Porto make it nine from nine in Barcelos, their best league start since 1939/40
FC Porto beat Gil Vicente 1-0 in Barcelos on matchday 9 of the Primeira Liga, Borja Sainz scoring on 64 minutes after coming into the side when Oskar Pietuszewski was hurt in the warm-up. Porto lead Benfica by eight points, with Benfica a game in hand.
Borja Sainz was not in the side Francesco Farioli picked for Barcelos. Oskar Pietuszewski felt his left thigh in the warm-up, the Spaniard took his place, and on 64 minutes he scored the only goal of Gil Vicente v FC Porto. Porto won 1-0 and still have not dropped a league point this season.
The goal
Porto had the better of a goalless first half. Sainz had the first real chance on the break, and Jan Bednarek forced Lucão into a save with a header on 44 minutes. After the break André Silva, starting in place of Samu, had a goal ruled out because Sainz was offside in the build-up.
The one that counted came soon after. Victor Froholdt crossed from the right, the ball deflected off a Gil Vicente defender and Sainz drove it low and hard into the net. He went off with a quarter of an hour left and was named the league’s player of the round.
Gil Vicente finished with ten. Marvin Elimbi was shown a straight red late on for a heavy challenge on Pepê, and Diogo Costa, who had one serious save to make all night, kept the clean sheet.
Nothing like it in 87 years
That is nine wins from the first nine rounds. By the club’s own count it is Porto’s best league start since 1939/40. On 27 points, Farioli’s side are eight clear of Benfica and nine clear of Sporting, both of whom have a game in hand.
The run already includes a 3-1 win over Benfica at the Dragão. Europe is a different story: Porto arrived in Barcelos on the back of two straight Champions League defeats, away to Real Betis and at home to PSV. Gil Vicente, who had won their previous two, sit seventh on 14 points.
By Vasco Almada
Image: Werner100359 / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0), cropped
