Gil Vicente 1 Sporting CP 1

Gil Vicente v Sporting CP
Friday January 2nd, 2026
Estadio Cidade de Barcelos
Matchday 17

The Warm up

The lions travel away to Barcelos located in the Braga district of Portugal to face off against their last remaining opponent in the opening half of the Portuguese league. Last season on Matchday 15 the two sides played out a goalless in what would be João Perreira’s last game in charge before being replaced by the current mister Rui Borges. His eventual league record was played 4, won 1, drawn 1, lost 2, GF 4, GA 5. Borges by comparison wouldn’t lose a league game from his debut as coach in the 1-0 win over Benfica until the end of the season and if Sporting are to retain their title then they’ll need to ensure maximum points in this game and then repeat their feet from last year and hope that Porto’s summer playing at the World Club Cup Finals starts to actually catch up with them at some point in the second half of the season.

Founded in 1924 in May 1924 the club celebrated its centenary last year. Nicknamed the Gilistas (akin to Sportinguistas as a collective) or Galos (Roosters). The town itself is closely associated with o galo de Barcelos (the rooster of Barcelos) which often serves as the national symbol of the country. Their name is interestingly derived from the name of a local theatre. Despite their foundation in 1924 it would be a further 7 years before the club registered with the Braga Football Association and began participation in the district league the following year. Whilst over the course of its life it operated as a sports club only the footballing side now remains though they do now also have a woman’s team competing in the domestic leagues who were formed as late as the 2018/19 season. They’re currently coached by César Peixoto who extended his contract with the club after their promising start to the season. Their main rivals are Famalicão though are also reported to have a rivalry with another Lisboa team in CF Os Belenenses which stems from the 2005/06 season where a points deduction for the Galos saw them relegated and Belenenses stay up instead. I think it may be a few years until that fixture is ever seen again unless the two meet in the Taça de Portugal.

At the time of writing they sit a creditable 4th place in the table, 1 point ahead of Braga, but 9 points off Benfica. By the time they face the lions they will have played Arouca away on the Sunday and shout out to the one single Arouca fan who attended their away trip to Santa Clara. I doubt they have the song ‘one man went to kill’ in Portuguese but it wouldn’t have taken long to go through the rendition which should increase in numbers with every passing. At the end of the game the Arouca players and coaching staff all went over to thank him personally though I’m not sure any of them gave away their shirts. If only he’d thought to take cardboard and pen with him. However this isn’t an Arouca blog, although that being said for the majority of it’s existence until very recently the Arouca posts were the most read so…

Their current record reads played 15, won 7, drawn 5, lost 3, GF 19, GA 9. That goals against tally is currently the 4th best in the division behind Porto who have still only conceded 4 to date and 8 for the lions and the dirty pigeons. At home their record is played 7, won 4, drawn 1, lost 2, GF 9, GA 5. A large part of their defensive record will be down to goalkeeper Andrew who has kept 9 clean sheets and will be looking to add to the one against the lions last December. However it should be noted that the season before in the same fixture he had conceded 4 before half time against Sporting, one of which was an own goal. Of the 19 scored 11 have come from open play, 4 from set pieces, 2 free kicks and 2 penalties with their XG 18.5. They have missed 2 of 4 penalties awarded.

Top scorer is their free summer signing Pablo with 9 goals making him the leagues 4th highest goalscorer and as it stands probably the best signing in Portuguese football given the lack of money having been exchanged. At 21 years of age you have to wonder if there are bigger clubs already eyeing up the Brazilian and his stay in Barcelos may well be a short one. He is the son of Pena the former FC Porto forward which may mean something to older readers and he was on loan to Gil Vicente last season before making the move permanent in the summer. Luis Esteves has 3 goals, Santi Garcia has 2 and 5 other players have a single goal apiece to their names. Their 9 clean sheets is second only to FC Porto’s 11. They average 15.1 fouls per match which is the 3rd highest in the league and have the sixth highest total of bookings having collected 41 to date as well a 3 red cards. Looks like we might be in for a repeat of the Vitória game.    

Last season the club averaged 5,496 spectators per game, totalling 93,347 in total over the course of the season. To date they have increased their average attendance year on year from 3,540 in 2021/22 to 4,528 in 22/23 and 4,970 in 23/24. To date after 7 games they’re averaged 6,168 totalling 43,178 spectators. According to data online the last time they sold out at home was all the way back in the 1995/96 season.

