Borja Sainz honours his mum under FC Porto shirt at Luz | OneFootball

Borja Sainz had planned to pay tribute to his mother if he scored in the Clássico that saw Benfica and FC Porto face off (2-2) at Estádio da Luz on Sunday afternoon. The Spanish forward started the match on the bench and came on in the 64th minute, replacing the Pole Oskar Pietuszewski; once on the pitch, it was noticeable that under his Porto kit, he was wearing a shirt in tribute to his late mother.

However, Borja Sainz was unable to score, thus postponing his wish to honor his mother, who passed away on February 26.

The 25-year-old forward was absent for a few days, traveling to Bilbao to attend the funeral ceremonies and be with his family during such a delicate time.

As a result, Borja Sainz missed the matches against Arouca in the Primeira Liga and against Sporting in the Portuguese Cup, returning to coach Francesco Farioli's options for the trip to Luz. He played about 30 minutes in the match but was unable to beat Trubin.

Emotional message on social media

On March 1, the Spaniard took to social media to post a farewell message addressed to his mother.

“As you always used to say to me, mom: ‘see you tomorrow, God willing.’ It’s still hard for me to write these words. It’s still hard for me to accept that I won’t hear your voice on the other end anymore. Everything happened so suddenly that I’m still trying to understand. I don’t really know what to say. Only that it hurts—and a lot. I’ll miss your call after every game, your way of being, how you cared about everything and everyone. You were the heart of the house,” Borja Sainz began, continuing.

“You leave us with a void that’s impossible to explain, but also a whole life of love, values, and strength. Everything I am begins with you. I promise to keep fighting, for you. Just as you always taught me. You’ll always be with us. In every step, in every decision, in every hug. I love you, mom. Forever,” concluded the player who joined FC Porto last summer.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇵🇹 here.