Until the end! Sporting snatch hard-fought draw against Benfica | OneFootball

The Sporting junior team drew with Benfica, 2-2, this Saturday, January 24. In a match valid for the first round of the Champion Qualification phase of the National Under-19 Championship, the young green and whites dropped points again, after their victory against Académico de Viseu in the last match.

In a derby played at Estádio Aurélio Pereira, in Alcochete, it was actually the eagles who took the lead first, with Jaden Umeh scoring the opening goal as early as the 2nd minute. Sporting responded in the 24th minute, thanks to a beautiful goal by André Machado, bringing the score level at halftime.

In the second half, a penalty converted by Mauro Furtado (48') put Benfica back in front. The lions kept searching for the goal, with the clearest chance coming in the 75th minute, when, with an open goal, Martim Almeida missed the shot. Sporting's goal only came in the 88th minute, following a free kick taken by João Rodrigues, with Miguel Almeida heading the ball into the back of the net. 

With this draw – the ninth in 25 games this season – José João Gomes' men remain mid-table, with one point earned. Sporting will be back on the pitch next Saturday, January 31, against UD Leira. The match is scheduled for 3:00 pm, away from home.

The starting eleven fielded by the green and white club consisted of the following players: Alexandre Tverdohlebov, André Machado, Cristiano Palamarchuk, Jakub Stasiak, João Rijo, Leonardo Tavares, Sérgio Siza, Sandro Gamboa, Miguel Almeida, Simão Soares, and Frederico Gomes.

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