With all of Europe’s major leagues now underway, it has taken little time for Portuguese footballers to resume their incredible output in front of goal in various countries across the continent.
Renato Sanches marked his Paris Saint-Germain debut with a goal, while Gonçalo Paciência also found the net on his first La Liga appearance at Celta Vigo. There was another goal for Nuno Tavares, who is making a stunning impact with Marseille, as Fabio Silva and Jota continue to impress in Belgium and Scotland and Dany Mota scored in Italy’s Serie A.
Renato “so happy” after debut strike
Paris Saint-Germain hammered Montpellier 5-2 this weekend in Ligue 1, with new Portuguese arrivals Vitinha and Renato Sanches both taking part in the victory. Vitinha started the match and played around 70 minutes, before Renato was introduced for the final five minutes in place of Marco Verratti.
Renato may have spent far less time on the pitch, but the former Benfica man scored his first PSG goal with his first touch to give the hosts their 5th goal. Fellow Portuguese Nuno Mendes was the provider, crossing from the left for Renato, whose left-foot finish beat Jonas Omlin at his near post.
Le premier but de @renatosanches35 en ?&? ! ⚽️#PSGMHSC pic.twitter.com/MJ66jNUa3q
— Paris Saint-Germain (@PSG_inside) August 15, 2022
“I feel very good after this evening,” Renato told reporters after the match. “I played my first match here, I’m so happy, and I scored my goal, I’m happy. On goal, Marquinhos told me to get forward, then I sprinted, Nuno gave me the ball, I hit it and it was a goal! It was a lot of emotion. We have a lot of players who have a lot of quality, and I think we’re going to have a good season this year.”
Paciência frustrated on Celta bow despite goal
Gonçalo Paciência also marked his debut in Spanish football with a goal, as Celta Vigo were held to a 2-2 draw by Espanyol on La Liga’s opening weekend. The former Porto striker went straight into manager Eduardo Coudet’s line-up following his move from Eintracht Frankfurt on a three-year contract earlier this month.
It was looking like a dream debut for Paciência at the Balaidos when he produced a vintage header at the back post to nod in Javier Galan’s cross on 63 minutes to put the hosts 2-0 up. However, Espanyol left with a point in controversial circumstances after Joselu’s 98th-minute penalty, leaving the Portuguese striker with mixed emotions.
“The debut with the goal was good for me, but we lost two points,” Paciência said. “We had a more controlled second half with long balls from Espanyol. We’re a bit annoyed at having lost the victory. I’m not going to talk about the referee.”
Nuno Tavares scored again!
Former Benfica left-back Nuno Tavares is proving somewhat of a revelation in French football since moving to Marseille. Having scored on his debut last weekend against Reims, Tavares put his team 1-0 up at Brest on Sunday evening with a brilliantly-timed run and finish on his left foot, having been deployed in a wing-back role by coach Igor Tudor.
Brilliant goal from wing-back by Nuno Tavares. Expert run and finish pic.twitter.com/NuyQdtKi7L
— Sean Gillen (@SeanGillen9) August 15, 2022
Tavares’ goal last week made him the first Marseille defender to score on his debut in 25 years, since legendary centre-back Laurent Blanc. His two league goals scored in the last week double his career tally, having scored once in the Primeira Liga for Benfica and once for Arsenal last season in the English Premier League.
Jota makes Chalana tribute after golaço
Jota has made a spectacular start to the new Scottish Premiership season, and the former Benfica forward offered a touching tribute to late former Eagles midfielder Fernando Chalana after scoring a brilliant goal against Kilmarnock on Sunday.
The champions won 5-0 at Rugby Park and Jota scored the second ten minutes before half time, picking the ball up from distance and unleashing a stunning right-foot shot which flew into the top corner. During his celebrations Jota unveiled the name of Chalana on his wristband, in honour of the former Portugal star who died last week.
Jota scored a screamer for Celtic today ?pic.twitter.com/lgCimwQJ0X
— Sean Gillen (@SeanGillen9) August 14, 2022
Mota makes history in Monza defeat
Portuguese forward Dany Mota scored the first-ever Serie A goal in the history of newly-promoted Monza on Saturday. Mota’s late tap-in from close range was merely a consolation in a 2-1 home defeat to Torino, but ensures the Portugal youth international enters the history books of the Lombardy outfit.
Mota scored 11 goals in Serie B last season to help his team win promotion and ending their unwanted record of 40 years in the second tier without ever reaching the top flight. 24-year-old Mota, who is joined in the Monza squad by former Benfica defender Pedro Pereira, was named on the bench for this weekend’s opener, entering the action midway through the second half.
Fábio Silva unstoppable in Belgium
Fábio Silva’s incredible start to life with Anderlecht continued this weekend with yet another goal in the Belgian First Division. Silva, who started the game against Sint-Truiden, struck with a header in first-half stoppage time to give his side a two-goal lead and later registered an assist for Benito Raman as Anderlecht ran out comfortable 3-0 winners.
Silva has now already scored more goals for Anderlecht than he did for Wolverhampton Wanderers last season. The former Porto striker has five goals and two assists from just six appearances for the Brussels club, but Silva was in humble mood when asked about his performance on Sunday and his impact in Belgium.
“I’m happy with the three points and the role I played,” he said. “But when you’re surrounded by such players, it’s not difficult. Take Refaelov , for example. He’s so smart, always finds the spaces. You just have to make the right runs and the ball comes.
“I had already had a chance [before the goal] but I took it with the shoulder rather than the head. The second time, I applied myself better. Now Europe. These are games we want to play, and we want to stay in Europe. We have to beat Young Boys.”
The rest: Candeias caps remarkable comeback to thwart Besiktas; Flávio Paixão evergreen in Poland
In the Turkish Super Lig, Alanyaspor produced a remarkable comeback from 3-0 down to draw 3-3 with traditional giants Besiktas. The equalising goal came in the 92nd minute and was a penalty converted by Daniel Candeias for Alanyaspor to deny Besiktas, who had Gedson Fernandes in their midfield. Elsewhere in Turkey, Miguel Cardoso scored the winner for Kayserispor in the 4th minute as they were 1-0 victors over Istanbulspor.
Veteran striker Flávio Paixão shows no sign of slowing down as he approaches his 38th birthday next month, with the Lechia Gdansk striker making it two goals from the opening four matches of the Polish Ekstraklasa this weekend. His goal was of little value, however, as Lechia were hammered 4-1 by Radomiak Radom, for whom Portuguese midfielder Filipe Nascimento was among the scorers. Also in Poland’s top flight, there was a first goal in the colours of new club Jagiellonia Bialystok for former Santa Clara midfielder Nené.
Xande Silva has his first goal in French football for Dijon since his move from Nottingham Forest, after netting in their 2-2 draw with Caen in Ligue 2. In Switzerland, Grasshoppers are still unbeaten after five rounds of the Super League and former Belenenses defender Tomás Ribeiro got a goal and an assist in their 2-2 draw with Sion; Leonardo Rocha scored in the Belgian second tier for Lierse Kempenzonen.
In the English National League, Notts County lead the standings after Rúben Rodrigues scored in a 2-2 draw at Boreham Wood. There was a rare goal for defender Frederico Venâncio to help Eibar to a 2-1 victory over Tenerife in the Spanish Segunda Division, while Bruno Mendes’ goal helped Fola Esch to a 3-2 win at UT Petange in Luxembourg. Finally Pedro Eugénio scored a hat-trick for Astana in a 7-1 victory in the Kazakhstani Cup.
By Sean Gillen
