Sporting beats Rio Ave and beats leader Porto

Sporting could not have hoped for a better result for the year 2025. On a festive evening at the Alvalade stadium, the Lions accomplished their mission brilliantly, beating harmless Rio Ave 4-0. The result not only closed the year with “a full stomach”, but also had a huge impact on the table: with the stumble of Benfica – who drew with Braga – Rui Borges’ team reached 41 points, isolating themselves in second place and remaining just two points behind undefeated leader Porto.

The game

Anyone who has been to the stadium has seen a game consisting of two different halves, but with only one owner. The sport was intense, but luckless. The team created, hammered, but stopped at the wall called Miszta. The Rio Ave goalkeeper worked miracles and seemed ready to spoil the Lisbon party. However, the resistance fell after 34 minutes. Luis Suárez, the name of the evening, took advantage of a header from João Simões after a corner and, with scoring talent, pushed it into the net. The 1-0 at halftime seemed little for the volume of play presented.

Sporting overflows in the second half

The second half arrived, and with it, the green and white avalanche. If Rio Ave had any hopes of retaining the result, they were shattered within minutes. In the 10th minute of the final phase, Maxi Araújo – who came on even with the flu – showed class by dribbling past the goalkeeper and going wide.

From then on, what we saw was Luis Suárez’s private show. The Colombian was unstoppable. At 15, he scored with a header. A minute later, he took advantage of a rebound from Trincão to complete his hat-trick and transform the victory into a rout. It was the striker’s 18th goal this season, his 14th in the league alone.

With 4-0 on the scoreboard and a defeated opponent (Rio Ave didn’t manage a single shot on Rui Silva’s goal for 90 minutes), Sporting took their foot off the gas and just took the lead, saving key players like Hjulmand and Maxi himself.

So, when the final whistle blew, Alvalade’s feeling was one of duty accomplished and hope renewed. Sporting closes the year 2025 by playing convincing football, with a deadly attack and a breath down the neck of its northern rival. The fight for the Portuguese title promises to catch fire in 2026.

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