By Melody Gross 
Sporting defeated Moreirense on Sunday with two goals that “arrived this season” and a third in the last match of the match. Hjulmand and Geokris, two of Sporting’s reinforcements for the season, were responsible for breaking the game in favor of the ‘Lions’, and Diomandi, in the last play of the match, scored the final goal for 3-0.
A first half that was not particularly lively, but a dominant second half, allowed Sporting to add their fourth win of the season in quite fair fashion, against a team that caused problems, but only during the first 15 minutes of the match.
Ruben Amorim made only one change to the starting line-up, leaving the team’s top scorer and the tournament – Paulinho – on the bench, while Edwards was in the starting line-up.
Perhaps it was the Sporting coach’s idea to bring greater mobility and verticality to his attacking front, but the truth is that Moreirense’s well-organized defense was able to make the attacking maneuvering of the ‘Lions’ difficult in the first half.
The “defender” even hit the post from goalkeeper Adan in the seventh minute. But Sporting responded, and Morita also hit the woodwork and scored, in a move with the Japanese back in the spotlight and finished by Esgayo, but it was ruled out for five centimeters of offside.
Little by little, Sporting took control of the game and forced Morita (again) and Hulmand Kewen, Moreirense’s goalkeeper, into two brilliant saves shortly before half-time.
But the goals would appear shortly thereafter. When the match resumed, Sporting did their best and took the lead shortly after the end of the first half. With their left wing ‘carbonised’, largely due to the pace of Nuno Santos, Heulmand’s shot from outside the area, off the bounce, opened the scoring (55).
Sporting is “charged” at this point. Nuno Santos, who is almost always the player, left the Moreirense defense out of position and a well-thought-out cross reached the Swedish striker’s head inside the Minho area, missing Gjokeres and making it 2-0.
Moreirense were no longer able to stop Sporting’s attacking movements as effectively as they had done in the first half and Sporting could have extended the lead with a header from Paulinho, who had meanwhile been called into the game to replace a frustrated Edwards – a cross from Mateus Reis found the goalscorer ‘Leonen’ behind. Frimpong appeared but his header deflected the ball onto the post.
The match continued until the final whistle, with Sporting in complete control and Moreirense unable to respond. Minho’s team ended the match with the absence of one player on the field, as a result of Marakash’s expulsion, due to the accumulation of yellow cards. However, at that moment, there were only two minutes remaining in the ninetieth minute and Leonin’s victory was certain. The final result was not certain, as it was changed on the last play of the match: Jenny Catamo’s corner to the second post, and Diomandi jumped higher than his direct opponent and headed it from the top to the bottom.