A trio of strikes help Sporting CP to a 3-0 victory

Sporting Clube de Portugal bested FC Paços de Ferreira 3-0 on Matchday 14 of the Liga Portugal season, with goals in the first half from Pedro Porro, Nuno Santos and Paulinho.

Coming into the game on a run of six consecutive victories in which they scored 23 goals and conceded just once, Sporting CP were in good form as they continued to try to move their way up the table.

After just three minutes, when the FC Paços de Ferreira defence lost the ball, Nuno Santos crossed from the left for Pedro Porro, in the heart of the area, to head in to open the scoring.

The perfect start set the tone for the game, and soon after a tremendous long pass from Matheus Reis found Marcus Edwards, the Englishman knocking an opponent out of the way before shooting wide.

The second goal arrived in the 22nd minute, off a counterattack emanating from an FC Paços de Ferreira free kick. A slick transition saw Pedro Gonçalves releasing Edwards and he, selflessly, set up Nuno Santos.

The match was being completely dominated by Sporting CP, who continued to threaten through Paulinho, Trincão and  Edwards, while FC Paços de Ferreira managed their first and only shot of the first half in the 36th minute - Antonio Adán saving Holsgrove's attempt.

Before the break, Sporting CP made it 3-0, this time thanks to Paulinho's header from Porro's cross. It was the striker's seventh goal in the last five matches.

The masterclass continued in the second 45 minutes, with only only team managing to create opportunities in the opposing area. Early on, Gonçalves headed wide, which was followed by a shot by Matheus Reis from distance that was saved by goalkeeper Jordi, who then kept out an attempt by Paulinho.

Trincao, from outside the area, missed the target, and with 20 minutes left, coach Rúben Amorim started to make substitutions, bringing Arthur Gomes and Jovane Cabral on in place of Nuno Santos and Edwards. For Paços de Ferreira, an emotional Vitorino Antunes, league winner with Sporting CP in 2020/2021 and captain of the visitors, was substituted and left the pitch to applause from the Estádio José Alvalade.

The pace and intensity of the game dropped and the substitutions continued, with Paulinho and Gonçalves giving way to Rodrigo Ribeiro and Mateus Fernandes, respectively.

In the 82nd minute, referee António Nobre showed Dário Essugo a straight red card after a challenge on Holsgrove, leaving the team down to ten men. However, they remained firmly in control and claimed another victory.

Sporting CP will return to action in January, traveling to Madeira to play CS Marítimo.

Sporting CP: Antonio Adán [GK], Gonçalo Inácio, Sebastián Coates [C], Matheus Reis, Pedro Porro, Dário Essugo, Pedro Gonçalves (Mateus Fernandes, 78'), Nuno Santos (Arthur Gomes, 71'), Marcus Edwards ( Jovane Cabral, 71'), Francisco Trincão (Sotiris Alexandropoulos, 85') and Paulinho (Rodrigo Ribeiro, 78').