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| MARÍTIMO 1-1 BENFICA |
| Sat 13 Nov 2004 - 21:15 - Estádio dos Barreiros, Funchal |
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| A crowded “Caldeirão” witnessed an ever impressive Marítimo performance last Saturday, as league leaders Benfica came to town. The Eagles have not had an impressive record in previous visits to our quaint little stadium, with Benfiquistas crowning it as “the hardest place to play in Portugal.” And this game was no exception.
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| Portuguese international Simão Sabrosa created the first goalscoring chance for the visitors after just two minutes, when his 20 metre drive struck the left post of Marcos’ goal. However it was the verde-rubros who opened the scoring.
After latching on to Alan’s through pass on the right wing, Chaínho placed a perfect low cross into the Benfica penalty area, where Manduca looked certain to score. His point blank shot was fantastically saved by Benfica’s young goalkeeper Moreira, but Pena was on hand to fire in the rebound, scoring the first goal of the game, and his first since signing for the club. |
| Marítimo’s lead did not last long though, and within 6 minutes the scores were level again when Simão replied with a superb curling free kick from 20 metres.
Manduca had a great chance to regain Marítimo’s lead minutes later. After Moreira came out and failed to clear Léo Lima’s long ball, Manduca attempted to chip the goalkeeper from 35 yards, but his shot sailed over the bar. Manuel Fernandes tried his luck from 30 metres, but his low drive was well saved by Marcos, who palmed the ball away from danger on 33 minutes. The verde-rubros continued to push for the second goal, with man of the match Léo Lima leading many attacks. On 37 minutes, the Brazilian playmaker threaded the ball through to Manduca who blasted his shot from the edge of the penalty box towards goal, however goalkeeper Moreira was quick to react and pushed the ball to safety. |
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| Marcos had to be alert just before the interval, when Petit fired in a low shot towards the far corner of the goal. The Brazilian goalkeeper reacted quickly and deflected the shot wide of the goal.
The second half started in the same way the first ended, with both goalkeepers in the spotlight. Moreira stepped up with the save of the match minutes after the interval, when he tipped Léo Lima’s superb curling shot over the crossbar. On 71 minutes, Marcos was called upon again to save another long range effort from Petit. The midfielder’s swerving free kick from 35 metres denied by another great save from the Brazilian. Both sides continued to attack, and Marítimo’s goalscorer Pena could have denied the visitors a point when he beat the Benfica offside trap on 79 minutes. However the striker did not have the pace to latch onto Léo Lima’s through ball, and goalkeeper Moreira was quick to gather. |
| Portuguese Under 19 international Paulinho made his first appearance for the senior team, when he replaced Pena in the 86 minute. Although the match was nearly over it was a big moment for the young player, who has shown a lot of potential while playing for the Marítimo B team over the past two seasons.
Although a draw against one of the “Big Three” is never a bad result, after the impressive performance shown by the players, many fans may feel that a draw was not a fair reflection of the game and that the verde-rubros could now have been sitting happily second place. MARÍTIMO (1): Marcos; Luís Filipe, Mitchell, Tonel, Eusébio: Chaínho, Zeca; Alan, Léo Lima, Manduca; Pena (Paulinho 86'). Subs not used: Nélson, Fernando, Briguel, Joel Santos, Dudu, Souza. Booked: Pena. Sent off: - Goals: Pena 9'. BENFICA (1): Moreira; Amoreirinha, Argel, Luisão, Dos Santos; Petit, Geovanni (João Pereira 29', Bruno Aguiar 61'), Simão, Manuel Fernandes; Karadas, Sokota. Subs not used: Quim, Fyssas, Paulo Almeida, Zahovic, Everson. Booked: João Pereira, Sokota, Luisão, Amoreirinha. Sent off: - Goals: Simão 15'. Referee: Bruno Paixão (Setúbal) Man of the Match: Léo Lima (Marítimo) Carlo Ramos ([email protected]) Discuss this story and others at the CS Marítimo Online forums - www.csmaritimo-online.com. See video highlights of this match at Viva Marítimo TV - www.vmtv.tk. |
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| © Carlo Ramos 2004 [email protected] "Viva Marítimo Online" is 100% unofficial and as a result the views expressed throughout this website do not reflect or effect those of CS Marítimo or Marítimo da Madeira S.A.D. |