Ajax opponent Benfica forfeits points after early red card Taarabt | Foreign football

Benfica ended up with ten men in Estádio da Luz tonight after seven minutes. The 32-year-old Moroccan midfielder Adel Taarabt received a direct red card after a hard foul in midfield.

Vizela then took the lead in the 65th minute via Cassiano Dias Moreira. That surprising lead did not last long for Vizela, because in the 75th minute Henrique Araújo made the 1-1 on behalf of Benfica.

The home team then went in search of victory, but no more goals were scored in the eleven minutes of injury time. In minute 101, Vizela goalkeeper Pedro Silva stopped another shot from Benfica’s Uruguayan striker Darwin Núñez. Jan Vertonghen participated the entire match with the Portuguese top club.

Despite the loss of points against the number fourteen of the Portuguese league, the Benfica players still received a round of applause from the fans in Estádio da Luz, which was half full. With a chance ratio of 22-20, the spectators would have seen a spectacular match, but a 38th national title can now really put Benfica out of their minds.

Benfica is third in the Portuguese league with 58 points after 26 games. FC Porto is well on its way to a 30th league title. The team of coach Sérgio Conceição leads the way with 67 points after 25 matches, six points more than rival Sporting Portugal. That club finally won the nineteenth national title in club history after nineteen years.

Benfica and Ajax drew 2-2 in Lisbon on Wednesday 23 February. On Tuesday evening, the record champions of the Netherlands and Portugal will compete for a place in the quarter-finals of the Champions League.