A second pulsating Lisbon derby in five days again ended with the green half of the Portuguese capital smiling as Sporting beat Benfica 2-1 to go four points clear at the top of the table with a game in hand.
Geny Catamo gave Sporting a dream start by scoring inside the opening minute, but Benfica came back strongly and equalised in first-half stoppage time via an Alexander Bah header.
There were chances at both ends in the second period, but the Mozambican right-back proved the hero of the night by smashing a ferocious effort into the roof the net in stoppage time to send the crowd into apoplectic celebrations and fire the Lions ever closer to becoming the 2023/24 champions of Portugal.
Benfica stick, Sporting twist
Benfica were unsurprisingly unchanged from Tuesday’s 2-2 draw at the Estádio da Luz, when they were the better side but got knocked out of the Portuguese Cup as Sporting won on aggregate. Rúben Amorim, on the other hand, changed half the team with five alterations, bringing in Geny Catamo, Matheus Reis, Jeremiah St. Juste, Hidemasa Morita and Pedro Gonçalves. Ricardo Esgaio, Ousmande Diomande, Nuno Santos, Daniel Bragança and Paulinho dropped to the bench.
Gonçalves was back in the starting lineup having recovered from injury, and he made an immediate and sensational impact. With less than a minute on the clock Pote picked up the ball on the left flank, tricked his way past Bah and Florentino and crossed dangerously into the box. Trubin deflected the ball into the path of Geny Catamo who gleefully struck it into the net. Less than 60 seconds gone and the crowd went wild.
Benfica responded well to the setback, enjoying most of the possession and pushing Sporting back in search of a quick equaliser. Ángel Di María continues to defy his years, the Argentine World Cup winner proving difficult to control for the home team.
Di María in the thick of the action
Di María set up a presentable chance for Rafa in the 13th minute, but he got under the ball and hit his effort over the bar. Benfica continued to ask questions of the Sporting back line, with Coates making a series of timely interventions to keep them at bay.
Viktor Gyökeres was being starved of the ball, but he showed just how dangerous he can be by almost setting up Sporting’s second in the 26th minute. The Swede managed to get the better of António Silva and cross low in the direction of the onrushing Trincão, but a combination of Otamendi and Trubin snuffed out the chance.
Hjulmand then won a free kick in a dangerous position, but Pote hit his effort over the bar. Back came Benfica, with Di María peppering Sporting’s goal with two efforts, the first over the bar, the second deflected out for a corner.
Di María escapes red card
As Di María began running to take the corner, he tangled with Pote and threw a punch at the Sporting midfielder, making contact with his face. The referee decided a stern talking-to was sufficient and VAR did not intervene.
Benfica continued to knock on the door, a firm Florentino shot charged down and Otamendi’s follow-up header saved by Israel. Another Sporting free kick in a dangerous position came to nothing, and on the stroke of half time Benfica were level.
Di María swung in a delicious free kick with Alexander Bah heading in at the second post, the Danish right-back taking advantage of poor defending by Matheus Reis. Half time and all square at Alvalade.
Gyökeres thumps the bar
Sporting started the second half well, Gyökeres failing to get a good connection on a headed opportunity and Trubin saving easily. But the Sporting No9 was unlucky not to score soon afterwards. A strong interception by Hjulmand sent him racing towards goal, and Gyökeres hit an unstoppable shot that beat Trubin all ends up but rebounded into play off the bar.
In the 54th minute Morita was replaced by Bragança, the classy midfielder immediately giving Sporting a greater level of control in midfield.
On 66 minutes though Benfica seemed certain to take the lead. Gonçalo Inácio gave away the ball cheaply, with Benfica rapidly breaking and playing in David Neres, who rounded Israel but was denied a goal as the sprinting Coates got back just in time to deflect the goal-bound shot for a corner.
In the 72nd minute Benfica swapped their striker, Casper Tengstedt replaced by Arthur Cabral, and Sporting made two more changes, Marcus Edwards and Ousmande Diomande entering the fray for Pote and Inácio.
Soon afterwards Amorim made more changes, bringing on Paulinho and Koba Koindredi for Trincão and Hjulmand.
Israel makes vital save
Both sides were still going for it, knowing a win could be absolutely decisive in what has been the tightest of title races. Di María was close to scoring in the 81st minute, his rasping shot tipped onto and over the bar by Israel at full stretch.
In the 89th minute it was Sporting’s turn to be a whisker away from taking the lead, a flicked-on corner falling at Bragança’s feet but the midfielder could not adjust his feet in time to knock it into the gaping goal.
Catamo brings the house down
Sporting were now pushing hard and got their reward in the 92nd minute. A corner was not cleared by Benfica and when Geny Catamo found himself with a shooting chance in the box he needed no second invitation, smashing a rocket of a shot angling high into the net with his weaker right foot. Cue bedlam amongst most of the 48,115 crowd.
There was still time for Benfica to almost grab an equaliser, João Neves creating an opportunity for late substitute Marcos Leonardo, but Diomande denied the Brazilian with a goal-line clearance.
Moments later the final whistle went, sparking a pitch invasion by the whole Sporting contingent of players and coaching staff as they celebrated in communion with the ecstatic crowd.
Home fans lapping it up. Perfect week for Sporting. pic.twitter.com/0JiAELiLdV
— Tom Kundert (@PortuGoal1) April 6, 2024
Sporting go four points clear at the top with 7 games remaining, Benfica only having 6 to try and chase down their neighbours.
By Tom Kundert, at the José Alvalade stadium
Sporting: Franco Israel, Jeremiah St. Juste, Sebastián Coates, Gonçalo Inácio (Ousmane Diomande, 72’), Geny Catamo, Matheus Reis, Morten Hjulmand (Koba Koindredi, 80’), Hidemasa Morita (Daniel Bragança, 54’), Francisco Trincão (Paulinho, 80’), Pedro Gonçalves (Marcus Edwards, 72’), Viktor Gyökeres
Benfica: Anatoliy Trubin, Alexander Bah, António Silva, Nicolás Otamendi, Fredrik Aursnes, Florentino Luís, João Neves, Ángel Di María, David Neres (Orkun Kökçü, 93’), Rafa (Marcos Leonardo, 93’), Casper Tengstedt (Arthur Cabral, 71’)
Goals:
[1-0] Geny Catamo, 1’
[1-1] Alexander Bah, 45 + 3’
[2-1] Geny Catamo, 90 + 2’
