SC Farense 2 Sporting CP 3
The Warm Up
An eighth straight evening game post 8pm kick off. Lisbon parents with little Sportinguista’s must dread the weekly argument about staying up late. Sporting start the game second after the pigeons went top Friday with a narrow 1-0 win in the Clássico. The league's top three as you'd expect to see at any point in 's e season, the only question being in what order the to watch the game big three in Portugal currently fall.
Farense one of the newly promoted sides having finished top last season. They'll be our first opponents in the Taça da Liga in early November. They've beaten Braga 3-1 at home and were set for a point away to Porto before conceding a winner in the 10th minute of injury time so they won't be over awed by taking on a Sporting side looking to go back top of the table at full time. Boavista missed the chance to temporarily leapfrog Sporting conceding a 92nd minute equaliser.
Team News
Gyökeres is restored to the starting XI having sat out the 2-0 win to Rio Ave with Paulinho the man to make way in the only change. Amorim confirmed this week his philosophy relating to the combinations of Esgaio / Nuno Santos and Reis / Geny. One wing will be attacking, the other will see the more defensive player drop to make a defensive back four. Therefore barring injury or suspensions those combinations won't change formation wise. Diomande starts despite his late injury scare last time out.
The money markets
15/2 the home side, Sporting 4/11 with the bookmakers for the win.
First Half
Farense players take the field all dressed in black capes. Not sure if that forms part of the full home kit.
I wonder how tall their skipper stands as he looks like a child stood opposite Coates for the coin toss. Smoke bellows from the corner where the away fans are congregated. That'll be another fine to the club for the use of pyrotechnics.
1 First chance falls to Esgaio outside the box. Do you think he a. Skied it over the bar. B. Skied it over the bar or c…
5 You have to imagine the home side watched the Rio Ave game as they line up with a back three currently ably assisted by a midfield five which is making it hard to find any attacking space in the final third.
6 It appears Gonçalves has got Trincão's boots on again as he makes the Esgaio effort from range look quality by way of comparison.
7 Free kick in a dangerous position conceded by Diomande. Ball swung into the box is eventually dealt with by Adán who looks like he's handling a bar of soap in the bath.
9 I think I'm having a cheese dream as Esgaio tries a bicycle kick unmarked from 12 yards. Needless to say it wasn't on target and if you could see the reverse angle I'd guess it came off his shin.
10 Early end to Coates night as he hands the captain's armband to Adán and is replaced by Reis. Presumably Inácio will go central and Reis will slot in on the left of the three.
13 Good work by Gonçalves as he hustles the last man down to the goal line and squares the ball back into the area but it deflects of a defender to safety. That's the most effective play I've seen from him in the last two hours of game time combined.
17 Red card has been brandished by the referee. Hand ball against Gonçalo Silva. Referee points to the penalty spot. I didn't think you could get double jeopardy in these situations. That seemed harsh to me to penalise them twice. Yes he clearly stops a goal bound effort but a yellow and a penalty…I'd be super pissed if the boot was on the other foot
19 GOAL Gyökeres has placed the ball on the spot. Slams it home sending the keeper the wrong way. Farense 0 Sporting CP 1
22 Gonçalves fouled in a central position 25 yards out. This could be a long night for the home side. Ball is rolled off to Nuno Santos whose shot is deflected for a corner. Ball into the box is cleared to Edwards who shoots from pretty much the same spot as Nuno Santos a minute before but his effort is again high over the bar. Do they not teach players to lean over the ball and not back when shooting?
29 Best chance of the game for the home side. Free Kick conceded by Hjulmand around the half way line pumped long into the box. Unmarked header from Falcão wide of Adán's left hand post.
