Boavista beat Belenenses in thriller

Belenenses 2-3 Boavista

Belenenses and Boavista played out a thriller at the Restelo last night with the Porto club coming out on top 3-2.

Silas and Weldon scored for Belenenses, while Jorge Ribeiro, Luis Loureiro and a Candido Costa own goal were enough to do in the Blues at home.

Fans who attended the match got their money’s worth in a highly entertaining tilt. Belenenses came out firing in the 6th minute as Ze Pedro and Silas both had excellent chances to score, but both were denied by Boavista’s Fleurival.

The home side made up for those misses in the 16th minute as Silas hit a low hard drive past Jehle to give the Blues a one goal advantage.

The lead would be short-lived as Boavista found themselves level in the 25th minute when Jorge Ribeiro released a screaming left-footed strike which blew past Julio Cesar and hit underneath the crossbar on its way into the net. In the 38th minute an unmarked Luis Loureiro headed in a Jorge Ribeiro corner to give the visitors a 2-1 lead.

But Boavista surrendered their lead just before half time as Weldon headed a Ze Pedro corner into the net to put the Blues back on even terms.

Belenenses had a good penalty shout in the 53rd minute for what looked like a foul on Roncatto but the referee, who had booked the same player for diving earlier, waved away the claims.

More bad luck feel upon the hosts as they suffered an own goal in the 60th minute when Candido Costa inadvertently kicked the ball into his own net while trying to clear a Mateus cross.

Far from discouraged, the home team mounted a series of ferocious attacks with Silas and Ze Pedro combining for most of them. In the 75th minute Silas dropped the ball back for an oncoming Ze Pedro, but the Portuguese forward hit the ball over the crossbar when he should have done better from inside the Boavista box.

Five minutes later Joao Paulo had two bites of the cherry as he headed a Candido Costa cross against Moises and struck the rebound off the same defender. Just before full time, Belenenses thought that they had scored the equaliser, but Ze Pedro’s free kick agonizingly hit the crossbar to end a most enjoyable encounter.

Belenenses:
Julio Cesar, Candido Costa, Rolando, Hugo Alcantara, Rodrigo Alvim, Gomez (Marco Ferreira, 46), Ruben Amorim (Jankauskas, 77), Silas, Ze Pedro, Roncatto (Joao Paulo, 77), Weldon
Yellow Cards: Roncatto (51)

Boavista:
Jehle, Rissut, Moises, Araujo (Pinheiro, 46), Angulo, Fleurival, Luis Loureiro, Jorge Ribeiro, Laionel (Hussain, 61), Mateus, Ze Kalanga (Gilberto, 82)
Yellow Cards: Araujo (1), Laionel (58), Pinheiro (86)

Goals:
[1-0] Silas, 15
[1-1] Jorge Ribeiro, 25
[1-2] Luis Loureiro, 38
[2-2] Weldon, 45
[2-3] Candido Costa, 60 (o.g.)