Another weekend, another European League kicks off. This time it’s the league that features Hector Herrera, Uli Davila, Raul Jimenez, and hopefully, Raul Gudiño.
FC Porto
Hector Herrera, Raul Gudiño, and Omar Govea are on the books at Porto this season. Herrera was ever present in Porto’s midfield last season and it appears that will be the same story this season. Mexico needs him to regain the magic from last season after a rough Summer representing his country. Gudiño is technically a member of the first team but as the third keeper, he will see the bulk of his minutes on the field for Porto B. Iker Casillas joined Porto this Summer and Mexico fans are hoping Raul will soak up as much as he can from the goalkeeping legend. Omar Govea recently moved to Porto this Summer from Club America. He will be on a 1 year loan with an option to buy. Govea will need to impress at Porto B to have them use their buy option.
Kickoff: 8/15/15, Porto vs Vitoria de Guimares, 2:45pm (Central) Univision Deportes Network, NGSN
Benfica
Raul Jimenez has finalized his move to the Portuguese giants. At this stage of his career, he needs to fight for minutes. Those minutes will be much easier to get at Benfica than a loaded Atletico Madrid front line. The reigning league champions will be fighting in the Champions League as well. This might be a make or break season for Jimenez. If he fails to produce, coming back to Mexico might be closer than we realize. The club has signed him to a 5 year contract after Jimenez “could not make it” to his physical with West Ham. He has all the talent but similar to Diego Reyes, the results haven’t been there …yet.
Kickoff: 8/16/15, Benfica vs Estoril, 2:30pm (Central) NGSN
Vitoria de Setubal
Another season, another loan for Uli Davila. Luckily, Davila gets to play for the same club he did last season. Between Tenerife and Vitoria, Davila only received 9 league starts but he has had a preseason with Vitoria this time around. Last year, he joined Tenerife late and joined Vitoria in January. He made the best out of a disjointed season but it showed in his performances. Look for him to get plenty of opportunities as Vitoria de Setubal will hope to avoid relegation.
Kickoff: 8/16/15, Vitoria de Setubal vs Boavista, 10:00am (Central) Fubo.tv
How To Watch The Primeira Liga?
-It appears Univision Deportes Network picked up TV Rights this season. They appear to be making the effort to show weekly matches. Expect plenty of Porto matches to be shown.
–NGSN is a relatively new service/app that launched earlier this year. It streams the Eredivisie, the Portuguese first division and a host of other competitions. NGSN launched with a free beta and I used the service to watch several matches during this period. It worked well on my phone, desktop, and tablet. Going forward, the service will cost $8.99 per month but if you use promo code “WATCHSOCCERNOW” by 8/31/2015, you only be charged $4.99 per month for the first 12 months. It also comes with a 30 day free trial and is month to month with no contract. The service has signed on Andres Guardado to be an endorser; he is front and center on their website. I recommend the service if you want to watch Tecatito, Guardado, Moreno, Davila, Jimenez, and Herrera play their club matches without having to deal with subpar streams.