Gil Vicente sang like a rooster on the night of the Dragon, winning by 1-2 and putting FC Porto to the ropes, which again sees the leadership of the League at eight points. The defeat, the second at home in the League, and the first against the team from Barcelos, began with the sending off of João Mário and Uribe and a penalty that put the visitors ahead at half-time, after a promising start by the “dragons”.
Taremi even scored on the first shot of the night, at 13 seconds, which would have been a new record had the referee not disallowed the goal for an irregular position. A moment that could have negatively affected the striker, who left no room for doubt after four minutes.
Taremi beat Andrew in a lethal transition, shook off the pressure of intermittent fasting in 2023 and sent a “dragon” needing to restore the five-point difference to the leader.
With four casualties, the gilistas risked a night of high turbulence at Dragão, which Pepê could have accentuated in an open goal bid. The ninth minute was, however, a disaster for the Brazilian, who shot, inconceivably, over the bar.
The beam was tested shortly afterwards by Namaso, returning the shot and saving Gil Vicente from the scaffold. FC Porto squandered opportunities and Gil Vicente was grateful, taking the opportunity to make a more assiduous presence in the opposing area.
Boselli forced Diogo Costa to make a providential intervention, to avoid a draw… which would come a couple of minutes later, by the unavoidable Fran Navarro. The Spaniard corrected a cross by Zé Carlos, completing a move that showed the simple way in which the gilistas could exploit the weaknesses of Wendell’s corridor and touch the wound opened by Inter in Milan.
FC Porto completely lost control of the game, ending up experiencing moments of true drama with two interventions by the video referee. First, to send off João Mário for blocking a potential Gil Vicente goal with his hand and, just after half-time, to denounce a penalty by Uribe, which Murillo did not miss, despite Diogo Costa’s intervention.
FC Porto retired in shock, with Sérgio Conceição trying to figure out how to pick up the pieces to put the champion back in pursuit of rival Benfica. And the solution found was to spare Wendell the greatest constraints, exchanging Namaso for Gonçalo Borges, assigned to a line with Otávio and Taremi… an attack supported by Eustáquio and Uribe.
With the Colombian marked by the first yellow, the risk increased exponentially. And Murphy’s law is infallible on these occasions. Uribe left the team reduced to nine after 52 minutes, condemning the team to a game of authentic ordeal.
Gil Vicente had an open road to secure FC Porto’s first home win, and they just needed to not let themselves be surprised. Daniel Sousa bet on expectations and the “dragon” grew. Pepe injected adrenaline and Eustaquio showed the risks of freeing an injured beast. The midfielder’s goal didn’t count, but FC Porto were approaching their first goal: to avoid defeat.
Despite everything, the numerical inferiority and the accumulated wear and tear left FC Porto too far from the intended result, with the national champions registering a compromising defeat for their aspirations in the League.