Portuguese Football in English
Roma 3-0 Lazio
José Mourinho enjoyed perhaps the best match of his tenure with Roma so far on Sunday, as the Giallorossi thrashed arch rivals Lazio 3-0 in the Derby della Capitale.
Roma were three goals up by half time thanks to a brace from Tammy Abraham and a stunning free-kick by Lorenzo Pellegrini, allowing a raucous home crowd at the Stadio Olimpico to savour the victory over their fierce enemies.
As Manchester United prepare to host Atletico Madrid in their crunch Champions League clash on Tuesday, both sides will be looking to their Portuguese protagonists to make the difference at Old Trafford, and Cristiano Ronaldo and João Félix head into the match full of confidence after goals this weekend.
Ronaldo’s sublime hat-trick for United against Tottenham Hotspur on Saturday evening was the headline of the weekend in England, while Félix added to his recent improvement in form with the opener as Atletico beat Cadiz in the Spanish capital the previous evening. Elsewhere, there was another goal for André Silva in Germany and Bebe scored an outstanding goal for Rayo Vallecano, who held Sevilla in La Liga.
Rúben Neves added to his collection of memorable goals on Thursday night with a stunning chip as Bruno Lage’s Wolverhampton Wanderers hammered Watford 4-0 at Molineux.
Neves, who is enjoying a fine season with Wolves, added to goals scored by Raul Jimenez and fellow Portuguese Daniel Podence to help end a run of three straight defeats in the Premier League.
Aris 2-1 Olympiacos
Well-travelled Portuguese winger Bruno Gama has truly found his home in Greece with Aris FC. The former Porto man played his 100th Super League match for the club at the weekend, and could not have hoped for a better way to mark the occasion as he scored the winner to end champions Olympiacos’ unbeaten record.
Gama came off the bench with just under twenty minutes remaining at the Charilaou Ground on Sunday, and produced a vintage free-kick to complete a sensational turnaround for Aris, who had initially trailed to Pedro Martins’ imperious league leaders. The win was Aris’ first against Olympiacos in 24 attempts.
When Gonçalo Guedes headed Valencia in front against Granada on Saturday evening, he reached double-figures in league goals for the first time in his career. There is nothing misleading about the feat for the former Benfica man, who has emerged as Valencia’s key player on and off the pitch this season in Spain.
Guedes’ previous best-ever tally for league goals in a season was the eight he scored for Benfica B during his first campaign as a professional. Since graduating to top-flight football with the Eagles, the winger had never scored more than five prior to this season, making the ascent into one of La Liga’s star performers somewhat overdue for a player always tipped for greatness.
