Portugal
Primeira Liga
Friday 1st April 2022
Kick Off 20.15 Actual 20.17
Sporting Clube Braga 3 Sport Lisboa Benfica 2, attendance 16,073
28’ 1-0
70’ 2-0
74’ 2-1 (pen)
77’ 2-2
80’ 3-2
@ Estadio Municipal de Braga
Avenida do Estadio
4700-441 Braga
€20 Admission, Print at Home Ticket
No Programme.
This was the first match of our long weekend in the north of Portugal. The weekend didn’t get off to the best start, as our scheduled 09.40 flight with EasyJet from London Gatwick to Porto, departed 1 hour 36 minutes late. We still had ample time to pick up the hire car and head towards Braga, making a detour via two other top division stadiums, in search of tickets for games later in the weekend. Portuguese football is certainly not well administered. The break down of fixtures wasn’t released until nine days before we were due to fly, and even then, one game that we were planning on watching in the second tier was moved for television purposes, from it’s 17.30 slot (the only game in the country at this time) to 20.00, which would mean a clash with the 20.30 top division tv game. Very odd.
Telephone calls to Braga, a week before the game, had confirmed that there would be no problem purchasing tickets on the day of the match. However, on Wednesday, their website was stating that tickets were only available to members, but it was still possible for ’general public’ to purchase tickets, but these would be in the visiting section of the stadium and had to be purchased through the Benfica website. 2 tickets were duly purchased, with no add on fees (English clubs take note), although it wasn’t until the following day that the tickets arrived via e-mail with a link to print them off.
The stadium has a capacity of 30,286 and was built to host games at the Euro 2004 tournament. It is only two sided, but has been cut into the side of a rock face, with one goal end backing onto this. We stayed at a hotel near to Braga railway station, choosing to walk the twenty minutes down to the stadium (the walk back was uphill all the way and took longer). On arrival, the place was very quiet and certainly didn’t indicate that the biggest club in the country were in town. No food or drink outlets were open around the stadium, not that there were many there anyway. In fact, even once inside, there were just a few bread rolls and bottles of water. on sale. The commercial department in Braga certainly have no idea about making the most of the biggest game of the season. In fact, it was pathetic. One thing they had in abundance though, was riot police, in their hundreds. Everywhere you looked. It was like being back in the 1980’s and seemed totally unnecessary.
The match was 4th versus 3rd in the league table, neither club having any chance of catching second placed Sporting Clube Portugal, let alone leaders F.C. Porto. The game was really dull, as was the atmosphere. Braga led 1-0 at the break against a Benfica side that offered little. Perhaps they were saving themselves for their big game against Liverpool in midweek. When Braga went 2-0 up with twenty minutes left, it looked all over, but four minutes later Benfica were back in it, converting a penalty that was awarded by V.A.R. and within three minutes, it was 2-2, a cross from the right headed back across the six yard box and fired high into the roof of the net. No sooner had Benfica looked to have rescued something from the game, they conceded the winning goal just minutes later, when a cross from wide on the right was volleyed in at the far post.
It was a really disappointing spectacle over all, despite seeing five goals. At the final whistle the police immediately blocked off the exits, keeping us in for 45 minutes, not even allowing use of the toilets. It is little wonder crowds are so poor here, if this is how they treat supporters, especially as local non-members were also inconvenienced.