They’re owned by Francisco Dias da Silva a local businessman through his company Gil Vicente- Futebol Unipessoal LDA of which is he listed as the sole shareholder. As well as his ownership he serves as the Club’s president and is actively involved in the day to day running of the club. His business interests include construction, real estate and hospitality primarily in the north of Portugal. He is credited with stabilising the club back in 2015, achieving promotion in the 2018/19 season and a historic 5th placed finish in 2022 which brought with it European Qualification to the Europa Conference League. Having beaten Riga FC 5-1 on aggregate in the 3rd qualifying round, they lost to Dutch side AZ Alkmaar 6-1 on aggregate in the playoff round and their dreams were cut short.

Their last win against Sporting came way back in December of 2019 winning 3-1 at home. Prior to that their previous wins came in the Liga in March 2012 2-0 at home and a month earlier in the Taça da Liga 1-0 at the José Alvalade. The club includes Joelson Fernandes amongst it’s ranks who made four appearances for the lions first team and 23 for Sporing B scoring twice before he departed for Hatayspor in Türkiye in the summer of 2023 before returning to Portugal this summer.

Their current campaign before their trip to Arouca is as follows;

Matchday 1 – Nacional (A) Two first half goals from Pablo and Esteves were enough to secure all 3 points on the road for GV. 0 big chances created for either side. Nacional with a slightly higher XG of 0.79 to 0.62.

Matchday 2 – FC Porto (H) A goal either side of half time was enough to give the visitors all 3 points. Porto miss 1 of their 3 big chances, GV failed to create a single one for the second game running. Final XG 1.04 to 1.73.

Matchday 3 – Famalicão (A) The two sides played out a goalless draw. GV with the higher XG of 1.44 to 0.51. The home side missed their 1 big chance. GV still to create a single one after 270 minutes of the season played.

Matchday 4 – Moreirense (H) Second half goals from Pablo and Varela give GV their second win of the season as the game finishes 2-0. The home side scored their 1 sole big chance, Moreirense missed theirs. XG 0.86 to 0.73

Matchday 5 – Braga (A) Pablo with his 3rd of the season 1 minute into additional time of the first half enough to give GV a 1-0 win and their second straight win. Braga guilty of missing all 5 of their big chances created, GV missing 1 of their 2. XG 1.42 to 1.26.

Matchday 6 – Estoril (H) GV on a roll as they celebrate their third straight victory with goals from Pablo and Fernandes either side of home time as the game finishes 2-0. Estoril fail to create a single big chance, GV miss 1 of their 3. XG a very one sided 2.51 to 0.31.

Matchday 7 – Benfica (A) Despite taking a 10th minute lead through Esteves, a Pavlidis brace turned the game on it’s head and it would finish in a 2-1 loss for GV. Benfica scored their only big chance, GV guilty of missing both of theirs. The XG 1.27 to 1.26.

Matchday 8 – Estrela (H) Back to winning ways after disappointment in the Stadium of Light. Pablo back amongst the goals with a brace as GV win 2-0. The home side guilty of missing 2 of their 4 big chances, Estrela fail to create a single one. XG 2.39 to 0.88.

Taça de Portugal Round 3 – Academico Viseu (A) Despite taking a 2nd minute lead GV unable to respond to a first half brace from André Clovis and crash out of the competition to lower league opposition 2-1.

Matchday 9 – Alverca (A) One of the newly promoted sides, Alverca probably had a good feeling it wasn’t going to be their day as Esteves fired into the bottom left hand corner from the edge of the area to make it 1-0 to GV with just 40 seconds on the clock. Garcia made it 2-0 on the stroke of half time. Further goals from Pablo and Fernandez secured their biggest win of the season 4-0. The home side missed all 3 of their big chances, GV 1 of their 2. XG 1.47 to 1.62.

Matchday 10 – Santa Clara (H) Pablo again on the scoresheet as GV secure a 1-0 win against the islanders, this the only big chance from either side over the course of the 90. Despite 15 attempts to 9, Santa could only muster an XG of 0.55 to GV 0.61.

Matchday 11 – AVS (A) After two straight wins expectations will have been high as they travelled away to the leagues bottom side. Garcia opened the visitors account after just 4 minutes however they failed to add to their tally and paid the price 4 minutes from time when the evergreen Nene equalised and the game finished 1-1. The visitors missed all 3 of their big chances, whereas the home side scored 1 of their 2. XG 1.80 to 2.05.

