SL Benfica secured a thrilling 4-3 victory over Sevilla in the Algarve Women’s Football Trophy, with Nigeria’s Christy Ucheibe playing the role of the hero by scoring two late goals.
The match, which took place on Friday, was a rollercoaster of emotions, featuring numerous twists and turns from start to finish.
Early Dominance by Sevilla
Sevilla started the match on a bright note, going on to score the first goal at the 9th minute when Millaray Cortés capitalized on a blunder by Pauleta.
On the Spanish side the lead was soon doubled in the 23rd minute by Lúcia Moral who headed a corner in to make the score 2-0 to Sevilla.
Nevertheless, Benfica did not surrender and even managed to close the gap. Cristina Martin-Prieto reduced the deficit for Benfica when she scored in the 29th minute, but Sevilla extended their lead with another goal by Natallia Padilla in the 30th minute.
Benfica, however, was able to reduce the deficit before the break once again when Carole Costa converted a penalty. The second half was further characterized by unrelenting pressure from Benfica in search of an equalizing goal as the match progressed.
However, Sevilla have already signed two Super Eagles superstars in Kelechi Iheanacho and Chidera Ejuke to the men’s team as reported by Sportsbuddy.
Ucheibe’s Late Heroics
The turning points were made in the last ten minutes of the game. In the 89th minute, following a floated corner, Christy Ucheibe leveled for Benfica.
— BenficaFeminino (@FemininoBenfica) August 9, 2024
Then, in the middle of injury time, Ucheibe rose up to head a free kick and make it 4-3 in Benfica’s favor. Even though Benfica triumphed in the ordinary ninety minutes, the rules of the tournament stipulated that the overall winner should emerge from a penalty shoot out.
The match finally went to penalties, and Sevilla triumphed in the shootout 5-3 with Benfica’s Lara Martins and Clarinha failing to convert.
The outcome of the Benfica’s match means that the final match against Sporting CP on Saturday will decide the winner of the Algarve Women’s Trophy.
