Sporting CP win against Casa Pia AC before the international break

In Liga Portugal action, Sporting Clube de Portugal beat Casa Pia AC 2-0 at home for their eighth win in as many games -a new record in the division in the 21st century. Daniel Bragança and Viktor Gyökeres got the goals that delighted the 42,887 spectators present.

To face an in-form Casa Pia AC that came into the weekend in ninth place, coach Rúben Amorim made four changes from his midweek lineup against PSV Eindhoven: Eduardo Quaresma, Maxi Araújo, Daniel Bragança and Conrad Harder got starts instead of Geovany Quenda, Nuno Santos, Hidemasa Morita and Ousmane Diomande, the latter of whom was forced to miss the match and joined Jeremiah St. Juste, Matheus Reis, Pedro Gonçalves and Marcus Edwards on the sidelines through injury.

Sporting CP marked Pink October with the players wearing the club's and latest pink kit, incorporating a message of awareness for the prevention and diagnosis of Breast Cancer.

It could have been a start to forget for the team, who were caught off guard by Casa Pia AC under two minutes in. Only goalkeeper Franco Israel prevented an early setback with a save from Svensson's dangerous shot from inside the penalty area.

Having overcome the scare, Sporting CP took possession of the ball and pushed the opposition lines back into their defensive third. With patience and careful movement, the spaces in attack began to open up slightly, and new signing Maxi Araújo made the first attempts for Os Leões: On the first, he headed the ball outside the far post, then he took a free kick that went just over the bar.

A set piece brought Casa Pia AC closer to the area in around the 20th minute, but Gonçalo Inácio nipped the problem in the bud and Sporting CP quickly returned to settling into the opposition midfield, trying to impose their dynamic through combinations. The visitors were no longer able to attack and limited themselves to closing down Sporting CP, sometimes with a line of six.

Just after the half-hour mark, Harder's cross-shot, when he received the ball and turned at the edge of the area, went just wide of the post. Then, a run by Geny Catamo and an effort inside the box rekindled the excitement amongst the stands.

The goal finally came from Daniel Bragança, who appeared in the right place and at the right time in the area after a brilliant individual move by Francisco Trincão. He converted the assist to make it four goals for him this season -three of them coming in the last three games.

To close the first half, captain Morten Hjulmand headed the ball into the hands of Patrick Sequeira, and the team went into the interval 1-0 up.

After the break, Amorim made the first substitution and Hidemasa Morita came on for Harder.

The first move in the second period nearly resulted in a goal, as only a last ditch tackle prevented the ball from reaching Viktor Gyökeres for a tap-in. Morita also had a chance, but Sequeira got the better of him and kicked the ball out for a corner.

Israel made a spectacular save from an effort that would have been ruled out for offside, and suddenly, the game became momentarily more open. A thunderous shot from Trincão that grazed the bar was followed by an opportunity for the away team, but Israel kept out Pablo Roberto's attack.

Amorim then continued to freshen up the team and brought on Geovany Quenda and Iván Fresneda for Geny and Inácio. Later, at the start of the final quarter of an hour, Ricardo Esgaio also came on for Eduardo Quaresma, just after Trincão threatened to score with a header.

The goal that would bring peace of mind in Alvalade was found by Gyökeres, as he was brought down in the box. Stepping up to take the penalty kick himself, he converted to go top of the scoring charts with his 11th strike of the season in Liga Portugal.

Sporting CP sealed the win, went six consecutive matchdays without conceding a goal, and upped their scoring tally to 27.

The next matchday of the 2024/25 league season will be a visit to FC Famalicão (26 October, at 8:30 pm), after the international break. Before that, Sporting CP will return to action with two away matches in two other competitions: Against Portimonense SC in the third round of the Taça de Portugal (18 October, 8:15pm), followed by a trip to Austria to face SK Sturm Graz in the third round of the UEFA Champions League (22 October, 8pm).

Sporting CP: Franco Israel [GK], Geny Catamo (Geovany Quenda, 68’), Eduardo Quaresma (Ricardo Esgaio, 77’), Zeno Debast, Gonçalo Inácio (Iván Fresneda, 68’), Maxi Araújo (Nuno Santos, 64’), Morten Hjulmand [C], Daniel Bragança, Francisco Trincão, Conrad Harder (Hidemasa Morita, 46’), Viktor Gyökeres.