Matchday 12 – Tondela (H) A chance to rectify their failings from the previous week against the other newly promoted side. Tondela clearly hadn’t read the script as they converted a 34th minute penalty and exited Barcelos with all 3 points. Tondela scored 1 of their 2 big chances, GV missed their solitary one. Despite an attempts ratio of 3:1 the home sides 15 attempts totalled a disappointing 0.52 on the XG against 1.09 for the visitors which was boosted by the penalty at 0.79.

Matchday 13 – Vitória (A) A trip to Guimarães saw the points shared in a 0-0 draw. GV created 0 big chances and finished with an XG of just 0.23. The home side not much better with 0.51 however they at least created 2 big chances.

Matchday 14  - Casa Pia (A) The visitors went in at half time a goal to the good through Espirages, however were unable to hold onto their advantage after the break and the game finished 1-1. The home side with 3 attempts over the course of the 90, scored their 1 big chance and finished with one of the lowest XGs of any side in the league this campaign with 0.15. GV missed their 1 big chance and their 11 attempts saw an XG of 0.85.

Matchday 15 – Rio Ave (H) A third straight draw saw for GV as the game finished 2-2. After a promising start to the season GV now without a win in 5 and needed a goal 9 minutes into additional time at the end of the 90 to equalise after Ave had gone down to 10 men. Murilo and Pablo with the goals for the home side. Ave with an XG of 0.27 despite scoring twice. Both sides scored their one big chance. The home sides XG 1.27 from 23 attempts. For the second straight game the opposition totalled just 3 attempts all game.

Matchday 16 – Arouca (A) The home side raced to a 2-0 lead inside just 11 minutes with goals from Lee and Trezza. Pablo took his goal tally into double figures with his tenth of the season, five minutes before the break. Murilo made it 2-2 just 2 minutes into the second half and that's how the scoreline finished. Controversial end as Arouca appealed for a handball outside the area as Andrew came to the edge of the box and punched but VAR deemed it to have been still inside the area. The home side converted 2 of their 3 big chances, GV just 1 of 2. Final XG 1.36 to 1.88. 

Friday update

Pablo is reportedly set to sign for West Ham. No doubt Porto and Benfica will put out communications about how Clayton missed the last game for Rio Ave and Pablo for Gil Vicente and the advantage to Sporting. 

In the African Cup of Nations Geny scores again and plays an hour in Mozambiques 2-1 loss to Cameroon. Reigning Champions Cote d'Ivoire come from 2-0 down to win 3-2. A shock as Diomande starts for the Ivorians, in his favoured and plays the full 90. I'm off for a lie down to deal with the shock. 

Summer transfer window

Incoming

Luis Esteves from Nacional for free
Pablo from Famalicao for free
Daniel Figueira from Estoril for free
Gustavo Varela from Benfica on loan
Ghislain Konan free agent
Antonio Espigares from Villareal B for £166,000
Agustin Moreiera from Club Atlético Progreso on loan
Hevertton Santos from QPR on loan
Martin Fernandez from Boston River on loan
Murilo free agent
David Martic from Hatayspor for £622,000
Bassco Soyer from Aliahanza Lima for £178,000

Outgoing

Roko Baturina to AC Horsens on loan
Josué released
Joao Teixeira to Chaves for free
Diego Collado to Cultural Leonesa for £374,000
Brian Araujo released
Kazu to Otelul Galati for free
Felix Correia to Lille for £5.8m
Peixinho to Estoril for free
Felipe da Silva to Porto B for free
Kanji Fujimoto to Birmingham City for free
Jorge Aguirre to Panetolikos on loan
Dept to Radomiak Radom for £166,000
Ruben Fernandes to Farense for free
Jesus Castillo to Universitario de Deportes for £415,000
Sandro Cruz to Slovan Bratislava for free
Kiko Vilas Boas to Chaves for £166,000

In the markets

Gil Vicente 6/1
Draw 29/10
Sporting CP 23/50

Team News 

Starting XI 

Silva, Reis, Inácio, Quaresma, Fresneda, Hjulmand, Simões, Araújo, Ioannidis, Trincão and Suárez. 

Substitutes

Virgínia, Vagiannidis, Romulo, Dias, Morita, Kochorashvili, Alisson, Ribeiro, Gonçalves 

Ahead of the game it was confirmed that Mangas had been injured in training and would miss the game. Perhaps his curly perm poked him in the eye. Also missing Salvador Blopa for reasons unknown. Perhaps we was a naughty boy and wouldn't go to bed Christmas Eve and his mum smacked him round the back of the head too hard. Mangas is replaced by Reis and there's a change at right back as Fresneda returns from suspension for Vagiannidis. Romulo and Dias promoted from Sporting B into the matchday squad.

