A thrilling and memorable Liga NOS season came to an end on Sunday, Benfica clinching 2nd place and Champions League football ahead of bitter rivals Sporting, while Estoril and Paços Ferreira saw their stays in the division come to an end.

Porto were crowned champions last week, and it was one of their young players out on loan who made a significant impact on the weekend’s action.

Vitória Setúbal maintained their top-flight status thanks to a goal from André Pereira, a January loan signing from the Dragões who has made steady improvement in his 5-month spell with the team. He is PortuGOAL’s final 2017/18 Figure of the Week.

• Benfica
• Maritimo
• Primeira Liga,
• Liga NOS,
• Sporting,
• FC Porto,
• Rui Patricio
• Jorge Jesus
• Champions League

With the finish line firmly in sight, there was plenty still at stake at both ends of the table going into the final fixtures of the Primeira Liga season, as Sporting and Benfica battled for UEFA Champions League qualification and the many millions that a second-placed finish would bring.

Before both Lisbon clubs could try their luck, there was the chance to see the new league champions in action for the last time this season, as FC Porto crowned a successful season with a 1-0 win away to Vitória de Guimarães.

The following day, with all the remaining games being played simultaneously, the biggest shock waves came out of Madeira where Sporting collapsed at the final hurdle to a 2-1 defeat to Marítimo. The result opened the opportunity for city rivals Benfica to leapfrog the Lions, with a second-half Jonas penalty providing the push required to defeat Moreirense 1-0 at the Estádio da Luz, subsequently securing Champions League football next season.

The penultimate weekend of the 2017/18 Liga NOS saw Porto end their 5-year wait for a title, a 0-0 draw in the Lisbon derby between Sporting and Benfica handing the Dragões the championship before they even kicked a ball. The battle to avoid relegation is extremely tight, while 5th place has now been wrapped up by Rio Ave after their Monday night draw at Paços Ferreira.

Chaves narrowly missed out on the position despite putting in one of the performances of the weekend in a 4-1 hammering of Marítimo, who were rivals for a top 5 finish.

Man of the match was winger Matheus Pereira, chipping in with two goals and an assist in an electric display. The on-loan Sporting star is PortuGOAL’s Figure of the Week.

• Sergio Conceicao
• Porto

FC Porto were crowned champions of Portugal on Saturday evening after the Lisbon derby ended in a draw. Immediately after the final whistle had blown at Alvalade, the party started 300km to the north, and will continue long into the night on Porto’s Avenida dos Aliados.

The celebrations will be especially effusive this year after four seasons without winning Portuguese football’s biggest prize, or indeed any silverware, in stark contrast to the previous three decades of almost unbroken hegemony by the Blue and Whites. How did Porto bounce back?

PortuGOAL elaborates on the one huge reason, and three others that help explain why Porto are back at the top of the tree in Portugal.