Porto 2-0 Tondela - Dragons dominate with Liga Portugal title in sight | OneFootball

Porto’s procession towards the Liga Portugal title continued at Estádio do Dragão where they registered a comprehensive 2-0 victory against Tondela.

Francesco Farioli’s side piled on the pressure from the opening whistle, Alan Varela forcing a save from Bernardo Fontes before a penalty decision was overturned.

Deniz Gül had two chances as Tondela continued to live on borrowed time. Porto were awarded a penalty when Rodrigo Mora's shot was handled by Joe Hodge, referee Cláudio Pereira requiring some VAR assistance before pointing to the spot.

Alan Varela assumed responsibility but Fontes dived the right way and turned the ball wide. The goalkeeper was called into action again before the break, making a fantastic save to deny Oskar Pietuszewski.

Farioli made two substitutions at half-time, Pablo Rosario and Gabri Veiga coming on for Jakub Kiwior and Rodrigo Mora. The manager struck gold with both substitutes playing a role in the opening goal three minutes after the restart.

Rosario's pass found a way to Gül who did well to spin and get the ball to Veiga, the midfielder taking advantage of open space to sweep the ball home.

Froholdt fired wide but would put the result beyond doubt in the 65th minute. He picked up the ball after Gül’s challenge, the midfielder driving into the box and finishing from a tight angle,.

Fontes denied Froholdt and Alberto Costa before Diogo Costa was called into action for the first time, making a comfortable save from Rodrigo Conceiçao’s tame effort.

Jan Bednarek headed a corner wide before Veiga pounced on a loose touch from Brayan Medina in added time, he looked certain to score before being denied by Fontes who came off his line.

Finish line in sight

The result was never in doubt against an outmatched Tondela side set for relgation. The Dragons ended with 22-5 shots and 2.95-0.12 xG, making it 16 straight wina against the promoted club.

The victory came hours after Benfica beat Sporting Clube de Portugal 2-1 at Estádio José Alvalade. Porto are now seven points clear of the Eagles and eight in front of Sporting who have a game in hand.

With home games against Alverca and Santa Clara alongside trips to Estrela da Amadora and AVS to come, it’s surely an impossibility the Dragons could let the title slip from here.

Farioli is not taking anything for granted with Porto still to face Sporting in the Taça de Portugal semi-final second leg: "In reality, it's just three more points and one game less, nothing more than that.

"Our focus has to shift to the Portuguese Cup, especially since I'll be looking at the derby as a way to best prepare for the second leg of the semi-finals. Everything has to be the same; we know where the finish line is, and there are many steps to get there.

"We have to maintain the same approach, with maximum concentration and focus. There are no easy games."