A weekend to forget for Portuguese managers

The past weekend was not an easy one for Portuguese managers to digest. Marco Silva was one of the only ones who could boast of a feat as his Fulham side triumphed at Old Trafford to knock Manchester United out of the FA Cup. Sunday's elimination was just the latest blow to Ruben Amorim's dismal season in England since his arrival in November. And with only 10 wins, 5 draws and 9 defeats at the helm, it is safe to say that the Portugal international's place at the Theatre of Dreams is the complete opposite - in danger.
The former Sporting Lisbon boss is perhaps the best example to describe the struggles that Portuguese head coaches are going through, with Sergio Conceicao enduring a similar spell at AC Milan. The 50-year-old was brought to Italy in December to pick up the pieces left by his Portuguese compatriot Paulo Fonseca and although he seemed to have done just that, his dream-like start quickly turned into a nightmare. Conceicao kickstarted his journey with the 'Rossoneri' in the best way as he overcame Inter to conquer the Supercoppa Italiana, ending the club's three-year silverware drought.
Following Joao Felix, Santiago Gimenez and Kyle Walker's signings in the January transfer window, morale was further boosted at the San Siro. But with 11 games to go until the end of the season, Milan are back to where they left off with Fonseca - if not worse. Fonseca left Milan in 8th place after 7 wins, 6 draws and 4 defeats from 17 matches, and now find themselves even further from the European spots as they sit in 9th, counting 4 wins, 2 draws and 4 defeats under Conceicao.
Fonseca quickly put his underwhelming spell in Italy behind his shoulders to begin a new adventure in France, taking charge of Olympique Lyon. But just like his Portuguese colleagues above, his weekend went south. Not so much for the result, given that his team sealed a 2-1 win over Brest. but more so for his embarrassing conduct in the closing moments of the clash. The 51-year-old went head-to-head with referee Benoit Millot, who was called to the VAR monitor to review a potential last-minute penalty for handball, forcing one of his own players, Tolisso, to separate him from the official. Having been sent-off for his outburst, Fonseca could now face a huge seven-month ban that threatens to tarnish his start with 'Les Gones', which, with 3 wins and 2 losses, has also been marked by irregularity.
The fourth and last Portuguese manager to have experienced a gloomy end to the week was Vitor Pereira. His Wolves were eliminated by Bournemouth, failing to book a place in the FA Cup quarter-finals. What was anticipated to be an open clash in the south coast of England went in favour of the home side after Matt Doherty and Boubacar Traore's misses in the penalty shootout. In the Premier League, Pereira has merely been able to escape from the relegation zone after recording 6 wins, 2 draws and 6 defeats, but there is still much to be done from now until the end of the season to ensure salvation is secured.
Of course, the trend does not apply to every top-level Portuguese coach. As mentioned above, Marco Silva's Fulham have been successful in their domestic cup clash against the Red Devils, though there are other things to smile about for the Portugal international. His side sits in 9th with 42 points in the English top flight standings, meaning there is still a chance for them to finish the term in the European places. Nuno Espirito Santo was also a huge winner, though his Nottingham Forest played on Monday instead of the weekend. The Tricky Trees beat Ipswich Town in the FA Cup to seal their place in the last eight for only their second time this century. Things in the Premier League have also been looking exceptionally well as sitting in third place, Forest are continuing to push for their Champions League qualification dream.