FC Porto slam refereeing, bring up Benfica: “Desperation” | OneFootball

FC Porto once again used the Dragões Diário newsletter on Tuesday morning to criticize the refereeing and other aspects related to the controversy that followed the 2-0 win over Alverca on matchday one of the 2026/27 Primeira Liga.

The team coached by Italian Francesco Farioli secured the three points through two penalties, converted by André Silva and Gabri Veiga in the 9th and 44th minutes, respectively. Both spot-kicks were awarded by Luís Godinho after alerts from VAR Bruno Esteves, and the club insists the decisions were correct.

“The penalties that Luís Godinho was forced to award at the Estádio do Dragão continue to unsettle some fanatics with airtime. The analysts of the three sports newspapers considered both incidents correctly judged, but there are still those trying to create the narrative that FC Porto are favored by refereeing decisions. Nothing could be further from the truth,” it reads.

“It is enough to remember that last year Benfica were the team among the top ten leagues that benefited from the most penalties: 26. Sporting come in a respectable sixth place, with 15 penalties awarded in their favor. In light of these facts, pointing the finger at FC Porto after a flawless win only shows desperation. It is worth keeping some composure, because we are still only on the first matchday,” it adds.

“Luís Godinho once again turned a blind eye to two penalties”

The blue-and-white club had already taken the same stance the previous day, in a statement that said: “Just as happened almost a year ago, in the home match against Nacional, Luís Godinho once again turned a blind eye to two penalties in FC Porto’s favor. This time, unlike what happened in the fifth round of the 2025/26 Primeira Liga, the VAR alerted him on both occasions and the referee from the Évora Football Association had no alternative but to award the two penalties.”

In the match against the island side mentioned by the national champions, the only goal of the game came from a penalty converted by Samu Aghehowa, following a foul by João Aurélio on Borja Sainz. At the time, Porto also appealed for a second penalty after an incident involving Samu Aghehowa and Léo Santos, but the referee gave nothing.

The Primeira Liga standings after the first matchday

Regardless of the controversy, FC Porto got off to the best possible start in the defense of their national title. The three points place the Dragons in the leading group alongside Gil Vicente, Arouca and Marítimo, who beat Rio Ave, Vitória SC and Casa Pia, respectively.

Benfica and Sporting, the main contenders in the fight for the trophy, made a less positive start and could do no better than draws against Académico de Viseu and Estrela da Amadora, respectively. The two teams therefore sit just behind the leaders with one point, alongside Sporting de Braga, Moreirense, Famalicão, Estoril, Santa Clara and Nacional.

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