Liga Bwin’s thirteenth round of matches may not technically be fully complete given the influence of Covid-19 but the seven matches that did go ahead provided plenty of talking points in Portugal this weekend.
Derby de Lisboa proved as fiery as ever, Sporting ending up triumphant in Benfica’s backyard. Porto remained above the pair in the table thanks to their win at Portimonense. With such a tight title race, betting on a winner is no easy task, with bonus-kampanjkod.se an option if you fancy a flutter.
One side starved of wins this season is Santa Clara but they earned an important victory over Arouca in the Azores: PortuGOAL Figure of the Week Cryzan was brilliant in scoring twice to help his side off the foot of Primeira Liga.
Cryzan da Cruz Queiroz Barcelos, more commonly known simply as “Cryzan”, first arrived on Portuguese shores in the 2020 winter transfer window, signing for Santa Clara from Athletico Paranaense in the striker’s native Brazil. Previously the 25 year old had a bit of a nomadic career, unable to settle himself and even venturing as far as Belgium and Saudi Arabia in brief spells.
Quite a versatile forward, Cryzan’s best position is arguably as a central striker but he has shown ability to feature in wider areas too. He’s shown glimpses of terrific technicality at times in his stay in Primeira Liga, but some form and fitness issues have meant said instances have perhaps been a little more fleeting than he would have hoped for.
It’s been a difficult season for Santa Clara in general too, struggling in the shadow of a fantastic 2020/21 season that saw them qualify for the Europa Conference League, a competition they would ultimately fail to make the group stages of and sadly for them their domestic fortunes have followed a similar trajectory.
The loss of star forward Carlos Júnior and influential coach Daniel Ramos did not help matters and Cryzan and co. have found themselves rooted in the Liga Bwin table of late.
Cryzan himself also has had several injury problems this campaign, including contracting Covid-19. However, he has managed to shake off a recent issue to start consecutive games under new boss Nuno Campos.
After netting in a 2-2 draw away at high-fliers Estoril last weekend, Cryzan appeared in a confident mood for this Sunday’s home contest with Arouca as the team looked to add to their solitary league victory in 2021/22.
The Brazil striker ultimately was the difference in achieving their long-awaited second triumph, Campos again choosing to start Cryzan out on the right flank, favouring Rui Costa to lead the line instead.
The deadlock was broken in the 21st minute and in some style too. Being stationed wider didn’t stop Cryzan from scoring a fine striker’s goal, collecting Lincoln’s superb through pass, expertly flicking the ball past the onrushing Norbert Haymamba to leave himself an empty net to roll into.
Arouca equalised in first half stoppage time but there was still more time to play in the period and Santa Clara ended up re-taking the lead just before the whistle. Once more the combination was the same, Lincoln playing the role of playmaker and picking out Cryzan’s run with a terrific ball, and again the striker remained cool in front of goal, placing his effort beyond Haymamba and into the corner.
In the second half Cryzan and Lincoln almost completed their hat-tricks of goals and assists respectively. With around twenty minutes remaining the latter’s inviting free-kick was headed goalwards by Cryzan at the far post, but on this occasion Haymamba was equal to the attempt.
The Brazilian striker’s first half brace would prove enough though as Santa Clara secured a vital victory, moving them off the bottom of the division in the process.
What is clear about Cryzan is that the player possesses clear technical ability, but he just needs consistency in terms of fitness, form and numbers to back it up. Three goals in his last two appearances suggest he is heading in the right direction, and maybe Campos’ influence is proving significant. If the manager can keep Cryzan fit and firing, Santa Clara should be able to leave their early season woes behind them before too long.
By Jamie Farr