34 GOAL I'll take every word back I said, Gonçalves has finally put his own shooting boots back on. Corner in from the right cleared to the edge of the D where he slots it home low into the bottom right. Farense 0 Sporting CP 2
35 Hjulmand goes into the book. Free kick in another dangerous position just outside of the box.
36 GOAL Oliveira with an early contender for goal of the season. He bends the ball round the man on the left of a three man wall and into the top left hand corner. That was a goal of top quality. Farense 1 Sporting CP 2. Game on gain. Said it was in a dangerous position. Butterfly effect.
42 Keeper saves down low to his right from Gyökeres from 20 yards. He keeps his side in it because that was goal bound and he was at full stretch to get a hand to it.
Six minutes additional time indicated. Going to be a long night. Let's hope Sporting find a third sooner rather than later to put this game to bed against ten men. Hjulmand is in danger of making it ten a piece with some of his challenges tonight.
+1 Edwards takes a tumble in the box. Nothing given following a VAR check.
Half time
Farense 1 Sporting CP 2
The ten men are not out of this game by any stretch of the imagination. The difference between the good sides and the really great ones is the ability to push home the numerical advantage. Any Farense danger in the final third has been of Sporting's own making but that doesn't make it any better. For all his plaudits Inácio isn't Coates and he can't marshal the back line in the same manner. It wouldn't surprise me to see Bragança replace Hjulmand early on in the second half. Paulinho at half time is warming up so he looks like he'll be an instant substitution as Sporting look to take advantage of the sending off. Like a broken clock I'll be right twice a day when I mention again that seeking an equaliser will bring space for which to play balls in behind the defence for the likes of Gyökeres to chase down. Interesting to see which one of the front three he'll take off, I'd not pin my hat on who it'll be and normally it's quite obvious.
Hjulmand off for Paulinho. OK well I was and wasn't expecting that. Too clever for me clearly. Presumably that means Gonçalves dropping back into the midfield four.
Second half
47 Interesting to see Sporting's back three are now pushed up right to the half way line. Makes a difference not having a centre half who doesn't look like he's carrying a caravan as he runs back towards his own goal. Sorry Sebastián.
49 Nuno Santos fires in a shot from corner of the 18 yard box which stings the hands of the keeper and goes out to safety. He can strike a ball as well as anyone in the game. You don't see many with a technique as good as that in any league. Note how he doesn't lean back either.
52 Nuno Santos shown the yellow card as he connects with their skipper on the edge of the penalty area. He clears it with an overhead kick and he can't see what's behind him. That's frankly fucking bull shit. The player was two or three yards away when he clears the first movement. There's no intent, no malice. Cunt decision.
54 GOAL Fucking hell they've scored from a direct free kick again. That's fucking ridiculous. Was never a free kick in a million years in the first place. This time he goes bottom left again past the wall. Fucking hell. Farense 2 Sporting CP 2. I said their sending off was harsh. That decision to award a free kick and book Nuno Santos was just fucking insane. Which clown school did this referee attend?
57 Yellow card shown to Belloumi for leaving his foot in on Nuno Santos. That's not a yellow for me either. Esgaio shanked for Geny. Gonçalves free kick aimed under the bar and seen out for a corner by the keeper.
Anyway as I was saying at half time the really great teams make their numerical advantage count and all Sporting's problems have been of their own making. Fucking hell.
62 Olivera goes into the book presumably not for the foul but the reaction towards the referee which echoes my sentiments against the prick. He's not a happy camper. Neither frankly am I.
68 Farense have their keeper to thank again. Lovely dinked ball from the left onto the head of Paulinho from six yards out.
71 At one stage 2-0 and oddly 2-1 down Farense were 125/1 to win this game on the in play market. Imagine having had a cheeky pound note on that one willing them to come home with 20 plus to play. Not that I imagine they will win but this is Sporting
74 Wonderfully struck curling volley with the outside of his boot by Inácio from outside the area plucked out the air by the keeper who goes to ground to eek out a few seconds.
75 Paulinho the third Sporting player to try an overhead kick in the game. He just ends up holding his back wincing. Even Esgaio's technique was better than that although to be fair replays suggest the defender made contact as he tried it.
