Bwin Liga weekend action round-up

FC Porto 0-3 Nacional
The Portuguese champions were trounced in their final match at home this season as Nacional blew three goals past the Dragons to complete an unlikely double with a 3-0 victory at the Estadio do Dragao.

Needless to say, Jesualdo Ferreira was none too happy with his team’s performance and demanded that they smarten up ahead of the Portuguese Cup final against Sporting on May 18th.

Nacional opened their account in the 21st minute as Benfica loanee Fabio Coentrao picked up a loose Quaresma pass and the forward found the far corner with his left foot to give the visitors the lead. It took a while for Porto to get into the match, but the home side did so in the 32nd minute as Quaresma could have equalised with one of his trademarks shots with the outside of his foot, but the effort flew over the crossbar.

Nacional almost doubled their advantage just before half-time, but Rodrigo’s header narrowly missed the net. But Fabio Coentrao did double the lead with the final kick of the half. The forward notched a brace as he completely outsmarted Helton with a superb arching effort that left the goalkeeper rooted to the spot, watching helplessly as the ball entered the net.

The hosts had a chance to reduce their deficit in the 85th minute, but Farias’ header was well saved by Bracalli. Nacional capped off Porto’s misery in added time as Juninho beat Helton at his near post to complete the rout.

Academica 1-1 Naval
In the first match after renewing his contract with Academica, Domingos Paciencia’s men played themselves to a 1-1 draw against Naval. In the Students’ last home game of the season, they did not give their supporters much to cheer about as both teams lacked initiative in a typical end-of-season nothing-at-stake affair.

Naval opened the scoring in the 23rd minute when Diego Angelo beat Pedro Roma with a fine header. The hosts drew level in the 61st minute as Lito dropped back to receive a Pedrinho pass and the forward made no mistake in beating Taborda to score against his former club.

Vitoria Setubal 2-0 Leixoes
After having gone winless in their last four fixtures, Vitoria Setubal guaranteed a Uefa Cup berth with a 2-0 win against relegation battlers Leixoes. The Matosinhos are safe for another week as Pacos de Ferreira lost to Sporting at the Mata Real. But the Bwin Liga new boys must win to ensure their safety in the top flight as they close out the season against Maritimo in front of their home supporters next weekend.

It was a lively start to the match as there were implications for both teams, albeit very different, and good, open, attacking football was shown by the two combatants. The Sadinos took the lead in the 16th minute as FC Porto loanee Claudio Pitbull scored his 7th goal of the season, netting with a fine shot from the edge of the box into the top right-hand corner.

Leixoes were throwing everything they had at Setubal, but the home side were solid in their back line. Leixoes came close in the 50th minute as Roberto’s header forced Eduardo into a brilliant stop to deny the striker.

Then Paulo Machado almost managed to sneak in at the near post, but his effort missed by inches. The visitors finally had Eduardo beaten in the 59th minute, but Paulo Machado’s free kick bounced off the post and out of play.

The hosts sealed their victory in the 66th minute when another FC Porto product, Bruno Gama, nudged a Claudio Pitbull pass across the goal line to make it 2-0. Setubal had an opportunity for a third goal two minutes later, but Filipe’s screamer just cleared the crossbar.

Boavista 0-0 Sporting Braga
What would normally be a high-profile tilt ended up being a dull contest, and a goalless draw was the predictable result long before the final whistle was blown. Braga were still in the hunt for a Uefa Cup spot, but another turbulent year for the Arsenalistas, especially off the field, finally caught up with the team.

Teams who finish fourth and fifth in Portugal are guaranteed Uefa Cup spots, as well as the Portuguese Cup winners, but given that the Cup final will be played between FC Porto and Sporting – both going into the Champions League next season – the sixth placed team will also qualify for the Uefa Cup.

However, Braga failed to take advantage of this situation and will not be playing European football for the first time in three seasons next campaign. It is above all an indictment of poor management at boardroom level, with six coaches in two seasons bringing instability to the club.

Maritimo 2-0 Uniao de Leiria
Maritimo qualified for the Uefa Cup next season as the Madeira based club managed to get past Liga Vitalis bound Uniao de Leiria.

Both sides were reduced to ten men before the match had hit the half-hour mark. Van Der Linden was shown a straight red card in only the 5th minute for taking down Tonito inside the Maritimo area.

The visitors failed to take advantage of the resulting penalty as Eder sent his effort horribly over the net and straight into the Atlantic Ocean. Maritimo were then awarded a penalty of their own in the 24th minute as Lukaasiewicz, who was already on a yellow, was shown a second yellow card for a foul on Bruno Fogaca.

The hosts made no mistake in converting their penalty as Bruno racked up his fourth goal of the season. The second half started with a bang as Maritimo doubled their lead in the 48th minute when Edigle headed a Mossoro cross past Fernando. The Leirense looked deflated after the second goal and were lifeless for the rest of the match as their inevitable future appeared to be sinking in.


Related: Belenenses 1-1 Guimaraes - match report
Related: Estrela da Amadora 0-0 Benfica - match report
Related: Pacos de Ferreira 0-1 Sporting - match report