Portuguese forward Tiago Gouveia, currently on loan to French club Nice, has voiced personal sadness and concern over his parent club Benfica’s acknowledged “winger crisis” while also discussing his own struggles to secure consistent playing time abroad.
Gouveia acknowledged the recent difficulties at Benfica, which manager José Mourinho has publicly addressed regarding the lack of wingers.
“Suffering for Benfica from afar is always worse, and those issues, of course, don’t escape me, and I’m aware of it,” Gouveia told Sport TV.
He expressed a wish for Benfica to become champions but admitted his frustration. “It crosses my mind and saddens me a little that this is happening, but it is what it is and there’s not much I can do,” the young forward stated.
Despite his commitment to Benfica, Gouveia also revealed his own challenges securing playing time at Nice. He had anticipated more minutes this season.
“I expected to have many minutes. I won’t say more than last season because that would almost be certain, because I actually had few minutes last season due to injury,” he said.
Gouveia noted the “very strong competition” within the Nice squad has made his integration difficult on a sporting level. “It hasn’t been easy,” he added.
Gouveia is set to return to a Portuguese stadium this Thursday, when Nice faces FC Porto.
He described the return as “special,” particularly because he considers FC Porto a significant personal rival. “I’m very happy to be back in Portugal,” Gouveia affirmed.
He anticipates a tough match against a stronger FC Porto side, which he said has a “much more defined game idea” and “technically better and better prepared players” this year.
Nice aims to secure its first European victory of the season, with Gouveia stating, “We clearly hope to leave here with the three points.”
On a personal note, Gouveia described his off-field life in France as comfortable, living peacefully with his girlfriend in a city he finds “fantastic.”
He remains focused on his career despite the current challenges. “The season is still long, there are still many games and I have to wait for an opportunity,” Gouveia concluded.