As Lazio prepare to play Porto in the Europa League Round of 32’s two-legged encounter in February 2022, an amazing revelation has emerged regarding the Portuguese club’s stance ahead of the tie.
According to reports from Portuguese outlet Abola, the Blue Dragons’ president Jorge Nuno Pinto da Costa hired the services of a fortune-teller in July 2021 – for predicting the results of high-profile matches way before kick-off.
#Lazio , il rinforzo del #Porto è una chiromante da 15mila euro? https://t.co/WEekZFsybZ
— Corriere dello Sport (@CorSport) December 19, 2021
Madalena Aroso, the clairvoyant, is officially on Porto’s payroll as a ’doctor’ and earns a whopping monthly income of €15,000 – making him the highest paid non-football member of staff in the club’s ranks. His paycheck however, has agitated supporters.
The Portuguese giants are said to have been prompted to employ Aroso after finishing second to Sporting Lisbon in the Primeira Liga last season, as they seek their 30th domestic title to close the gap on Benfica’s record 37 championships.
The presence of witchcraft has long been a part of Portuguese football – with Porto themselves attributing their famous 1987 European Cup final comeback win against Bayern Munich to the release of two frogs on the Ernst Happel Stadion pitch before the game.
Porto have reinforced their faith in the fortune-teller after experiencing a streak of positive results that have pushed them to the pedestal of the domestic league standings, ahead of champions Sporting with a +8 goal difference.
Sergio Conceicao’s men will hope to transfer their good fortunes to the continental title race as they prepare to host Lazio on February 17, before visiting Rome a week later for the second leg.