The Fan Inside | Jose Sa

Jose Sa discusses his football fan experiences as a child and an adult, explaining what made him change his allegiances from Benfica to Porto.

My team when I grew up… 

“I am a Porto fan because it’s a big club and they always win. When I was younger, I was a Benfica fan, and my love for Porto came later in life. Although some of my friends supported Porto, a lot of my friends supported Benfica. I was lucky to play there when I was younger, but it was not what I expected and I wasn’t happy there.”

My first game as a fan…

“I can’t remember the game that was my first, but I went to watch Benfica games with my friends when I was at school. I changed and became a Porto fan when I started to play for them and that was when I really started to love the city and love their fans. After you start being loved, it makes you want to change who you support, so my first game watching Porto as a fan was when I was playing for them.”

The last game I attended as a fan…

“I have been back to watch Porto games since I left the club, but I can’t remember who it was against – it was against either Benfica or Braga. I was playing for Olympiacos at the time and I would normally go back there to visit friends and former teammates when I have free days. I would also go to the training ground and work with the guys. I haven’t been to any other games since I came to England and I didn’t go and watch other games when I was in Greece, I would always go back to Portugal and watch Porto matches. I haven’t even seen any of the Portugal national team matches because if I wasn’t in the squad, I would be training, so would not have the time to go.”

A worldwide game I’d like to go to…

“I would like to watch a final, either the Champions League or the World Cup. But I hope I will be at the next World Cup final in the Portugal squad!”

A Wolves away day I’d like to be a fan at…

“I would love to be a fan at Molineux, but if I had to pick a stadium that wasn’t Wolves, it would be Anfield. I’ve played there before with Porto and experienced the atmosphere as a player, but it would be good to be there with the away fans, in a Wolves shirt, signing the Wolves chants.”