2023-10-15 00:12:32
On a special day, with the 100th derby between Sporting and Benfica at futsal level, for the championship, the lion roared louder, was deadly in taking advantage of the eagles’ defensive errors and ended up deservedly winning by 1-4, to isolate himself , provisionally, in the lead of the championship.
Portugal stopped for another «Best futsal derby in the world», another derby between Benfica and Sporting, who, this season, faced each other very early in the championship, on the 4th round, after the Reds had already won the Super Cup (4-5), In the beggining of september. Now, they found themselves in the Light and it promised.
A mistake away
There was no lack of intensity in the 1st half, with the usual constant adjustments from the coaches and a deep rotation, seeking to gain any possible advantage, at any moment of the game. Sporting started better with the ball and managed to explore the wings well to create a series of opportunities, with Léo Gugiel looking good between the posts – although somewhat nervous with the ball at his feet and without adding properly on the way up.
Benfica, in turn, defended well and managed to make it difficult for the opposing pivot, with Zicky having difficulty getting into the game. However, the scarcity of pivots on their side – only Higor available – also made the Reds’ movements and options difficult and they had more problems in an organized attack. However, they were strong in transition and Diego Nunes could have scored at the end of the 1st half.
As is usual in this famous derby, only one error seemed to be able to unblock the match and that was exactly what happened. At the 9th minute, Merlin took the corner straight to the left, there was a mistake in marking and Taynan just had to touch the goal. With an advantage, Sporting was dangerous on set pieces, while Benfica continued to focus on the transition. Kutchy lost his balance, Diego Nunes threatened and Henrique Rafagnin held the score at 0-1 until half-time.
The beacons opened
With far fewer goals than the last duel, the game was intense, but the start of the 2nd half seemed to involve greater study between the two sides, at a slightly slower pace, more cautious with the ball. Benfica was forced to try to take the reins, trying to break the good defensive cohesion of Leon and this changed the image of the game a little, but Sporting, always true to itself, was deadly and smelled the opponent’s mistakes.
Kutchy shook up the game @SL Benfica
With Benfica more open, Leão took the opportunity to expand through Pauleta in the 25th minute, after good pivoting work by Zicky on the right – one of the few times he came out well under pressure from Afonso Jesus – and a bad clearance from Lúcio Rocha, to prohibited zone. With Benfica increasingly offensive, Sporting managed the pace to their advantage and defended well, but were happy and reached 0-3 nine minutes later, again through Taynan. who took advantage of a terrible release of red pressure in a throw-in. Note for a great assistance from Paçó.
Faced with this, Mário Silva bet on five to four in the five minutes and then the usual game of patience emerged, where Sporting is very strong defensively. Benfica had the ball, but had difficulty gaining space to shoot and only managed to reduce it in the 38th minute, unfortunately for João Matos, who scored in his own goal. However, in the last minute and when the Reds’ hopes were already low, Merlin took advantage of the opponent’s goalkeeper and with the goal empty, after recovering the ball, he made the final 1-4.
With this result, Sporting temporarily isolated itself at the top of the championship, while rival Benfica suffered its 2nd defeat in four matches in the championship.
#Drbi #centenary #belongs #lion #zerozero.pt