There is no doubt about the match of the weekend in the final round of Portugal’s Liga ZON Sagres. Braga host Sporting needing to avoid defeat to finish in third place, and above their more prestigious Lisbon rivals for the second successive season.
The occasion will also the last time Domingos Paciencia sits in the home dugout at the AXA Stadium. He has announced he will leave the Arsenalistas in the summer, after a memorable two-year spell, and although it is yet to be made official it is believed Domingos will take over at precisely at the club he faces on Sunday – Sporting.
Elsewhere, with the relegation places decided last week, the only other outstanding issue is qualification for the Europa League, where Nacional, Paços de Ferreira and Rio Ave will fight for the one remaining berth.
Rio Ave still harbor an outside hope of qualifying for the Europa League. To do so they must beat Olhanense, who have snapped out of a poor run of form with two impressive results in the last two weeks, drawing with Benfica and beating Nacional away. The Algarve club will also want to finish the season with a flourish in front of their home fans where they have lost just three games in 2010/11.
Vitoria Setubal’s win at Sporting last weekend guaranteed their place in the upper echelons of the Portuguese game next year and simultaneously condemned Portimonense to the drop. A series of unpleasantries exchanged between both clubs at boardroom and coaching level has added an edge to what is an otherwise meaningless end-of-season encounter.
Paços have enjoyed an excellent season and go into the final match of the campaign still aiming to snatch a Europa League berth. To do so they must overcome an Academica side who have a strong defense but have forgotten how to score – just two goals in their last six matches.
Naval finally succumbed to relegation last weekend, and with Vitoria Guimaraes guaranteed a place in Europe via the Portuguese Cup, where they face Porto in the final next week, it will be a largely meaningless game at the Figueira da Foz on Sunday.
Maritimo provide FC Porto’s final obstacle to ending the season unbeaten. The trip to Madeira is always a tricky fixture, but with the islanders now out of the running for a European berth, their motivation level may not be at its highest.
Porto would be grateful for a rather sedate affair. After Sunday’s game the Dragons have two matches left, where two wins would crown a memorable season. Victory in the finals of the Europa League and the Portuguese Cup would complete a terrific treble, emulating Jose Mourinho’s 2002/03 Porto side.
Porto may not go at Maritimo hammer and tongs, but they will be keen on keeping their unbeaten record intact for posterity.
Beira-Mar surprised many with the ease with which they held on to their top-flight status after coming up last season. Even a change of coach mid-season did not halt their progress as Rui Bento built on the good work done by Leandro Jardim, getting the most out of a threadbare squad.
There will be no motivational problems for Nacional coach Ivo Vieira and his squad. The Madeira team need a result to maintain sixth place and guarantee a berth in next season’s Europa League.
Sporting’s defeat at home to Vitoria Setubal last weekend enabled Braga to reclaim third place in the standings, and a draw will suffice for the Arsenalistas to finish the season above their more prestigious Lisbon rivals for the second year running.
However, with Braga set to play the biggest game in the club’s history just three days later – the Europa League final against FC Porto – coach Domingos Paciencia may be tempted to shuffle his pack in order to keep his most important players fresh for the Dublin showdown.
Paciencia’s imminent move to Sporting over the summer adds another ingredient to what promises to be an intriguing encounter.
Benfica president Luis Felipe Vieria has assured coach Jorge Jesus that his job is safe despite contestation after a disappointing end to the season for the Eagles. With little to play for, the charismatic manager may find it tough motivating his players in what is likely to be a sparsely populated Estadio da Luz.
Similarly to Benfica, the season’s end cannot come quickly enough for Leiria. A horrible run of form since the turn of the year bodes for a difficult 2011/12 unless some big changes are made at the Lis. Don’t expect a classic.
Elsewhere, with the relegation places decided last week, the only other outstanding issue is qualification for the Europa League, where Nacional, Paços de Ferreira and Rio Ave will fight for the one remaining berth.
Rio Ave still harbor an outside hope of qualifying for the Europa League. To do so they must beat Olhanense, who have snapped out of a poor run of form with two impressive results in the last two weeks, drawing with Benfica and beating Nacional away. The Algarve club will also want to finish the season with a flourish in front of their home fans where they have lost just three games in 2010/11.
Vitoria Setubal’s win at Sporting last weekend guaranteed their place in the upper echelons of the Portuguese game next year and simultaneously condemned Portimonense to the drop. A series of unpleasantries exchanged between both clubs at boardroom and coaching level has added an edge to what is an otherwise meaningless end-of-season encounter.
Paços have enjoyed an excellent season and go into the final match of the campaign still aiming to snatch a Europa League berth. To do so they must overcome an Academica side who have a strong defense but have forgotten how to score – just two goals in their last six matches.
Naval finally succumbed to relegation last weekend, and with Vitoria Guimaraes guaranteed a place in Europe via the Portuguese Cup, where they face Porto in the final next week, it will be a largely meaningless game at the Figueira da Foz on Sunday.
Maritimo provide FC Porto’s final obstacle to ending the season unbeaten. The trip to Madeira is always a tricky fixture, but with the islanders now out of the running for a European berth, their motivation level may not be at its highest.
Porto would be grateful for a rather sedate affair. After Sunday’s game the Dragons have two matches left, where two wins would crown a memorable season. Victory in the finals of the Europa League and the Portuguese Cup would complete a terrific treble, emulating Jose Mourinho’s 2002/03 Porto side.
Porto may not go at Maritimo hammer and tongs, but they will be keen on keeping their unbeaten record intact for posterity.
Beira-Mar surprised many with the ease with which they held on to their top-flight status after coming up last season. Even a change of coach mid-season did not halt their progress as Rui Bento built on the good work done by Leandro Jardim, getting the most out of a threadbare squad.
There will be no motivational problems for Nacional coach Ivo Vieira and his squad. The Madeira team need a result to maintain sixth place and guarantee a berth in next season’s Europa League.
Sporting’s defeat at home to Vitoria Setubal last weekend enabled Braga to reclaim third place in the standings, and a draw will suffice for the Arsenalistas to finish the season above their more prestigious Lisbon rivals for the second year running.
However, with Braga set to play the biggest game in the club’s history just three days later – the Europa League final against FC Porto – coach Domingos Paciencia may be tempted to shuffle his pack in order to keep his most important players fresh for the Dublin showdown.
Paciencia’s imminent move to Sporting over the summer adds another ingredient to what promises to be an intriguing encounter.
Benfica president Luis Felipe Vieria has assured coach Jorge Jesus that his job is safe despite contestation after a disappointing end to the season for the Eagles. With little to play for, the charismatic manager may find it tough motivating his players in what is likely to be a sparsely populated Estadio da Luz.
Similarly to Benfica, the season’s end cannot come quickly enough for Leiria. A horrible run of form since the turn of the year bodes for a difficult 2011/12 unless some big changes are made at the Lis. Don’t expect a classic.
