides.

Group D:
Spain
Croatia
Czech Republic
Turkey

Again the theme seems to be the top seed shouldn't have too much trouble in qualifying. This applies to Spain they should be getting through this group. Croatia I think will get 2nd I quiet like their squad of players but both Czech Republic and Turkey will be dangerous and make it interesting.

Group E:
Belgium
Italy
Republic of Ireland
Sweden

A tough group from an Irish perspective. The strongest pot 2 team in Italy, one of the stronger pot 3 teams in Sweden and the world number 1 ranked side Belgium. A small chance of getting through but hopefully we'll give a better showing than four years ago. Belgium and Italy to make up the top 2 with Sweden 3rd.

Group F:
Portugal
Austria
Hungary
Iceland

Arguably the weakest group of the lot. Portugal got a very handy one here and should really be making through with ease if they have aspirations of going far. Behind them it's another tricky one to call but I'm leaning towards Austria given how strong their qualification was. Iceland will be on a feel good wave and could be a dark horse in this group to sneak into the top 2 but I'll go with Portugal and Austria to go through. Iceland to finish 3rd.

Familiar tale for Olympiacos

Greek powerhouse Olympiacos had seemingly set themselves up for a place in the last 16 of the champions league going into last night's final group game at home to Arsenal. All that was required was not to lose by two clear goals and they would seal their passage as group runners-up behind Bayern Munich. 

Olympiacos ended up on the wrong end of a 3-0 defeat. A hat-trick from Olivier Giroud put Olympiacos into the Europa League in a group that had started positively for the Piraeus side. The victory over Arsenal in matchday two had seemingly put them into the driving seat to finish 2nd behind Bayern but Arsenal's win over Bayern in matchday three set up the grand finale in matchday six. Arsenal chased and got the goals they needed and added a third for good measure which leaves Olympiacos in an all too familiar position. 

At home Olympiacos are dominant. They have the biggest budget in Greece and currently emphatically lead the Greek super league by thirteen points from second placed AEK Athens. However when it comes to European football their record isn't all that impressive. Bare a few campaigns here and there, they have struggled to replicate their domestic authority on Europe. 

Last night's champions league exit was their 10th group stage exit since 2000-01. On the three occasions they have made it past the group they exited in the last 16. 

Olympiacos are similar to Bayern in many ways. They are no longer judged on what they do at home as they are so dominant which means European football has become their bread and butter. The Erythrolefkoi (red and whites) as they are known will drop into the Europa League just like they did last season having finished 3rd in their group. 
The financial problems of their arch-rivals Panathinaikos and AEK Athens have contributed to their dominance but Olympiacos seem to face the same problem Celtic face in Scotland, not being severely tested week in, week out. The step up in quality just hasn't been made by the club on the pitch. They have a few decent players in Konstantinos Fortounis, Pajtim Kasami and the evergreen Esteban Cambiasso, to name just a few.  

For now the season rests on how well the club does in the Europa League. Last season when they dropped down into the competition they were eliminated in the Last 32 by eventual finalists Dnipro. A longer run would be just what the club needs after their latest champions league disappointment. 

Remembering Boavista

Ah yes Boavista, that team that played in the iconic black and white checkered shirts whose nickname was Os Axadrezados. What this club achieved right at the start of the century is absolutely worth mentioning purely because they are one of only two sides to have ever done what they did. What is it you ask? Win the Portuguese Superliga outside of the Os Tres Grandes. For those not familiar the Os Tres Grandes in Portugal are Porto, Benfica and Sporting Club de Portugal, the three biggest teams in the country. These three teams have won every single league title on offer with the exception of two. One of those two was Boavista's triumph in 2000-01. (Other being Belenenses back in 1945-46).

Boavista hail from Bessa in Porto and having to share the same city as FC Porto was always going to be a massive challenge. A challenge incidentally fellow Porto side Salgueiros found unbearable as they folded in 2005, which shows the reality of Portuguese football beyond the big three. Boavista however have been a mainstay in the top division for the bulk of their history having spent no fewer than 53 seasons in the top flight. They are in the top eight in the all-time table.

