Pacheco completes Portuguese set

Jaime Pacheco's appointment as Boavista FC's fourth coach in just two months means all 16 Liga clubs now have a Portuguese in charge.

Chaotic spell
Boavista are banking on Pacheco's return bringing an end to a chaotic spell kick-started by Co Adriaanse's unexpected departure as coach of city rivals FC Porto in early August. With the league season yet to start, it was to prompt major ructions at both clubs. Jesualdo Ferreira had pledged build a strong squad and lead Boavista back into European competition, but he could not resist an offer to move to the Estádio do Dragão.

Petrović hired
Former player Pedro Barny, one of Ferreira's assistants, was handed the reins but was only in charge for the opening 3-2 defeat at Sporting Clube de Portugal following the appointment of Montenegrin Željko Petrović five days earlier. Barny's presence on the bench in Lisbon, though, meant for the first time in 72 years all the Liga teams boasted Portuguese coaches. It also marked only the third time the big three in Portugal - Porto, Sporting and SL Benfica - had started the season with native coaches, the previous incidents being in 1979/80 and 1997/98.

Grim results
Petrović's spell in charge was to be both disappointing and brief. A 3-0 win against Benfica in his opening game proved the high point, and successive home defeats - against A. Naval 1° Maio and CD Nacional - prompted his dismissal on Sunday and the start of Pacheco's third spell at Boavista. Pacheco first came to the Estádio do Bessa just before Christmas 1997 to spearhead a new regime under president João Loureiro, the son of previous president Valentim Loureiro. It was the start of a period which culminated in a shock league triumph in 2000/01 and two seasons in the UEFA Champions League group stage.

Mallorca calls
His side also reached the UEFA Cup semi-finals in 2002/03, but a tenth-placed Liga finish was less impressive and the coach decided to seek a new challenge at RCD Mallorca, where he was dismissed after just five games. Pacheco returned to Boavista as Erwin Sanchez's replacement in March 2004 but left with three rounds of the season to go after a disappointing spring campaign. He will now hope, after a term at Vitória SC, to make it third time lucky.

'A different person'
"I've been away but I feel like I've never left," Pacheco said. "I'm not a special coach but I know that I'm a different person when I am at another club. We have to help each other if we want to bring this club back to the highest level, a place where we've been before."