Sporting have claimed their first win of the 2019/20 season after defeating competitive rivals Sporting de Braga 2-1 at the Alvalade on Sunday.
The Lions, previously winless throughout pre-season, on top of their opening couple of fixtures in the new campaign, got the goals in early in the encounter before fighting tooth and nail in the second half to keep their lead intact, as previously undefeated Braga failed to nick a point in the closing stages from a goal behind.
Across Lisbon, Benfica were on hand to make it two wins from two games against Belenenses before next week’s Clássico against FC Porto, defeating the side formerly based in Restelo 2-0 away from home at Jamor.
Porto were able to bounce back from their poor start to the season some hours later with a 4-0 victory at home to Vitória de Setúbal, as Zé Luis starred with a hat-trick at the Estádio do Dragão. PortuGOAL has all the goals from the top matches of Matchday Two of the Primeira Liga.
Belenenses 0-2 Benfica
After starting the season the strongest of the title contenders, Benfica entered their encounter versus Belenenses on the hallowed turf of Jamor with some degree of caution, having dropped a grand total of five points against Silas’ side just last season.
Difficulties were felt immediately, with Raúl de Tomas being the only player to come close to breaking the deadlock for Benfica with a curling effort from the edge of the box, firing wide 20 minutes in.
Belenenses sought a more direct route, unlocking the Eagles back-line on the brink of half-time after Kikas was able to bring a long ball down with his shoulder and set himself on goal, where he’d eventually be found lacking by Odisseas Vlachodimos one-on-one.
[To watch the match highlights click on the screen below]
Bruno Lage’s men eventually found their way through, courtesy of some more Pizzi-Rafa Silva synergy, as the latter picked up the midfielder’s scraps before arrowing a strike into the top corner in the 58th minute.
A mistake inside the box at the other end from young Nuno Tavares almost proved costly for Benfica in the 79th minute, but all Nicolas Vélez could do was drag a left-footed strike wide across the face of goal as he rushed to get an effort on target.
VAR stepped in to deny Haris Seferovic the game’s second goal in the 82nd minute, but come the 92nd minute the Primeira Liga holders were able to breathe a sigh of relief after a piercing run from Rafa, carrying the ball over to Pizzi prior to the captain finding the bottom corner and clinching a 2-0 win.
FC Porto 4-0 Vit. Setúbal
The pressure is sky high around the Dragão these days after an opening-day defeat to Gil Vicente and failure to qualify for the UEFA Champions League versus Krasnodar, last Wednesday, as Porto aimed to take all their frustrations out on travelling Vitória de Setúbal.
Sérgio Conceição’s men had the visitors scrambling as early as the second minute, nearing the opener through Zé Luis’ glancing header from a corner before another set-piece - this one crashing off the post from Alex Telles’ free-kick - caused further panic in Giorgi Makaridze’s box. Zé Luis popped up to make all the difference, outside of his natural habitat, by smashing a low shot in from range in the 11th minute and giving Porto a deserved lead.
[To watch the match highlights click on the screen below]
A miss-kick from Danilo Pereira gifted Khalid Hachadi a golden opportunity in front of Agustín Marchesín to equalise prior to the Argentine’s point-blank save, just as Zé Luis added greater daylight between the two sides with his second goal in the 20th minute.
The Cape Verdean was at it again in the second half, rising highest in front of Makaridze to nod in Porto’s third on the hour mark. Spartak Moscow’s ex-forward wasn’t done there, providing a crucial pass for Moussa Marega to attack down the by-line, as the Malian picked out the incoming Luis Díaz for the fourth and final goal of the game.
Sporting 2-1 Sp. Braga
The demand for a win was huge in Sporting’s first outing at Alvalade, with the Lions combining a winless pre-season with a less than inspiring start to their 2019/20 campaign. Keizer’s men promised a different outlook come kick-off, starting quickly and coming close to pegging Braga back through Sebastian Coates’ header, beaten away by Matheus between the sticks.
There was nothing the Brazilian shot-stopper could do in the 16th minute, however, as Wendel took Luiz Phellype’s ball in his stride before poking a shot into the far corner and giving Sporting the lead.
Renan Ribeiro was called upon on two separate occasions to keep Braga out moments later, with both Pablo and Hassan going close for Ricardo Sá Pinto’s team. Crucially, Bruno Fernandes was on hand to make it 2-0 on the brink of half-time, dragging Bruno Viana out of his path before lashing a left-footed strike across goal for his first of the season, doubling the score.
[To watch the match highlights click on the screen below]
Requiring a big response, Ricardo Horta came close to clawing his side right back into the contest with a back-post volley in the 63rd minute, leaving Renan rooted before witnessing his effort roam agonisingly wide.
Nuno Sequeira went even closer ten minutes later for Braga, driving a low shot against the post but Wilson Eduardo was there to relieve the frustrations on the rebound when slipping his strike just under the desperate Renan in the 73rd minute.
The Arsenalistas could manage little else in the dying moments of the game, however, as Sporting fought to claim all-three points come the referee's final whistle with a 2-1 victory.
By Patrick Ribeiro
Matchday 2
Famalicão 1-0 Rio Ave
Moreirense 3-0 Gil Vicente
Belenenses 0-2 Benfica
FC Porto 4-0 Vit. Setúbal
Desp. Aves 3-1 Marítimo
P. Ferreira 0-1 Santa Clara
Vit. Guimarães 1-1 Boavista
Sporting 2-1 Sp. Braga
Tondela - Portimonense