SL Benfica emerged victorious in an exhilarating 4-3 encounter in opposition to Sevilla within the Algarve Ladies’s Soccer Trophy on Friday, due to a dramatic late double from Nigeria’s Christy Ucheibe, Soccernet.ng reviews.
Ucheibe was the hero of the sport for the Portuguese champions in a match, that was a rollercoaster of feelings, from the begin to the tip.
Sevilla began robust, with Millaray Cortés opening the scoring within the ninth minute after capitalising on a defensive error by Pauleta.
The Spanish facet doubled their lead within the twenty third minute when Lúcia Ethical out-jumped the Benfica defence to go in a nook, placing the Andalusians in a commanding 2-0 lead.
Benfica, nevertheless, refused to again down. Their first response got here by way of Cristina Martin-Prieto, whose purpose was initially disallowed for offside.
Undeterred, Martin-Prieto discovered the again of the online once more within the twenty ninth minute, this time legally, in opposition to her former membership, bringing Benfica again into rivalry.
However Sevilla shortly restored their two-goal cushion only a minute later, with Natallia Padilla scoring after a strong run down the left flank.
The match gave the impression to be slipping away from Benfica, however Carole Costa’s penalty conversion simply earlier than halftime stored the Portuguese facet inside attain. The sport continued at a frenetic tempo, with Benfica pushing laborious for an equaliser within the second half.
The decisive moments got here within the dying minutes of the match.
pic.twitter.com/DhGyMMBREx
— BenficaFeminino (@FemininoBenfica) August 9, 2024
Tremendous Falcons midfielder Ucheibe, who had represented Nigeria on the Paris 2024 Olympics, first equalised within the 89th minute with a easy tap-in after displaying an amazing want to get to a floated nook kick.
Then, deep in stoppage time, she accomplished the beautiful comeback by excellently heading in a free kick to seal a 4-3 victory for Benfica.
⚽️ Ucheibe bisa e vira a partida em 5 minutos (4-3)pic.twitter.com/6RNlPhxoc6
— SL Benfica Futebol Feminino (Apoio) (@BenficaFem) August 9, 2024
Regardless of the win, the drama was not over. The match’s conclusion noticed a penalty shootout as a part of the match’s guidelines to assist resolve the general winner. Sevilla triumphed within the shootout, successful 5-3, after Benfica’s Lara Martins and Clarinha missed their penalties.
Benfica’s victory over Sevilla ensures that the match’s winner will solely be selected Saturday after they face Sporting within the ultimate match of the Algarve Ladies’s Trophy.
