🎥 Otamendi floored and reactions as fiery derby ends all square | OneFootball

League leader Porto went to Luz and almost ended Benfica's unbeaten run in the Portuguese Championship.

But José Mourinho’s team fought back for a 2-2 draw this Sunday (8th), in a match for the 25th round of the league. 

The result was celebrated by second-place Sporting, who had stumbled against Braga and were hoping for a slip-up.

The classic saw a lethal Dragão in the first half, with Otamendi left on the ground in the play leading to the second goal of the match, and a Benfica comeback in the final stage. 

Check out the highlight moments below. 

Dragão is lethal 🔥

Porto took the lead just ten minutes in, with Froholdt taking advantage of a rebound from Trubin.

Benfica managed to pose real danger, but saw Diogo Costa justify his position as the starting goalkeeper for the Portuguese national team. 

Where’s Otamendi?

Porto’s tactics paid off again at the 40-minute mark.

A lethal counterattack with the young Pietuszewski, just 17 years old.

He left the Argentine defender on the ground before ignoring Trubin. 

If you don’t score...

With no alternative, Benfica started to press harder in the second half.

They kept piling up chances against a rival looking to be direct on the counterattack.

The persistent Eagles finally succeeded in the 69th minute. The ball hit the post and fell to Schjelderup – who had been trying – to score. 

Porto had more and more space to counterattack. And kept missing chance after chance.

Benfica didn’t give up. And two of Mourinho’s substitutes made the difference, with Ivanovic crossing for Barreiro’s goal (89’).

The aftermath saw provocations between the two benches. And red cards for Mourinho and Otamendi – who had already been substituted. 

Standings 📊

League leader Porto moved up to 66 points. 

They maintained a four-point lead over Sporting.

Benfica, in third, reached 59.

There are only nine rounds left. 

The only remaining direct clash among the top three is Sporting vs Benfica, scheduled for April 19.

See the full standings and remaining matches here.

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

📸 PATRICIA DE MELO MOREIRA - AFP or licensors