Gil Vicente Starting XI 

42 Andrew, 2 Carlos, 4 Gilbert, 48 Espirgares, 20 Santos, 5 Caseres, 10 Esteves, 77 Murilo, 95 Garcia, 7 Toure and 89 Varela 

First Half 

Labelling any football club as a one man team always feels lazy and disingenuous. We had the label last season at points with Gyökeres and I'm sure you'd not have far to look to see the same accusations levelled at the roosters with Pablo. How true their current fourth place in the table is we're about to find out with the absence of their top scorer as presumably he nears his exit to West Ham. We've seen how ineffective Rio Ave were without Clayton so now we'll find out the same for Gil Vicente. Andrew is going to need to match his performance against us in the shut out last season. As good as he can be we've also seen him score for Sporting and concede four before half time. I'm hoping we see that version of him tonight. It doesn't feel like 2nd versus 4th and maybe that's being rude to our opponents. Their last home game was the only one where both sides had scored and there had been over 2.5 goals. The lions will fancy their chances. 

Sporting in green and white horizontal stripes. Rio Ave have taken to the field wearing jackets more associated with American college kids. Perhaps they've got a sale on in the club shop and merchandise to shift. 

The lions get us underway and attack left to right 

12 Late challenge on the near touchline by Fresneda flattens Toure. The referee pays zero attention to the fact Gil Vicente moved the free kick in 2 yards. Silva punches clear and cheats never propser

14 Acrobatic effort from Varela on the edge of the 18 yard box saved by Silva who puts it behind for a corner with what you might call a slap of the hand with his arm extended 

14 Snap shot from Esteves from 18 yards who sleeps it low and wide of the left post for a goal kick 

15 Fresneda finds Ioannidis with a powerfully drilled ball to the edge of the six yard box from the right wing. Doris got his head on it but the cross 3 inches too high and despite the net wide open he could only angle it over the bar 

20 Trincão wins a corner near side as he tries to cut inside two players inside the box but Touré alert to the danger. Doris penalised for a foul in the box bringing his arm into the face of Murilo who makes it into breakfast, lunch, dinner and supper. 

23 Gilbert with a pull sends Suárez to the floor as Sporting looked to counter. When it's that blatant a pull how the yellow card isn't shown is anyone's guess

25 Having watched the Cote d'Ivoire game last night where the stadium has a running track and you'd need binoculars I'm suddenly acutely aware of how close the stands are to the pitch. You won't see many long throws from the far side with a run up of about 4 inches. Yes the game is that boring 

28 Referee points to his watch as the trainer comes on again. Clearly a tactic as the Gil Vicente mister calls his players over

30 Another stop in play. Stretcher out this time. 

31 ➡️⬅️ Caseres for Zé Carlos. Oh great cause that won't be confusing. That's #6 Zé Carlos not to be confused with #2 Zé Carlos 

34 Good turn from Simões on the edge of the area as he looks to make something happen but Esteves nips the ball away and gets his foot stood on for his troubles. Well if you will leave them in silly places 

36 Gil holding a defensive line of four 36 yards out which makes you wonder why someone doesn't just knock it over the top for someone to chase 

38 Hjulmand yellow for a pull on Varela. Now tell me the difference between that and the pull on Suárez which didn't see a yellow?

39 Trincão on defensive duties sends a cross backwards with a headed flick back but found Touré on the edge of the six yard box whose shot from a narrow angle brings a save from Silva at the near post 

40 Inácio with an awful pass forward looking for Simões goes straight out of play. Perhaps it came off his big ramp nose and built up speed 

44 Varela shoots from 20 yards straight at Silva

44 GOAL Gil Vicente 0 Sporting CP 1. Finally there's that long ball I said they should have done mid way through the half. Quaresma sends it over the defence for Suárez to run onto, he beats two defenders in a foot race and slots it through the legs of Andrew from 8 yards 

Plus four shown 

Half time 

Gil Vicente 0 Sporting CP 1 

That has to be one of the worst halves of football I've seen in an awfully long time in which the lions have contributed pretty much the sum total of fuck and all… apart from the goal. Can you tell I'd already started writing this summary before Suárez scored in the 44th minute. I'll forgive him. It took 12 minutes for me to even find anything worthy of noting down. The best thing about the game has been the Sportinguista's in attendance and you could have aimed the camera at them for the opening half and it would have been far more entertaining. 

