2 October 2006, by Marco Pereira

Benfica relieve tension with Aves thrashing

Benfica 4-1 Aves

Benfica got the proverbial monkey off their backs by handing Desportivo das Aves a 4-1 thrashing at the Estadio da Luz last night. The Eagles have been under fire for not achieving results this season, but answered the criticism in the best way by hammering their opponents.

Benfica were coming off a string of bad results, culminating in the 1-0 defeat to Manchester United in the Champions League last Tuesday, but showed grit and determination to put all that behind them when they faced Aves.

The game started with a wave of pressure from Benfica, as they looked to get the first goal early. Benfica were constantly pinning Aves inside their own half of the field as Simao and Katsouranis sent shots over the bar in the first 10 minutes of the game.

Aves were not prepared to go down without a fight, and on a dangerous counter-attack Xano got behind the Benfica defence and forced goalkeeper Quim into making a good save to avoid any blushes.

Jorge pounces

Benfica quickly re-grouped and reminded Aves of who was in charge as they got their first goal of the night at the 19th minute. Miguelito, replacing the suspended Leo, crossed the ball from the left. Aves goalkeeper, Rui Faria, managed to punch the ball away, but only as far as the onrushing Paulo Jorge, and the Benfica winger’s header arched into the net.

Just as things seemed to be going Benfica’s way, the Eagles’ fortune turned in the 27th minute as Quim let in an embarrassing goal. Filipe Anunciacao’s weak shot looked harmless enough, but the keeper failed to stop the ball as it squirmed through his legs making it 1-1.

Benfica reacted well to their keeper’s mishap and continued to attack with intent. Nuno Gomes had a good shot in the 36th minute that forced Rui Faria into making a sharp stop, and Luisao just missed the net with a header close to the break.

After the interval Fernando Santos beefed up his attack as he introduced Rui Costa for the more defensive-minded Katsouranis.

It did not take Benfica long to take the lead as Nuno Gomes got his fist goal of the season in the Liga in the 50th minute. The Portugal striker was left unmarked at the far post as Simao crossed the ball from the left and he coolly headed the ball into the opposite top corner.

Things went from bad to worse for Aves as they conceded a penalty in the 64th minute as William deliberately used his arm to stop the ball inside the box. Simao stepped up and using his trademark foot-drag made no mistake by firing the ball into the top left corner to make it 3-1.

Karagounis stunner

Ten minutes later Simao was substituted by Nuno Assis after injuring himself when falling awkwardly. Benfica capped a highly satisfactory night with a superb free-kick goal by Karagounis in the 89th minute.

Benfica coach, Fernando Santos, was happy with the win, but explained that the only difference between last night’s match, as opposed to the others, was the fact that the ball went into the net for his team.

“The team is evolving. At Pacos de Ferreira we could have won and against Manchester we did not translate the game we played into goals.”

“Tonight the team started well. There was a period of uncertainty, we lost second balls, but we modified that. In the second half, we played calmly and compactly. Benfica’s solid performance brought goals, which did not happen in the other matches.”

Santos reserved special praise for Simao and Karagounis, saying that both players are now approaching their best form. He added that Simao’s injury was not serious, but he took the captain off as a precaution.

Aves coach, Neca, did not argue the loss, saying: “We knew that Benfica had an urgent necessity to win and would play extremely focused, but we were well organised. We enjoyed the better of the game in the first 20 minutes, but we did not manage to take advantage and it was Benfica who ended up scoring the first goal.”

“In the second half we knew that the first 10-15 minutes were fundamental, but we suffered the second goal as a result of a lack of concentration. From then onwards we were not sufficiently calm and my team collapsed somewhat.”

Benfica:
Quim, Nelson, Luisao, Ricardo Rocha, Miguelito, Karagounis, Katsouranis (Rui Costa, 46), Paulo Jorge, Nuno Gomes, Simao (Nuno Assis, 74), Miccoli (Kikin Fonseca, 83)
Yellow Cards: Rui Costa (89)

Aves:
Rui Faria, Segio Carvalho, William, Sergio Nunes, Anilton, Filipe Anunciacao, Vitor Manuel (Mercio, 78), Nene, Hernani (Jocivalter, 78), Dill (Freddy, 52), Xano
Yellow Cards: William (64), Mercio (81)

Goals:
[1-0] Paulo Jorge, 19
[1-1] Filipe Anunciacao, 27
[2-1] Nuno Gomes, 50
[3-1] Simao, 64 (pen)
[4-1] Karagounis, 89