 |
 |
 |
| Thursday, 22 December 2011 23:57 |
Second-half onslaught sends Sporting into Portuguese Cup semi-finalsSporting 3-0 Maritimo Sporting advanced to the semi-finals of the Taca de Portugal in an entertaining 3-0 win over Maritimo thanks to goals from Andre Carrillo (pictured), Ricky van Wolfswinkel and Emiliano Insua.
A loud Alvalade saw the first chance of the game come to Andre Martins after 14 minutes, who shot over from close range after some excellent play in the build up from Andre Carrillo. Domingos Paciencia was forced into a change early on when Daniel Carrico picked up a knock and couldn't continue. He was replaced by Andre Santos to fill the defensive midfield role. Patricio denies BabaMaritimo were threatening Sporting on the counter attack in the early stages of the game and the best chance for the away side came through the in-form Baba, but his shot was well saved by Rui Patricio.Sporting then had two more great chances in quick succession. Stijn Schaars' through ball found the feet of Ricky van Wolfswinkel but young goalkeeper Ricardo Ferreira did well to stay big and block the shot. The ball rebounded to Andre Martins but his follow up shot could only rattle the crossbar. Oguchi Onyewu will have felt guilty going into half-time when he failed to convert with a diving header from close range - Stijn Schaars again providing the chance. Referee Artur Soares Dias made himself hugely unpopular with the Alvalade crowd in the 44th minute when he denied Sporting a penalty shout and booked Andre Martins for diving. Replays showed that there certainly was contact between Martins and the defender. Wingers combine to break deadlockJust minutes after the restart the home side got the goal they had been searching for. Diego Capel's cross from the left wing found Andre Carrillo who drifted in from the right-hand side and headed home well to claim his first goal in a Sporting shirt.Referee Dias, who had earlier incurred the wrath of the home fans for denying Sporting a penalty, did give the Lions a spot kick after 55 minutes. Ricky van Wolfswinkel was heading through on goal when Igor Rossi hauled him to the ground. The Brazilian received a red card for the foul. Wolfswinkel though, for the first time this season, missed his penalty, hitting the post and failing to connect with the rebound. Just minutes later and Ricky van Wolfswinkel got his second chance from the penalty spot. This time Joao Guilherme brought down Andre Carrillo in the area and in spite of the mind games from Ricardo and some of the Maritimo players, the Dutchman shot into the same corner and this time the right side of the post. With a man advantage and a two-goal cushion it was tough to see the Madeirans getting back into the game. Pedro Martins' side did not give up though. Danilo Dias found himself through on goal and attempted to go around Rui Patricio but the Portugal goalkeeper saved his effort. Schaars skillsSporting made sure of advancing into the semi-finals on 82 minutes when Emiliano Insua found himself through on goal. His initial shot was well saved but the rebound fell kindly to the Argentine and he simply nodded the ball into an open net. Maritimo will be disappointed to be eliminated at this stage after doing so well to dispatch Benfica in the previous round but it does at least for them end a hellacious run of 4 games in which they have successively faced Portugal's three biggest clubs. Domingos and his Sporting side will be happy to have some revenge against Maritimo after their 2-3 defeat back in August and will now be favourites to go on and win the Taca de Portugal. Earlier in the day there was a surprise as Liga Orangina side Oliveirense came from behind to beat Olhanense 2-1. Yesterday Academica had booked their place in the last four with a 3-2 win over Despotivo das Aves. The fourth semi-finalist will be decided tomorrow as Moreirense host Nacional. Sporting: Rui Patricio, Insua, Onyewu, Joao Pereira, Polga, Andre Martins (Pereirinha, 70), Schaars, Daniel Carrico (Andre Santos, 20), Diego Capel, Van Wolfswinkel, Andre Carrillo (Santiago Arias, 85) Martitimo: Ricardo Ferreira, Igor Rossi, Joao Guilherme, Briguel, Rafael Miranda, Roberto de Sousa, Olberdam (Benachour, 69), Luís Olim, Danilo Dias (Heldon, 76), Sami, Baba Goals: [1-0] Carrillo, 49 [2-0] Wolfswinkel, 60 (pen) [3-0] Insua, 82 by Richard Cole |
If you, however, just randomly come to this website to spew negativity about other teams, accuse the administrators of being bias, and whine and moan about how the refs always favor ________ owed that there is alot of talent that can be harnessed by Paciencia for the rest of the season.
Forca Domingos,
Forca Sporing.
Presently, your latest gripe seems to be that Tom and Richard and the other guys who run the website are unfairly favoring Benfica. Yeah, the same guys who picked SPC to finish ahead of Benfica in the LZS when they made their predictions back in August. I dont see why some guys get a kick out of starting trouble. That's pretty sad. If you knew what you were talking about and posted accurately, your comments would simply be considered childish and in bad taste. However, by stirring things up and posting nonsensical drivel, you completely lose what little credibility you had. Its ok to love your team and voice your opinions, thats obviously what we are all here for... But you throw around insults and make baseless accusations quite regularly.
So, exactly what are you trying to say now? Benfica doesn't have a deep team? You obviously dont watch the games then. Benfica had an extremely shallow team last year, and JJ stubbornly stuck to the 4-4-2 formation, giving the non-starters even fewer chances to play, and physically exhausting his regulars. This year Benfica has recalled and added several talented players to the core team. These additions,combined with JJ's newly found willingness to deploy multiple formations (I have seen at least four different versions of the 4-2-3-1, and at least 3 different versions of the 4-4-2) and players, has made Benfica deep, flexible, and extremely adaptable. The additions of Witsel, Cesar, Nolito, Matic, Jardel, the emergence of Rodrigo and Artur, the return of Amorim, and the phasing in of youngsters like Nelson O, Luis Martins, and Miguel Vitor have created a very deep, talented, and dangerous team. It must also be remembered that Benfica have sold Coentrao, DiMaria, Ramires, and David Luiz during the last two years. Four world class players. Soon Gaitan will join that list as well.
These are, of course, my opinions. But I do know one thing absolutely for sure: Benfica were deep enough to beat SPC last month (and with Jardel starting at CB, too. ) No arguments there, my friend...