I was going to write that Gil Vicente whilst they hadn't actually looked like scoring had at least come closest to breaking the deadlock. Opta have the Ioaniddis header down as a big chance but to be fair to him he's not Peter fucking Crouch and met the ball at the top of his jump and was still only just able to get his head on the ball. 

Sporting are missing something tonight. That pinch of salt for flavouring. Hopefully the goal will kick them into life. I normally write that there will be more space to attack into when the opposition have to go forward to chase an equaliser but it's been there all the time, it just took Sporting 44 minutes to figure out a long ball to chase down was the right approach which was 8 minutes longer than it took me to work in our sat at home trying to stay awake.

Second Half 

Big 45 awaits the lions. They need to show more quality than the first 45 which won't be hard to be fair. Just 3 attempts from the lions.

Gil Vicente get us back underway

46 Araújo stings the hands of Andrew from 20 yards. That shot was flying. Trincão in the buildup to that chance danced past three or four red shirts. The lions showing more in two minutes than they did in the entirety of the first half 

48 Suárez and Ze Carlos (6) both shown the yellow card. The Colombian definitely talked his way into the referees notebook 

49 The referee shows another yellow but who to is anyone's guess they just showed him in shot brandishing it. Possibly to Borges assistant given they then cut to him stood on the sidelines.

50 Trincão whips a shot low from 20 yards which brings a save from Andrew. Much better Sporting 

51 Doris causing mischief in the box sees his cross into the six yard box deflected for a corner far side 

52 Araújo tries from 24 yards but his shot blocked 

52 Suárez fires wide of the far post from 14 yards through the legs of Gilbert. That came from great work from Trincão who won the ball back in midfield and drove forward and found the Colombian

53 Big save from Andrew from Suárez who should have made it 2-0

54 Incredible opening 9 minutes to this half. Sporting have had a rocket up their arse at half time 

54 Varela holds his head in his hands as he brings a save from a header on the edge of the six yard box 

55 Gilbert gets clear of Quaresma in the box but Silva quickly collects to nullify the threat 

56 Suárez with a step over tries inside the D but his shot finds a sea of red shirts and blocked 

57 Corner Gil Vicente. Araújo with a 90s style hoof sends the ball over the halfway line 

58 Murilo tries from 21 yards, his shot low always going wide but Silva down to save

58 Esteves fires inside the D straight at Silva who has a little cuddle with Varela after the event 

59 Reis cross deflects for a corner nearside . Suddenly we have a game worth watching. Both sides have taken the handbrake off 

60 Fresneda I'm assuming with a shot wide. Too much action this half.

61 Trincão dispossessed in midfield and Sporting end up conceding a corner near side 

62 The lions with two players down in the box. Reis and Simões. The Brazilian looks like Espirgares fell on him awkwardly 

63 ➡️ ⬅️ The home side take advantage of the break in play to make a double substitution. Martín and Joelson Fernandes the ex-Sporting player on for Garcia and Touré. Not sure I'd mentioned the former once 

65 Suárez fouled and starts questioning the referee again. Someone needs to tell him to zip it

66 Smoke rises from behind Andrew from the Sporting fans behind his goal 

67 Fresneda wins a corner far side 

67 Andrew out to claim from Trincãos corner

68 Martín shot from inside the D deflects off the chest of Inácio for a corner near side. Silva punches and it went as far as Santos whose low shot blocked from 24 yards 

69 Gilbert shown the yellow for a deliberate trip on Araújo which should have been a red given he wasn't booked for the same offence first half 

71 Quaresma catches the foot of Zé Carlos and gives him a little cuddle as he sits on the floor. Lot of love between the two teams this half 

73 Suárez heads the ball out for a corner under no pressure and rolls his eyes as Silva points it out to him 

74 Gilbert loops a header towards Silva from 8 yards for catching practice and Suárez can breathe a sigh of relief 

75 This half started like both sides were on a sugar rush like kids who'd been given cans of coke. This must be the sugar low period 

75 Morita being shown the tactics folder as he waits to come on presumably for Simões 

76 Shot blocked from 16 yards from Fernandes then wellied into the stand by Esteves from 25 yards 

76 Yellow to Varela for a pull on the back of the shirt or Hjulmand 

77 ➡️ ⬅️ Simões for Morita and Reis for Alisson 

78 Red card as Sporting down to ten men. Inácio penalised for a pull back on Varela outside the box. The Gil Vicente player has his hand wrapped around the arm of Inácio and is pulling him before letting go and it's the slightest of touches on his arm from Inácio and the player makes the absolute most of it 

