GAME SUMMARY
A goal from Diogo Prioste, from a penalty, secured a 1-0 victory for Benfica B over Vizela in the match of the 3rd round of the League 2, played this Sunday, August 25th, at Field No. 1 of Benfica Campus.
Applying a high pressure from the first minute, the team led by Nélson Veríssimo hampered the opponent’s play and recovered several balls near the opposing area, totaling three shots in the first 10 minutes of the match.
Always keeping an eye on Vizela’s net, Benfica B tested their accuracy again at 15′, with a good shot by Hugo Félix just wide. At 18′, Gustavo Varela was close to an incredible goal, but his lob from midfield went slightly wide of the right post.
Before halftime, Gustavo Varela threatened again: at 45’+2′, he headed straight at Ruberto and, at 45’+4′, he shot over following a careless mistake by the Vizela goalkeeper.
The second half began with Lacava wasting a great opportunity, shooting over with only Pedro Souza in front of him, but it was Benfica B who opened the scoring. At 50′, Ítalo Henrique handled a header from Gustavo Varela inside the box and, after four minutes reviewing the play at the VAR’s suggestion, referee Miguel Nogueira awarded a penalty. From the penalty spot, Diogo Prioste did not miss and opened the scoring at 56′.
At 69′, the eagles designed a textbook counter-attack that almost resulted in 2-0. João Rego called for the speed of Gerson Sousa on the right side and the number 77 crossed into the box, where Gustavo Varela backheeled to Hugo Félix, who, from a difficult angle, shot for a clearance off the line by Mörschel.
After the debut of central João Fonseca in the B team in official matches (he was brought on for Joshua Wynder at 80′), Nélson Veríssimo’s team tightened their defense to protect their lead against Vizela’s final push for an equalizer. Riding on crosses into the box, the visitors created some dangerous situations in the Benfica area, notably with Milovanovic’s header hitting the crossbar at 90’+6′. With solidarity and unity, the team recorded their second consecutive game without conceding and held on to the three points!
With two victories in the last two matches, Benfica B will take the field again at 2:00 PM next Sunday, September 1, away against Feirense, in a match counting for the 4th round of League 2.
STATEMENTS
Nélson Veríssimo (Benfica B coach): “Above all, we won indisputably, we added three more points in our fight in this demanding championship against a good team with well-defined ideas. They obviously created problems for us. We knew we had to have a very strong start in the first half to show as a team what we wanted from the game, and we had 20/25 very good minutes. Of course, afterwards, Vizela began to create problems for us, we made some adjustments, but the team, when it had the ball, knew what to do with it and when it didn’t have it, also had the capability to understand that this was not the moment to have the ball and then find ways to try to recover and transition. That happened many times in the first half; we had many recoveries in the attacking midfield, situations where we posed danger to the opposing goal. It was a pity we weren’t effective and didn’t concretize those situations effectively, but above all, we played well. Of course, then in the second half, with the penalty, Vizela threw themselves forward, and we ended up strategically conceding possession of the ball to Vizela. We knew we would run some risks, but above all, the team showed great maturity, and in the end, we won.”
Rafael Luís (Benfica B Midfielder and Man of the Match): “This is an award for the whole team. Thank you for the distinction. We played an excellent game, and it’s an excellent victory. We took the three points – which are for all Benfiquistas – and that’s all that mattered. A very deserved victory, we sacrificed ourselves, we were a team. Now it’s about continuing and achieving consistency. [Vizela] is a very strong team with very positive football, but we were very strong and intense, and that’s what matters for our Benfica.”
Gustavo Marques (Benfica B Defender): “We knew about the difficulty of the Vizela team, which had been relegated, and their priority is to win games and rise. But we are very strong at home and managed to secure the three points. [Two games without conceding goals] We worked quite a bit during the week, training a lot on crosses into the box and corners. We knew it would be a game like this. Very happy not to have conceded any goals.”
