Jornada 24 Recap… Made Possible By Viewers Like You

By: Greg | April 1st, 2008

rdj The league is basically a done deal what with Porto ahead of 2nd place Benfica by more points than Robert Downey, Jr has on his driver’s license. However, it is my duty, my very meaning in life to bring you weekly jornada recaps. So as not to find myself having a life completely void of meaning, let’s take a look inside Jornada 24 of the season that turned into Porto acting like the Harlem Globetrotters against an entire league of Washington Generals.

V.Guimarães 1 - 0 Marítimo
E. Amadora 3 - 1 Académica
Nacional 2 - 0 Leiria
Braga 0 - 0 Leixões
Belenenses 1 - 2 Porto
Naval 1 - 4 Sporting
Benfica 4 - 1 Paços de Ferreira
V.Setúbal 3 - 1 Boavista

Hero of the Week — Roberto, V.Guimarães — Roberto came on in the 62nd minute and 26 minutes later managed to force Porto to wait another week to enjoy their inevitable championship. The glancing header off a well-placed cross ensured V.Guimarães would have another jornada go by occupying, at worst, third place. Their fantastic run continues and since they’re tied on points with 2nd place Benfica, a Champions League spot is not entirely out of the question.

Goat of the Week — Jorge Nuno Pinto da Costa, Supreme Weiner-Neck, FC Porto — Details of the punishments to be handed down as a result of the “Golden Whistle” case are beginning to surface and it doesn’t look pretty for him personally. While Porto only stand to be docked around 6 points, he’s apparently looking at a six month to two year suspension. Others are involved and there is speculation that fellow BWINLiga club Boavista will actually be sent down regardless of how they finish. If true, that would take a considerable amount of pressure off of a club such as Paços de Ferreira who are currently in the drop zone but would probably be spared should the tribunal decide to drop Boavista automatically. I’ll stay on top of this like Pinto da Costa on his ex hooker girlfriend Carolina Salgado.

Clean Sheets of the Week — Nilson (V.Guimarães), Rafael (Nacional), Kieszek (Braga), and Beto (Leixões).

Screw the table for now. Porto’s got it on lock, Leiria’s on 9 points and practically guaranteed their relegation to the Liga Vitalis next year. When it starts to shake out further, we’ll look at UEFA spots and such. That will probably come your way in the final two or three weeks. Until tomorrow, please do your best to make me proud and keep it real.