"The Portuguese championship is very competitive and difficult. Of course, all FC Porto fans would like to always win, but sometimes it's not easy. What happened this year, with the club elections and some other situations, may not have been the best for the team itself, which did not have the peace and stability that every 'big' team must have", the former 'dragons' forward, from 1993 to 2001, told Lusa.

Two years after the 30th title, FC Porto once again missed the main objective and came in third place for the 13th time, with 72 points, 18 behind the national champion Sporting and eight behind Benfica, second, in the worst of the seven seasons under Sérgio Conceição's technical leadership.

The 'dragons' had been absent from one of the first two places for the last time in 2015/16 and recorded the worst punctual record since 2013/14, the last edition with 16 clubs, sealing direct access to the Europa League, after four consecutive trips to the Champions League.

"I think [the differences between candidates] are not that big. Now, when you lose to the so-called smaller teams, it becomes very difficult to recover. FC Porto kept losing several points and failed to seriously enter that fight for the title. Everyone expected much more, because this club has accustomed us to always fight until the end", he noted.

Drulovic, 55, believes that the 'blue and whites' suffered from the underperformance of striker Taremi, the top scorer in the I Liga in 2022/23, with 22 goals, who scored only six in 2023/24 and will move to Italian champion Inter Milan for free at the end of the season.

Another setback was the departure of midfielder Otávio to Saudi Arabia's Al Nassr, coached by Luís Castro and with Cristiano Ronaldo in the squad, in a deal made shortly after the start of the season for 60 million euros (ME), which broke the 'dragons' sales record.

"Otávio was one of the most creative, had a very positive dynamic and the way he played and led the team represented the Porto character. Important names left and others did not give the best response. Therefore, FC Porto was not consistent nor the team that was terrible in the past, especially when competing at home and winning easily", said Drulovic, a figure in the only 'penta' in Portuguese football, from 1994/95 to 1998/99.

The former Yugoslav international highlights the performance up to the round of 16 of the Champions League, which ended with a defeat in the penalty shootout against the English Arsenal (4-2, after 1-1 in both legs), in a season marked outside the four lines by the expressive defeat imposed by former Porto coach André Villas-Boas to Pinto da Costa, the maximum leader for 42 years and 15 terms, in the most disputed suffrage in the club's history.

"Pinto da Costa had been there for 42 years and had almost no opposition, but, for the first time, someone appeared with the desire to see a different, new FC Porto, and people supported it. Personally, I never expected to see such a big gap, from 80% against almost 20%. It is a clear defeat for Pinto da Costa and a great victory for Villas-Boas. Now, let's wait and see. The new board has recently entered, but it is prepared and will do its best to have a team that can be national champion [in 2024/25]", he said.

André Villas-Boas has already assumed the presidency of the club, but will only be sworn in at SAD on May 28, two days after FC Porto, winner of the last two editions, seeks the only possible trophy in 2023/24 in the Portuguese Cup final with Sporting.

"If Pinto da Costa had won, Sérgio Conceição would certainly stay for another four years. With this new board and president, I don't know. In principle, I don't think he will stay, but this is my opinion and let's see what happens. He did an excellent job at FC Porto, achieved several trophies - including three championships - and has been there for seven years, which is a historical milestone. As a rule, few coaches stay in Portugal for so long", he admitted.