Enter the Dragon | OneFootball

After leaving behind the “boats” used on the road to the title, FC Porto began the 2026/27 season in the best possible way, beating FC Alverca 2-0 at the Estádio do Dragão to claim their first three points. Back in Liga Portugal, nine years after playing abroad, André Silva opened the scoring and won the penalty that Gabri Veiga converted for the second goal.

Applying intense pressure from the outset, the national champions took the lead as early as the eighth minute. William Gomes picked out Victor Froholdt, who crossed for André Silva. The striker was brought down by the Alverca goalkeeper inside the box and, after a VAR review, Luís Godinho awarded a penalty. Wearing the No. 19 shirt, he made no mistake and put the Dragons in front (1-0).

Just past the half-hour mark, Ian Luccas made a crucial clearance to prevent Zaidu from turning William Gomes’s cross into the net. Before half-time, however, the 47,558 Porto fans in the stands had reason to celebrate again. Pepê once more combined with William down the right flank and crossed to the far post, where André Silva was stopped by a pull from Touaizi.

After consulting VAR again, the referee pointed to the spot once more. This time, Gabri Veiga stepped up and beat Matheus Mendes to make it 2-0 in the 43rd minute. Deep into stoppage time, the Galician midfielder tried to extend the lead with a left-footed strike, but the Alverca goalkeeper produced an excellent save.

Diogo Costa was called into action right at the start of the second half, staying alert between the posts. Shortly afterwards, Pablo Rosario and Borja Sainz replaced Alan Varela and William Gomes. In the 72nd minute, the captain once again proved decisive by denying Chiquinho a goal. Martim Fernandes and Gabri Veiga then made way for Nehuén Pérez and Rodrigo Mora, while Deniz Gül came on in the 82nd minute for André Silva. Near the end, in the 90th minute, Jan Bednarek came very close to scoring: following a free-kick delivered by Rodrigo Mora from the right, the Poland international rose highest but headed over the bar.

In the second round, FC Porto will make the short trip to Vila do Conde. The Dragons and Rio Ave will meet next Saturday at 8:30pm at the Estádio dos Arcos.

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