Sporting centre-back Jérémy Mathieu has announced his retirement. The 36-year-old Frenchman picked up a knee injury in training this week and quickly decided to bring the curtain down on his career.

“It’s tough saying goodbye like this. I wanted to play one last game at home. But well, life goes on,” the defender told his teammates in an emotive video released by the Lisbon club (see below). “It was a pleasure to wear this shirt.” 

Football plays a significant role in Europe, especially in some countries such as Portugal. If you take a look at the Primeira Liga, you see that there are loads of good teams that can go up against the best clubs on the continent.

One of the things that makes the Primeira Liga so interesting to watch is the different rivalries. Bettors love them because these matches are unpredictable, usually have good odds and various betting markets. What’s more, some bookies even create special promos that you can use for them.

In this article, we will show you which are some of the biggest football rivalries in Portugal. These matches will always bring a lot of attention, regardless of whether the teams perform well during the season. 

• Boavista
• Benfica
• Primeira Liga,
• FC Porto,
• Moussa Marega,
• Sergio Conceicao
• Bruno Lage
• Carlos Vinicius
• Santa Clara

Pressure is mounting on Benfica boss Bruno Lage after the Eagles dropped points once more, losing 4-3 at home to Santa Clara and allowing FC Porto to go three points clear at the top of the Primeira Liga table.

The title holders, who were a goal behind twice throughout the evening, led the relocated Azores outfit 3-2 going into the final ten minutes, courtesy of a Carlos Vinícius brace. Cryzan and ex-Porto man Zé Manuel were on hand to produce a 95th minute turnaround, however, giving Santa Clara a shock victory at the Estádio da Luz.

Defeat for the Lisbon team meant Porto would return to the top of the table with a result in the Invicta Derby, at home versus Boavista, achieved with a Moussa Marega brace and a couple of penalties in a 4-0 win.

The relentless drive towards Liga NOS 2019/20’s conclusion continued throughout the past week and once more the results threw up plenty of talking points in different areas of the league table. Porto and Benfica’s battle for the title remains on a knife edge as the former’s slip at lowly Aves allowed the defending champions to draw level on points in beating Rio Ave.

Paços Ferreira and Marítimo secured crucial wins in the relegation battle, while the battle for European places intensified. Famalicão and Braga played out a 0-0 draw to allow Sporting to steal a march and slip into 3rd place. They overcame Tondela and again had their academy star and PortuGOAL Figure of the Week Jovane Cabral to thank after another excellent performance.