Sporting beat Gil Vicente to seal Champions League berth (Videos) | OneFootball

Sporting beat Gil Vicente 3-0 this Saturday, May 16, in a match counting for the 34th and final round of the Liga Portugal Betclic. After thrashing Rio Ave in the previous round, the Lions only needed to depend on themselves to secure second place, and they did not slip up.

In a match played at the José Alvalade Stadium, the first half was one-way traffic. The Lions caused plenty of problems for César Peixoto’s team. The 1-0 came in the 15th minute. After a well-taken corner by Pedro Gonçalves, Eduardo Quaresma appeared at the far post and beat Daniel Figueira. The 2-0 came in the 34th minute. Hidemasa Morita provided a backheel assist for Luis Suárez, who struck powerfully for his 28th league goal.

In the second half, the Sporting side eased off the pace and allowed Gil Vicente a few approaches to Rui Silva’s goal. One of the night’s standout moments came in the 75th minute, when Hidemasa Morita was substituted. The Japanese midfielder, visibly emotional, received a standing ovation from the fans and played his final game for Sporting at Alvalade. Right before the final whistle, Morten Hjulmand (90+3') sealed the final score.

With this victory — their 37th in 55 matches this season — Rui Borges’ side move onto 82 points and finish second in the Liga Portugal Betclic standings. Porto (88) finish in first place. Benfica are third with 80.

The green-and-white side return to action next Sunday, May 24, against Torreense. The match, the Portuguese Cup final, against the team coached by Luís Tralhão, will be played at the Estádio Nacional do Jamor, in Oeiras, at 5:15 pm.

Luis Suárez (2-0):

Morten Hjulmand (3-0):

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