Prior to 2000-01 Boavista did mount a challenge to the title in 1998-99 when they pushed Porto until the final hurdle. They struggled to maintain the high standards the following season and finished 4th way off the title which went to Sporting. This just shows that Boavista came virtually out of nowhere to claim their first ever title the following season.
The season started quiet well for them with seven points from the opening three games. The were 3rd behind Sporting and ironically the above mentioned Salgueiros. By the October international break Boavista were 7th and four points off Porto, two off Sporting and ahead of Benfica, who were at this stage under the guidance of a certain José Mourinho, by four points. Over the next few weeks Porto would maintain a winning run that would see them open up a gap at the top of the table. Boavista meanwhile were winning, drawing, winning and drawing. So after 10 games the scene wasn't looking particularly promising for the Bessa club.

A lot of this Boavista team were new comers such as Bolivian Erwin Sánchez, key player Duda and former youth product Petit. Complimented by stalwards Ricardo in goal, Pedro Emanuel in defense and Brazilian Elpídio Silva up front. What is rather surprising about this Boavista team is that by the end of the season they didn't have a player in the top ten goalscorers list. 

In the four games that followed Porto won a further three games but lost away to Sporting Braga which allowed Boavista to cut the gap to five points after winning three and drawing one in their four games. Sporting club de Portugal were level with them and Benfica appeared to be recovering from their shocking start so the signs were not looking favorable. 

Then came a crucial matchday, round 15. The final matchday before the christmas break. Porto were away to União Leiria and Boavista had a local derby with Salgueiros. Boavista were 5-0 victors and crucially Porto were beaten 3-1. The gap was now down to two points. 

It set-up a mouthwatering head-to-head with Porto in round 17. Both teams had won their games after the christmas break so this offered Boavista the chance to go top with a victory. The biggest local derby for some time and it was a tight contest. Boavista ended up with a narrow 1-0 win to go a point clear at the top after 17 games. 

Further good news followed for Boavista. In the very next game Porto lost again this time to Benfica in the O clássico while Boavista followed up with a win over Beira-Mar. Porto hit a bad run of form and failed to win any of their following two games which saw them slip to 4th while a resurgent Benfica rose to 2nd. Boavista were five points clear of Benfica after twenty games. 

A defeat to Braga cut that gap to two points as Porto got back to winning ways while Benfica maintained their excellent form. 

Boavista kept hold of top spot over the next run of games. After round 25 Porto had played a game less than Boavista but were nine points off top spot. Sporting were 2nd and Benfica had fallen into bad form and fell to 5th. 

April began with a draw out in Madeira with Marítimo which allowed Sporting and Porto to cut the gap. As April progressed Boavista were clinging onto that top spot. Porto had won their game in hand which meant they moved to four points off Boavista with six games left to play. 

Round 29 saw both clubs win their games which set up an enthralling final five games to the finish line. 

In the three rounds that followed both sides won their games. It mean Boavista were four points clear with two games to play. The title was in sight for the Bessa club in their round 33 game with Aves at home. Porto were away at Estrela Amadora. A Boavista victory would guarantee the title. In this round Porto were not playing till two days after Boavista so they were hoping for Boavista to choke. It never happened. Boavista ran out 3-0 winners and the at full-time the party could start. History was made. Boavista had seen it through and were champions for the first time ever. Manager Jaime Pacheco had done the impossible and claimed the title off Os Tres Grandes. 

What happened next was Porto won in vain against Estrela Amadora and the final round of games saw Porto meet Boavista. Porto hammered a hungover Boavista side 4-0 and left the table reading like this. 

Aftermath:

The league title was the height of the success under Jaime Pacheco. The following season Boavista would challenge again but lose out to a free-scoring Sporting side. Boavista's champions league campaign ended in the 2nd group phase. 

2002-03 would be Pacheco's final season of success as he guided the team to a semi-final place in the UEFA cup losing narrowly to Celtic. Boavista finished 9th in the league. 

Many players were sold in the following seasons with Petit moving onto Porto, Ricardo to Sporting, Sánchez retired and Duda went back to Brazil. 

In many ways Pacheco's career after the title success mirrored Boavista's fortunes afterwards. Promised so much but ultimately went on a downward spiral. Boavista were demoted in 2008 which later turned out to be wrongly demoted and reinstated back into the top division in 2014. They finished 13th in their first season back and currently this season find themselves in the lower reaches of the table in 14th. Pacheco meanwhile was most recently coaching in Saudi-Arabia with Al-Shabab.