Sporting have increased their lead at the top of the Primeira Liga table after defeating Sporting de Braga 1-0 late on with just ten men as FC Porto dropped points away from home.
The Lions, down to ten men from the 18th minute after Gonçalo Inácio’s early red card, required a late helping hand from Matheus Nunes to turn the result into a much-needed victory against competitive rivals Braga.
Porto, on the other hand, failed to go beyond a 1-1 draw away to Moreirense, opening up a six-point gap between them and first place. Also in action were Benfica, who managed to close in on FC Porto with a victory at home to Santa Clara, moving to within four points of second place.
Sp. Braga 0-1 Sporting
An away fixture against Braga would have been one of the last sights Sporting wanted to come across, having drawn three of their last four games and seeing a ten-point advantage at the top of the league table shrink to just four points.
The Lions did not have the mildest of welcomes to the Estádio Municipal de Braga too, being reduced to ten man 18 minutes in after a second yellow for Gonçalo Inácio.
Braga struggled to turn possession into opportunities at goal, however, going closest through a couple of headed efforts from Fransérgio and later Galeno stopped by Antonio Adan either side of the interval.
Against the run of play, Matheus Nunes was wired to a quick free kick down the channels, firing at goal from a tight angle and edging Sporting ahead with a right-footed strike.
Left without response, Braga enabled Sporting to get back to winning ways with a narrow 1-0 win.
Benfica 2-1 Santa Clara
Some way away from the title conversation, Benfica kept plugging away in hopes that they could finish the season strongly, welcoming Santa Clara to the Luz in their next test.
The Eagles took 26 minutes to get off the mark after Carlos Junior introduced Everton Cebolinha’s cross into his own net with a bullet header.
Santa Clara replied through Anderson Carvalho in the second half, picking his spot from the edge of the box and equalising in the 62nd minute.
The Azoreans only had ten minutes to enjoy being level, however, with Chiquinho, arriving late in the box, providing what would be the winner for Benfica and closing in on second-placed Porto.
Moreirense 1-1 FC Porto
With Sporting taking all three points away to Braga, the challenge was set for Porto, also playing away from home, to try and take maximum points from their trip to Moreira de Conégos, hosted by Moreirense.
The home side were sure to make things difficult for the Dragons, taking the lead from a short corner routine that was completed by Nahuel Ferraresi’s finish in the 37th minute.
Via Moussa Marega, Porto came very close to equalising just before the hour-mark, forcing a save out of Pasinato before striking the bar on the rebound.
Late on, Sérgio Conceição’s men were given the chance to level things via the spot and turn up the pressure on a guarded Moreirense side, desperate for a result. Mehdi Taremi would make no mistake from 12 yards to make it 1-1 and increase the temperature.
Fresh off the bench, Toni Martinez looked like becoming the hero once more with a headed finish in the 93rd minute edging the visitors ahead but, in gutting fashion, VAR was there to rule the Spanish striker’s position as offside and confirming a point apiece at 1-1.
By Patrick Ribeiro
Matchday 29
Boavista 0-1 Marítimo
Rio Ave 1-1 P. Ferreira
Sp. Braga 0-1 Sporting
Belenenses 2-1 Gil Vicente
Benfica 2-1 Santa Clara
Famalicão 2-2 Tondela
Nacional 1-0 Vitória
Moreirense 1-1 FC Porto
Tuesday 27th April
Farense vs. Portimonense