FC Porto’s consistency beats Benfica and Sporting’s trump cards | OneFootball

The break for international fixtures found FC Porto alone at the top of the league, after seven wins in as many matchdays. The Dragons boast the competition’s most effective defence and outperform Benfica and Sporting in several statistical indicators. According to data from SofaScore, Maisfutebol’s statistical partner, Porto’s campaign has been built on defensive consistency and attacking efficiency, as shown in Sunday’s match against Benfica.

FC Porto: strongest defence, more fouls and fewer cards

Although they are not the team with the most shots or the most goals in the league, the national champions lead in big chances created, with 31. They also make the best use of those opportunities, having converted 14, and they have the highest number of assists, with a total of 13.

Defensively, FC Porto have conceded only three goals, kept four clean sheets and have the best record from set-piece situations, with seven goals scored and only one conceded.

The Dragons also lead the average for fouls committed, with 13.7 per match, above Benfica’s 12.6 and Sporting’s 11.9. Despite that, they are the team with the fewest cards among the Big Three: six yellow cards and no red, compared with Benfica’s 13 yellows and one red and Sporting’s 18 yellows and one red.

Gabri Veiga is Porto’s top scorer in the league, with four goals, followed by Borja Sainz and André Silva, both with three. In assists, Pepê has four, the same as Kahraman of Académico de Viseu and Djouahra of Arouca.

Benfica: more possession, quality in the final third and the best attack

Five points behind FC Porto are Benfica, who were beaten 3-1 at the Dragão and drew 2-2 at home to Académico de Viseu. Marco Silva’s side have shown attacking quality, standing out for their creativity and speed, which allows them to boast the best attack, with 22 goals, and the biggest win in the competition, 7-0.

The runners-up lead in possession, with 63.6 percent, long-pass accuracy, with 63 percent, and successful passes in the final third, where they have recorded 151. They also lead in touches in the box per game, with 48, duels contested per match, with 97, and percentage of duels won, at 55 percent. The Eagles are also the team with the most shots, 134, and the most shots on target, 50.

Pavlidis is Benfica’s main scorer, with eight goals, while Prestianni has five goals and three assists.

Sporting: more goals conceded, less attacking output and fewer chances allowed

Sporting are further off the top and are level on 15 points with Santa Clara, who are fourth, after draws against Estrela, Famalicão and Arouca. Despite remaining unbeaten, Rui Borges’s team have scored fewer and conceded more goals than FC Porto and Benfica.

Even so, the Lions stand out for the low number of “big chances” allowed, 13, and for their averages in tackles, with 16, and accurate passes, with 504. Sporting also outperform FC Porto in possession, successful passes in the final third, completed long passes, duels per match and percentage of duels won.

Among the Big Three, the Lisbon side commit the fewest fouls, but they have also received the most cards: 18 yellow cards and one red.

In a less positive spell for the team, Luis Suárez, with six goals, Flávio Gonçalves, with three, and Geny Catamo, with three assists, have stood out individually.

In three weeks, Sporting travel to sixth-placed Sp. Braga, FC Porto visit 11th-placed Marítimo, and Benfica host 14th-placed Vitória de Guimarães. European fixtures then follow for FC Porto, Benfica, Sporting, Sp. Braga and Torreense.

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