Round 22 of this Liga NOS season was stretched over a number of days, last night’s Minho derby between Braga and Vitória Guimarães drawing events to a close. The former came out on top to move back into second place above Porto, who had previously beaten Gil Vicente.
Sporting remained on top and unbeaten thanks to more late heroics from Sebastián Coates, while Benfica got a much needed win in a Lisbon derby victory over Belenenses SAD. Boavista and Portimonense were big winners from the lower half of the table.
One side that continues to impress is Paços de Ferreira, who were inspired by PortuGOAL Figure of the Week Luther Singh in getting back to winning ways over Nacional.
South African international Luther Singh is now an experienced customer on Portuguese shores having joined Braga back in 2017. He was never quite able to make the grade with the Arsenalistas, but shone in loan spells in Liga NOS with Chaves and Moreirense in the last couple of years.
Paços de Ferreira were suitably impressed and signed him on a permanent deal last summer and he has heavily contributed to a sensational season for the team. The winger has been a near fixture in the XI amid stiff competition from talented comparable players such as João Amaral and Uilton.
Singh is capable of playing on either flank and has switched sides regularly under his manager Pepa. A direct winger, the 23 year old is strong on both feet and also boasts pace and strength as significant attributes. He also has a decent shot on him as he would demonstrate palpably in Paços’ home match with Nacional last Friday.
By their own extremely high standards Paços went into the game amidst something of a blip in form, a superb winning run recently blotted by some negative results, none more so than a 3-0 humbling at Santa Clara the week previous. However Pepa’s men set out to correct this aberration from the first whistle against Nacional as Os Castores started fast.
Luiz Carlos’ long range drive forced a corner for Paços in the 15th minute, and after Nacional failed to sufficiently clear the set piece Singh struck a sensational volley with the outside of his right foot to open the scoring.
A stunning effort that left Riccardo Piscitelli no hope of saving it, the Nacional keeper rooted to the spot as the ball nestled into the corner.
Nacional responded well with some pressure of their own so Paços needed the two goal cushion for comfort, and it duly arrived in the 33rd minute. The away team didn’t learn their lesson as the goal was a similar affair, a free kick this time was not dealt with and Singh was lurking in a similarly dangerous area to his first goal, and with his confidence high he again struck first time, on this occasion a low shot through a crowd of defenders and into the back of the net.
A fine finish from Singh that allowed Paços to see the game out pretty comfortably, barring a late consolation goal for Nacional.
A performance from Singh defined by those two key moments, popping up decisively in a game that saw his team-mates struggle in front of goal at times. His first strike will no doubt be a contender for Liga NOS Goal of the Season and more importantly his side is back on track domestically, solidifying 5th position in the table as they chase a place in either the Europa League, or the newly-formed Europa Conference League that begins in the campaign that follows.
Paços have some terrific players in the squad at present, with the likes of Stephen Eustáquio and Bruno Costa rightly gathering headlines but on this performance Luther Singh showed he potentially belongs in that category also. Expect to see the South African on the European stage in 2021/22.
By Jamie Farr
