2000–01 S.L. Benfica season took an early lead with a Van Hooijdonk goal in the 15th minute, and added two more in the first half, one by Carlitos and another from an own goal. The Dutch striker added two more goals to his tally in the second half. On 17 January, Benfica received Porto for the first of three consecutive games against them. The first game was part of the Taça de Portugal and ended in a 1–1 draw. Maniche scored the lone Benfica goal before Maric equalized for Porto. A rematch was held to settle the tie. Four days later, on Sunday, Benfica
2003–04 S.L. Benfica season should have been a win for Benfica, and that Porto had been lucky. A week later, Benfica met Nacional again, now on their home turf. After conceding an early goal, Benfica fought back to a 2–1 lead; only to allow Nacional to score two goals within two minutes and win the game. Because two goals had come from corner-kicks, Camacho was questioned if the centre-backs were at fault; which he answered: "We conceded three goals from set pieces, and that could not be the centre-backs' fault, because we defend them with 5 or 6 players – so they alone cannot