Benfica strikes first in futsal and roller hockey finals, taking 2-0 series leads over Sporting
Two Lisbon derbies, two sports, two narrow victories. Benfica beat Sporting 2-1 in the futsal final on Friday and 3-2 in the roller hockey final on Saturday, putting the club in control of both Portuguese championship series.
Futsal: a goal after 60 seconds and a late surge
Benfica opened the futsal final in front of a packed Pavilhão N.º 1 da Luz on Friday evening. Lúcio Rocha needed barely a minute to fire the hosts ahead, finding space to beat goalkeeper Bernardo Paçó from distance. The early blow forced Sporting onto the front foot, but Leo Gugiel produced a string of saves to preserve the lead. Zicky Té hit the side netting, Álex Merlim rattled the crossbar from a free-kick, and Pany Varela forced a sharp stop from Paçó at the other end. The first half ended 1-0, with both benches warned as the temperature rose.
As expetativas são as melhores. Trabalhámos toda a época a sonhar com este momento. Creio que é o momento mais mágico da temporada.
Diego Nunes doubled the advantage in the second half, combining with Jacaré to hammer the ball into the top left corner. Sporting pushed hard and got a lifeline six minutes from time when Felipe Valério converted from a side restart, but Benfica held on for a 2-1 victory. Jorge Braz, the national team coach, and former international Bruno Coelho watched from the stands, alongside Benfica president Rui Costa.
- Kick-off at Pavilhão N.º 1 da Luz
- 1st minute: Lúcio Rocha opens the scoring for Benfica
- First half: Leo Gugiel makes several saves to preserve 1-0 lead
- Second half: Diego Nunes doubles Benfica's lead with a powerful angled shot
- Six minutes from time: Felipe Valério pulls one back for Sporting
- Full time: Benfica 2-1 Sporting
Roller hockey: a penalty, a long-range strike, and a tense finish
Less than 24 hours later, the clubs met again at the Pavilhão da Luz for the first game of the roller hockey final. The contest swung back and forth. Gonçalo Pinto clipped a post early on, and Sporting called a tactical timeout to stem Benfica’s organisation. The breakthrough came in the 16th minute when Facundo Navarro fouled Ordonez and the referee pointed to the spot. João Rodrigues saw his initial penalty saved by Xano Edo but smashed home the rebound. Sporting responded swiftly: Nolito equalised three minutes later after a deflection off Rampulla.
Benfica regained the lead before the interval through Viti, who unleashed a long-range shot that caught Xano Edo off guard. The home side added a third goal in the second period to stretch the gap. Sporting fought back with a late strike that narrowed the deficit to 3-2, creating a nervy finale, but Benfica closed out the game to take a 1-0 series lead.
Eles estão a fazer um ‘playoff’ esplêndido. Eliminaram o FC Porto em três jogos, sem terem o fator-casa. Isto já diz muito sobre o nível que estão a atingir nesta fase final da temporada.
- Start at Pavilhão da Luz
- 8th minute: Gonçalo Pinto hits the post for Benfica
- 16th minute: João Rodrigues converts a penalty rebound to give Benfica a 1-0 lead
- 19th minute: Nolito equalises for Sporting after a deflection
- 22nd minute: Viti scores a long-range goal to restore Benfica's advantage (2-1)
- Second half: Benfica adds a third goal
- Late in the game: Sporting pulls one back to make it 3-2
- Full time: Benfica 3-2 Sporting
What comes next
The futsal final resumes on Tuesday 16 June at 21:15 in the Pavilhão João Rocha, where Sporting will try to level the best-of-five series. Game two of the roller hockey final is scheduled for the following Wednesday, also at Sporting’s home rink. Both series remain open, but Benfica has placed itself in the driving seat by winning both openers at home.
