9 November 2006, by Sean Gillen

Resurgent Viana hits the net

Portuguese Abroad midweek action round-up

Jorge Andrade made his long awaited return from injury in Deportivo’s 1-0 loss at Racing Santander in the Spanish Copa Del Rey. The Portuguese defender was replaced after an hour of play as his side, who won the first leg by the odd goal, progressed after a penalty shootout.

Hugo Viana scored his first goal of the season for Valencia, getting the second as Los Ches cruised into the next round with a 2-0 win over Portuense. Miguel also started the game at right-back, and David Villa was the other name on the scoresheet as Valencia go through 4-1 on aggregate.

Winger Duda scored the third for Sevilla as the UEFA Cup holders beat Segoviana 3-0 at home, going through 4-0 on aggregate. Enzo Maresca and Aitor Ocio got the others for Sevilla.

Barcelona rested Deco as they hammered Badalona 4-0, with goals from Giovanni van Bronkhorst, Santiago Ezquerro and a double from Javier Saviola. The La Liga champions go through 6-1 on aggregate.

Jose Nunes’ Mallorca’s recent good form continued, as they beat Atlhetic Bilbao 2-1 in extra time. The tie was levelled at 1-1 at the end of normal time, but Victor struck in the 101st minute for the home side to edge them through. Beto started for Recreativo as they went out to Real Betis after losing 2-0, following a goalless draw in the first leg.

The second leg of Atletico Madrid’s tie with Levante, which they trail 1-0, was suspended after a torrential downpour of rain in Valencia.

Man Utd shock exit

The Carling Cup took centre stage in England, with the quarter-final line-up finalised after matches on Tuesday and Wednesday evening. The biggest absentee from the draw for the next stage is Manchester United. The holders included Cristiano Ronaldo, plus many other big names, but were stunned by Southend, bottom of the Championship, 1-0 at Roots Hall.

Chelsea are favourites for the competition, and they bounced back from their weekend defeat to hammer Aston Villa 4-0 at Stamford Bridge. Jose Mourinho rested his Portuguese contingent as goals from Frank Lampard, Andreij Shevchenko, Michael Essien and Didier Drogba gave the Premiership champions a convincing win.

There was disappointment for Nuno Valente as Everton were beaten by an 85th minute Emanuel Adebayor goal at Goodison Park, with the former Porto man playing the full 90 minutes as he looks to regain match sharpness after injury problems. There will be a third team in the quarter-final draw represented by a Portuguese, however, with League 2 outfit Wycombe Wanderers beating Notts County 1-0 away from home with Fulham-owned Ricardo Batitsta in goal.

There were nine midweek fixtures in the German Bundesliga, with Fernando Meira’s Stuttgart continuing their impressive recent form. Despite the absence of the Portuguese centre-half through injury, Stuttgart moved up into second with a 2-0 win over Hamburg.

Alex played the full 90 minutes for 8th placed Wolfsburg as they won 2-1 at Mainz, but Ze Antonio scored an early own goal as Gladbach lost 2-0 at home to Schalke. Werder Bremen stay top, however, but Hugo Almeida only played the final four minutes of his side’s 2-1 win at Nuremberg.

In Russia, Dynamo Moscow officially avoided relegation after a nightmare season, drawing 1-1 with FC Moscow. Derlei gave the home side the lead just after the hour mark, but they were pegged back four minutes later. Danny played the full game for Dynamo, while Almani Moreira continues to be overlooked, remaining on the bench. The result, combined with Torpedo Moscow’s 2-1 loss at home to Zenit, means that Dynamo will definitely finish 3rd from bottom, seven points and one place above the drop zone with two games remaining.

Star Performer

Hugo Viana

The former Sporting midfielder has enjoyed a heavier involvement in the first team over recent weeks, and he did his chances of a more regular place in the first team no harm by scoring Valencia’s second against Portuense.

Earlier round-ups:
06/11/06 Star Performer - Carlitos
30/10/06 Star Performer - Hilario
26/10/06 Star Performer - Hilario
23/10/06 Star Performer - Manuel da Costa
16/10/06 Star Performer - Tiago
02/10/06 Star Performer - Cristiano Ronaldo
25/09/06 Star Performer - Cristiano Ronaldo
18/09/06 Star Performer - Sergio Conceicao
11/09/06 Star Performer - Ricardo Carvalho
28/08/06 Star Performer - Figo
21/08/06 Star Performer - Deco