80 Free kick 24 yards out centrally. Murilo was off celebrating. It came off the wall and dropped onto the top of the net. Corner 

81 ➡️⬅️ Mutombo and Carlos for Santos and Zé Carlos 

82 Rômulo Jr set to make his debut 

83 Replay of Murillo running off celebrating which is hilarious 

83 ➡️⬅️ Ioannidis for Rômulo Jr

84 Silva sat on the floor clutching his thigh. Borges giving tactical adjustments to Hjulmand and Trincão. Whistles from the home crowd which is fucking ironic given their players did it twice in the first half 

85 Alisson causing carnage in the box found Trincão who has the ball whipped off his toes and out for a corner far side 

86 GOAL Gil Vicente 1 Sporting CP 1. Cross from the right headed home from 6 yards from Eduardo

88 How big will that Suárez miss prove to be?

89 Silva out to rescue Sporting and takes a bang to the head as he saves Fresneda's blushes and saves Fernandes shot from 8 yards and the ball out for a corner far side 

Plus seven shown

You have to feel like Sporting's grip on the title has a few fingers loosened after that goal albeit Nacional did beat Porto last season 

+1 Araújo shown the yellow for a foul

+2 Eduardo heads thankfully straight at Silva from 6 yards 

+3 Alisson making to look amends being beaten to the ball for the equaliser wins a corner nearside 

+3 Hjulmand header goes over the bar. Rômulo Jr booked. Not sure what for mind you 

+4 Fernandez booked for a cynical trip on Trincão. He tries to talk himself into a red but sadly fails.

+5 Sporting free kick 24 yards out taken by Trincão. Hits the wall and out for a corner far side 

+7 Referee looks at his watch 

97’20 final whistle is blown 

Full time

Gil Vicente 1 Sporting CP 1 

The final word 

Some of the home players are out on their feet. The coverage cuts away to a break just as the coaching staff from Gil Vicente are having to be restrained. Well I think that's our title bid fucked. I appreciate there's 17 games to go but a win for Porto and a seven point lead seems a gap too far. 

It's fair to say nothing ruins a good weekend quite like a game of football and mine feels done before it's even started after that game. If I was bored to tears the first half, the second half more than made up for it and all credit to both sides for both plugging away trying to find a winning goal. It was more like a basketball match at times with end to end plays. If Suárez puts his big chance away to make it 2-0 then it's goodnight Vienna. Sometimes these are the fine margins and the lions certainly weren't helped by the referee's decision to send Inácio off. It was soft, their player has hold of his arm for a couple of seconds before he releases it and the pull on the shoulder would take a toddler down on the high street but it wouldn't take a grown adult down. However we've been the beneficiaries of corners that never were which led to goals, penalties that shouldn't have been awarded so it's swings and roundabouts. It seems churlish to moan about these things because you can't have it both ways. However they should have been a man down for a second yellow so what I will say is we need consistency because the foul he does get booked for is exactly the same offence the referee only awards a free kick for in the first half. 

Sporting were off the pace in the first half yet came out all guns blazing in the second and the improvement was night and day. Not that it would have been hard. Yet they were still missing something all through the game. Lack of concentration, lack of discipline, lack of quality in defence? It's hard to put your finger on it. Gil Vicente can probably justifiably claim they should have won the game in the end though a point seems the fairer score. Both sides missed 2 of their 3 big chances, Gil Vicente with more attempts - 19 to 14 but the lions with the higher XG of 1.41 to 0.97. 

You'll forgive me with my disappointment for wanting to wrap this post up pretty quickly. I'll move onto my four choices for man of the match. Rui Silva certainly kept the lions in the game at points and had we still got Israel in goal we'd have lost that game so he's vote number one. Trincão was a joy to watch on the ball at times during the second period as he danced his way through a sea of red shirts time after time so he'd get my second vote for entertainment value even if the end product wasn't what you'd have necessarily hoped for after all that effort. Mateus Reis was solid throughout if not necessarily spectacular at any point but with so many players not producing the goods it's not a huge pool to pick from. Final pick has to go to Quaresma. Assisted the Suárez goal, completed 98% of his passes, again looked solid throughout and he gets my man of the match. 

Onwards to Tuesday night and the semi final of the Taça da Liga. Maybe that was the problem tonight having to juggle too many competitions and they were guilty of having one eye on that game. What's done is done and we can't change it now.