Benfica can be proclaimed champion of Portuguese football for the 38th time this Saturday, at the farewell to the 2022/23 I Liga, by receiving the red Santa Clara lantern, with FC Porto hoping for a ‘miracle’ to revalidate the title.
The Lisbon team has a two-point advantage over rival Porto at the start of the 34th and final round, and only the defeat at Estádio da Luz, against a team already relegated to the second division, would make it depend on the result of the ‘dragons’ in the reception to Vitória de Guimarães, in fifth place.
The victory over the Azorean team will allow Benfica to win a title that eluded them in the previous three seasons, but even a draw could be enough, since FC Porto would need, at the same time (18:00), to beat Minho and traces back a difference of 11 goals in favor of the ‘eagles’, in the tiebreaker between goals scored and conceded.
The central defender António Silva, perhaps the biggest revelation of the season, will serve a game suspension and will not be able to help Benfica on the field to increase the record of national titles, with the conquest of the 38th scepter, eight more than FC Porto ( 30), the second club with the most titles, while Sporting has half (19).
In addition to the title decision and except for the ‘cosmetic’ ranking, the final round will only shed light on the fifth and sixth position holders, which give access to the third and second qualifying rounds of the next edition of the Europa Conference League and they are occupied, respectively, by Vitória de Guimarães and Arouca.
The Guimarães are two points ahead of their pursuers, but they face a more difficult task, in the stadium of an FC Porto that vaguely dreams of revalidating the title of champion, while Arouca visits, also at 6:00 p.m., Portimonense, 13th classified and already with guaranteed maintenance.
The ‘cloth’ of the I Liga 2022/23 will fall after 10:00 p.m., when the match between Sporting de Braga (unreachable in third place, last access to the Champions League) and Paços de Ferreira, penultimate ranked and practically relegated, while Marítimo, third from last, also already knows that they will play the maintenance play-off, regardless of the result in Estoril Praia.
On Friday, fourth-placed Sporting closed out their participation in the 2022/23 edition of the I Liga with a 2-1 win at Vizela.
34 day program
– Friday May 26:
Rio Ave — Famalicao, 2-2
Vizela – Sporting Lisbon, 1-2
– Saturday, May 27:
Gil Vicente — Casa Pía, 12:45 p.m.
Chaves – Boavista sports stadium, 3:30 p.m.
Estoril Praia — Maritime, 3:30 p.m.
Portimonense – FC Arouca, 6:00 p.m.
FC Porto — Vitória de Guimarães, 6:00 p.m.
Benfica – Santa Clara, 6:00 p.m.
Sporting de Braga – Paços de Ferreira, 8:30 p.m.
Source: TSF
