Rio Ave: quick starters or surprise package?

Rio Ave: quick starters or surprise package?

What a fantastic start to the campaign it’s been for Rio Ave. Pedro Martins’ men sit pretty in 3rd place in the Liga NOS, and only a stoppage-time goal from Estoril prevented the Vila do Conde team from going joint top of the Liga NOS tonight, for 24 hours at least.

The 2-2 draw at Estoril (Rio Ave scoring through Zeegelaar and Guedes) makes it 8 games played, 4 wins earned and just a single loss this season, at home to Sporting (1-2) on 13 September.

Given that the club finished in 10th position last season, did many really expect this? And also, is there much optimism that Rio Ave can hold this kind of form as the season progresses? Paul Gellard investigates.

 

Shrewd recruitment

It’s fair to say that Martins recruited well for the club in the summer recess. Indeed, two of the three top scorers for the side this season arrived during the break. Cape Verde international striker Heldon arrived on loan from Sporting. He has been joined by Yazalde who signed from relegated Gil Vicente. Between them, the pair have managed 4 goals already this campaign.

Unfortunately for Rio Ave fans, Heldon was stretchered off against Boavista in the last Liga NOS fixture and faces a prolonged spell on the sidelines. This will be a blow to the Vila do Conde side as he had begun to find real form with the club. Indeed, anyone who saw their fixture with Paços de Ferreira will be reminded that he almost single-handedly ran the Paços back four ragged for 90 minutes, grabbing a brace for himself in the process.

Yazalde’s impact has also been positive, although much of this has been from the bench. The locally-born winger-cum-striker (who is also eligible to represent Guinea Bissau) managed just 1 goal in 10 starts for a struggling Gil Vicente side last campaign. He has, however, already managed 2 in 3 starts for his hometown club.

But it’s probably Guedes who has made the biggest impact in the front line. Having signed from Penafiel during the summer, the striker has now managed 5 goals in all competitions. This includes a brace against a struggling Vitória Guimarães in the Taça da Liga. And despite having begun the season wide-left, he has now made the “number 9” shirt his own and started the last 4 games up top in a front three.

Getting it right

The good start to the season is not to say it’s all been plain sailing. Pedro Martins has at times had to juggle things around to get his best XI on the pitch. In the opening game of the season, at Belenenses, Rio Ave played a 4-4-2 formation with the now departed Hassan starting up top alongside Yazalde.

The resulting 3-3 draw in Lisbon was clearly enough to convince Martins to change things around and offer more protection to his back four. So it was that the system was changed to 4-3-3 for the visit of Braga in game two. Tarantini and Wakaso, who had played alongside each other in the middle of the park in game one, were now employed as holding midfielders, allowing the ever-impressive Brazilian-born Belarus international, Bressan, to roam in a more creative “number 10” role behind Hassan. Bressan has subsequently made that role his own in this Rio Ave side, sometimes playing alongside Tarantini, sometimes on his own.

The Braga game proved to be Hassan’s last for the club as the Egyptian moved onto Braga shortly afterwards. He has since been replaced by a combination of Heldon, Guedes, Yazalde and Ukra. The side now relies on attacking at pace and this has been helped by the resurgence of Dutch attacking full-back/winger, Marvin Zeegelaar.

Having arrived from Turkish club Elazigspor at the start of last season, the Dutchman has provided pace down the left-hand side and dovetails nicely with Heldon or Yazalde, depending on who is on left-wing duty. One of his most valuable contributions this season was the cross for Bressan’s 94th minute winner against Boavista in a 1-0 win in Round 7.

 

 

Solid rearguard

On the defensive side of the coin, Pedro Martins has a solid base with which to build from. Ghanaian midfielder Alhassan Wakaso has started all but the Taça da Liga game in the centre of the park this season, primarily in the holding role. This is a responsibility he has shared with Tarantini, João Novais, Pedro Moreira and Filipe Augusto at various points, as well as solo. Many may remember the solid performance he put in against a good Braga side in the second game of the campaign. And it is he that gives the likes of Bressan, Ukra, Zeegelaar and co license to roam forward and attack at pace.

At the back, the young pairing of Nelson Monte (20) and Aníbal Capela (24) have formed the regular central defensive unit. Add to this, the local boy and loyal Rio Ave servant of André Vilas Boas (32), and the backline is very capable. Indeed, check out the “goals against” column in the Liga NOS table today and you’ll see the side has conceded just 9 goals this season.

Another important component of the defence is veteran goalkeeper Cássio. The 35-year-old Brazilian is playing with confidence behind a settled backline, having joined Rio Ave from Arouca last summer. And the former Vasco da Gama man has also been joined by fellow Brazilians, Lionn and Edimar, who make up the regular back four in the full-back roles. 

What next?

The key question for many Rio Ave fans and neutrals alike, is can the side sustain this kind of form as the season progresses? This remains to be seen. One cannot argue that the league table doesn’t lie. Rio Ave are where they are on merit. They have already beaten a Braga side that sits in 4th place in the Liga NOS. A 3-0 destruction of 7th placed Paços de Ferreira can also be considered a good result, especially away from home. When one factors in the “Big Three” however, only Sporting have tested Rio Ave so far and left the Estádio dos Arcos with all three points in a 2-1 win.

Much will obviously clearly depend on the side beating clubs outside of the Benfica / Sporting / Porto triumvirate. Tonight's draw at 6th-placed Estoril is also a noteworthy result, and a 20th December visit to the Estádio da Luz to take on Benfica may well give us a better idea of just where Rio Ave sit.

Heldon will be a big loss for the club, especially given his superb form when he picked up his injury. The one plus for the side is that, as mentioned previously, there is plenty of exciting attacking cover to replace him.

For a club that is struggling to pull in more than 4,000 fans at home games, it is for sure that Rio Ave are punching above their weight currently. As a superbly run club with an experienced coach such as Martins in charge and a very quick and attacking side built, don’t be in too much of a hurry to write them off for big things this season. Perhaps even a second appearance in three seasons in the Europa League beckons?

by Paul Gellard