SC Braga beat Desportivo das Aves to go top of the pile on goal difference above Benfica, Sporting and Feirense.
Champions FC Porto were two goals to the good at half-time against Vitória Guimarães thanks to Yacine Brahimi’s thirty-seventh minute rasping right-footed strike and André Pereira’s header from a free-kick.
It transpired that Pereira had scored from an offside position with the VAR malfunctioning for large portions of the first-half.
Guimarães pulled a goal back eighteen minutes after the interval when André André slotted home a spot-kick after Sérgio Oliveira’s foul on Ola John inside the area, and Tozé levelled matters fifteen minutes from time with a well-hit strike across goal.
New coach Luis Castro was urging his team forward and they duly completed a remarkable comeback three minutes from the end when Welthon set up Davidson who made no mistake with his powerful execution.
Vitória de Guimarães keeper Douglas emerged as another hero when he kept out Vincent Aboubakar’s point-blank header and then denied Héctor Herrera whose close-range volley he diverted onto the far-post in stoppage time.
This was the first home league defeat for Porto since April 2016 and the first time they had surrendered a two goal half-time home lead for seventy-six years.
For Guimarães it was their first points of the season and will go down in the annals of time as one of their most incredible victories. Benfica entertained an embattled Sporting in the first Classico of the season as 60,000 fans packed into the Estádio da Luz.
Injuries robbed Benfica of the prolific Jonas and Castillo while for Sporting, Bas Dost and Mathieu were missing. Heavy early challenges from Ristovski, Battaglia and Acuña showed Sporting were very much up for a battle. In the sixth minute Ruben Dias rose highest from a corner to elicit a fine save from the Lions keeper Salin. Moments later play switched to the other end of the pitch as Montero stabbed a Bruno Fernandes cross over the bar.
It was end-to-end stuff and back came Benfica with Salin producing an even better diving save to deny Dias. Soon afterwards the French goalkeeper was at full stretch again to foil Cervi as Benfica began to turn up the pressure. The second half started off in the same vein, with Benfica on top and it needed another fine diving save by Salin to keep out a deflected Pizzi shot.
Fifteen minutes after the interval and against the run of play, Sporting took the lead. Bruno Fernandes skipped down the right and whipped in a cross, with Rúben Dias bringing down Fredy Montero as he attempted to finish. Nani stepped up and made no mistake from the spot.
Benfica poured forward, helped by attacking substitutions as Zivkovic, João Félix and Seferovic were thrown into the fray by coach Rui Vitória.
Sporting held on with relative ease until five minutes from time when Rafa sent over a perfect centre for Félix to head powerfully into the net. The 18-year-old was in seventh heaven having scored his first senior goal at such a crucial time in a big match.
Urged on by the crowd, Benfica continued to flood forward, with man-of-the-match Salin again saving well from a Grimaldo free-kick to ensure the Lions took away a share of the points. Having blown a 3-0 lead against newly-promoted Santa Clara the previous week, SC Braga were in no mood to repeat the feat against Portuguese Cup holders Desportivo das Aves.
Despite their attacking intent, the game was goalless at half-time but seven minutes after the break Rodrigo Defendi gave Desportivo Aves the lead. Wilson Eduardo soon levelled the score before goals from Paulinha (60’) and Dyego Sousa (78’) took Braga to the top of the table. Feirense drew 1-1 with Boavista to stay in the top four.
SC Portimonense gained their first point and goals of the new campaign with a 2-2 draw against Santa Clara. The visitors from the Azores took the lead after five minutes through Cardoso but Bruno Tabata’s strike just after the interval made it all square.
Manafá then gave Portimonense the lead in the sixty-fourth minute but the same player then scored in his own net moments later to ensure the islanders returned home with a point.