Overview
- FC Porto beat Santa Clara 1-0 in the Azores to finish the first half atop Liga Portugal, seven points clear of Sporting and 10 ahead of Benfica.
- Francesco Farioli said the team deserved the result, rejected talk of luck, and emphasized staying grounded as Porto begin the second round still leading.
- Sporting were held 1-1 at Gil Vicente after Gonçalo Inácio’s late red card, a setback that opened the door for Porto to extend their advantage.
- Benfica defeated Estoril 3-1 at the Luz with a Vangelis Pavlidis hat-trick, as José Mourinho cautioned over injury risks after deploying Fredrik Aursnes.
- Beyond Portugal, Barcelona won 2-0 at Espanyol to reach 49 LaLiga points with a provisional seven-point cushion over Real Madrid, and Atalanta edged Roma 1-0 through Giorgio Scalvini.