You’ve heard of the old cliche that football is a game of two halves? On Wednesday, the Portuguese league staged a game of one half.
After the Estoril-Porto game on January 15 was abandoned at half-time due to fears over an unsafe stadium at Estoril, the second 45 minutes was eventually played on Wednesday – 37 days later – with Porto winning 3-1, having been a goal down in January.
Security officials at Estoril’s Antonio Coimbra da Mota stadium were so concerned over cracks in the stands in the first game that they allowed Porto fans to climb over the fencing and onto the pitch as a means of keeping them safe. However, the game then had to be abandoned with Estoril 1-0 ahead.
The Portuguese league and UEFA allowed the second half to be completed on Wednesday with both teams allowed to make changes to their January line-ups. Porto coach Sergio Conceicao brought in six new faces and the decision paid dividends as Brazilian stars Alex Telles and Tiquinho Soares (twice) scored. Porto stay on top of the table, five points ahead of Sporting Lisbon and Benfica.
(With inputs from AFP)
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