78 Farense can't get out of their own half as Sporting throw men forward. Gonçalves effort from 8 yards deflects for a corner. Good work from Geny just to make that space and find his man unmarked in the box. Finally Sporting seem to be making the man advantage count. Only taken them an hour. Oh it didn't deflect. In that case he should have done better from there.
80 One of the saves of the season from Adán as Oliveira fired that in like a rocket from outside of the box. One handed stretch in mid air. He might not have been able to do anything with either free kick but if Sporting win this they'll have the Spaniard to thank. That could have been one of the best hat tricks you'll ever see. This man Oliveira is currently living rent free in my head.
82 Nuno Santos makes way for Bragança
83 That didn't take him long to make an instant impact. Yellow for a foul on Olivera. Not the impact you'd want your sub to make. Indirect free kick outside the box.
84 The referee shows the card for a shove on Inácio to Zé Luís. The referee has lost the fucking plot and any control of this game. Free kick laid off to Costa whose effort is wild and off target. Thank fuck it wasn't to Olivera. In fact you'd question why it wasn't given the three shots he's had so far. Do you thinks his mates call him coffee? Costa that is not Oliveira.
86 Penalty Sporting. Edwards went on a mazy run into the box. Brought down by Zé Luis. It's all kicking off again. Two yellows shown there? Not sure who he was waving the cards at.
88 Gonçalves the man with the ball this time. Not sure what the wait is. Again this is not helping as players jostle one another. Varandas in the directors box has his head in his hands. You'll need ice in your veins to put this away. Oh Gyökeres now has the ball.
89 GOAL He makes no mistake as he nearly takes the net off. No offence to Gonçalves but I'm glad the Swede took control there Farense 2 Sporting CP 3.
Plus eight shown
+2 Another yellow shown for a push on Gyökeres. We could see another red easily in this game. In fact why wasn't Zé Luis given a second yellow and sent off for his challenge leading to the penalty if the first defender was given a straight red for hand ball?
+3 I think that was another yellow. This is like a Sporting - Porto Clássico game. I'm going to have to do a lot of back filling with this one cannot keep up for love nor money.
5 Sporting now defending deep, somehow the ball ended up between Inácio's shoulder blades and spins up over his head. He couldn't have done that if he tried a 1,000 times. Jedi mind trick.
Finally the whistle blows.
Full time
Farense 2 Sporting CP 3
The Final Word
Sportinguista's in attendance have been going wild since the third went in. The only thing lively watching on at home was my arse hole twitching with nerves. Fucking hell we never make it easy for ourselves.
Man of the match was an easy one - Gyökeres. Who else. Note that's the Sporting man of the match. Overall you'd not argue if Oliveira was awarded it or Velho in between the sticks.
Right let's try make sense of the last ten minutes…
So Zé Luis was yellow carded presumably for the push on Inácio. Inácio shown with a yellow a minute later on the ticker so presumably for his reaction to being pushed. Velho shown the yellow in the 88th and Gonçalves in the 88th presumably both in one of the many handbags at dawn incidents. Morita on 94 for a foul - that one I can remember. Jorge on 90 +3 that will have been for the push on Gyökeres down on the right. So from the 84th minute to the full time whistle that's 7 yellow cards shown. Eleven total in the game plus one red. That's definitely at Sporting Vs Porto levels.
Anyway in conclusion Sporting made that fucking hard for themselves. Yes they go back top but you won't get away with winning like that too many times over the course of the season. They did it in the opener, they've done it again tonight but at 2-0 against ten men they should never have let Farense back into the game. Two goals of real class kept them in the contest. Having given away the first free kick you'd think they'd have learned their lesson. I'm off for a long lay down after that. I've said for years football will be the death of me one day.
Expect plenty of needle come the Taça in November when the two sides clash heads again.
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