FC Porto in the 2008–09 season, Porto was on course to emulate the "Penta" of the late 1990s, but the series was broken by Benfica in the following season. Although Ferreira won his first Supertaça and defended the Taça de Portugal title, the team's failure to claim a fifth consecutive league – finishing third, outside the Champions League-qualifying places – and a 3–0 defeat against Benfica in the final of the Taça da Liga contributed to his resignation at the end of the season. A home win against Benfica prevented the rivals from celebrating the league title at the Estádio do Dragão.
1980–81 S.L. Benfica season in a row, including a home win against Porto on 14 March in the Clássico, which gave them a four-point lead with seven matches to go. At the same time, in the Cup Winners' Cup, Benfica beat Fortuna Düsseldorf at home, after a 2–2 away draw, qualifying for the semi-final. March closed with another draw, now with Académico de Viseu, removing a point from their lead over Porto. On 8 April, Benfica met Carl Zeiss Jena for the first leg of the semi-finals, losing 2–0. Four days later, they drew with Vitória de Guimarães, and saw his lead drop to