Portuguese Football in English
The 4th round of the Portuguese Cup brought shocks and goals a-plenty.
Last year’s beaten finalists FC Porto were knocked out at Chaves, while Primeira Liga teams Nacional, Feirense and Paços de Ferreira fell by the wayside against sides from the lower leagues.
The upshot is that half of the 16 teams left in the competition are from outside the top flight, with four teams from the third tier making it to the next round.
Here on PortuGoal we look to enlighten you on everything Portuguese football. Personally, I’m over the hype around the big three.
There are a lot of interesting teams, players and coaching philosophies within the Liga NOS and now with the season well underway, I decided to bring this series onto the website - giving the spotlight to all the “other” 15 teams.
And who doesn’t like a bit of tactical talk? Whether you’re reading this because you’re bored, you like the team, to enhance your footie knowledge or perhaps just because you’re looking to find some new Football Manager targets... sit, grab a bite and enjoy.
(The regularity of this series will be tailored according to its response, so give it some love because smaller sides deserve it too)
Four seasons ago, FC Porto beat Benfica in the penultimate Primeira Liga match thanks to a stoppage time winner to snatch the Portuguese championship title after an epic season-long battle against their great rivals from the capital.
That 2012/13 triumph was Porto's ninth title success in 11 years, as a hegemony dating back three decades had only accentuated in the new millennium. Even when taken to the limit by an increasingly resurgent Benfica, it seemed destiny that Porto would find a way to end up top of the pile.
Fast forward to 2016/17 and it's a very different scenario.
FC Porto 1-1 Benfica
Four seasons after Kelvin's epic 92nd minute championship winner in the famous Porto-Benfica match at the Estádio do Dragão, it was Benfica who scored a dramatic stoppage time goal at the same venue in the same fixture, as Lisandro Lopez headed in an André Horta cross to earn the visitors a barely deserved point in this afternoon's Clássico.
Rui Vitória or his players won't worry about whether or not it was a just result, as they remain five points clear at the top of the table.
Porto dominated from start to finish and took the lead in the 50th minute through Diogo Jota. But the hosts failed to kill off the game with a second goal and Herrera's crass mistake to give away a needless corner proved a costly error.
FC Porto 1-1 Benfica
Four seasons after Kelvin's epic 92nd minute championship winner in the famous Porto-Benfica match at the Estádio do Dragão, it was Benfica who scored a dramatic stoppage time goal, as Lisandro Lopez headed in an André Horta cross to earn the visitors a barely deserved point.
Rui Vitória or his players won't worry about whether or not it was a just result, as they remain five points clear at the top of the table.
Porto dominated from start to finish and took the lead in the 50th minute through Diogo Jota. But the hosts failed to kill off the game with a second goal and Herrera's crass mistake to give away a needless corner proved a costly error.
