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Sporting CP win 3-1 against FC Alverca 22 Aug, 2026 The team make it consecutive victories in Liga Portugal Sporting Clube de Portugal took a 3-1 home win over FC Alverca 3-1 on Liga Portugal Matchday 3, as Maxi Araújo scored the opener, followed by an own goal and a second half strike from Luis Suárez. In front of a packed Estádio José Alvalade with over 50,000 fans in attendance, Rui Borges made four changes to the starting XI from the team that beat Vitória SC: Georgios Vagiannidis, Gonçalo Inácio, Eduardo Quaresma, and Fotis Ioannidis were replaced by Iván Fresneda, Zeno Debast, Ibrahima Ba, and Luis Suárez to begin the game. For Ibrahima Ba, it was his first appearance for Sporting CP, with Nestory Irankunda in the squad for the first time. Just two minutes into the second half, the team took the lead. Following a recovery in midfield, Maxi Araújo advanced with the ball and tried his luck from outside the area, smashing in his first goal of the 2026/27 campaign. Play slowed down somewhat thereafter, as the two teams took time to implement their style of play. FC Alverca sought to press high, whilst Sporting CP responded with long balls into the box. Amidst this tactical battle, a combination by Sporting CP in the 24th minute saw them go forward, albeit without the finishing touch. Ten minutes later was there a dangerous chance, when Flávio Gonçalves struck over the bar from a free kick. After another free kick into the area and Ibrahima Ba's initial header that was cleared by the defence, the ball fell to Gonçalves again, his drive saved by goalkeeper Matheus Mendes. In response, and in the last noteworthy play before halftime, FC Alverca’s Figueiredo aimed for goal from distance, but Rui Silva made a comprehensive save. Following the interval, Sporting CP dominated possession but created few opportunities. Despite the slow pace, another goal came early for them, on 55 minutes. In an attack down the right flank, Geny Catamo got into space before trying to set up a teammate, but Matheus Mendes, attempting to clear the danger, ended up putting the ball into his own net and taking the score to 2-0. FC Alverca tried to react immediately, with Bojang heading wide off a corner kick, but it was Sporting CP who swiftly got their third goal. On the hour, Geny Catamo played through Luis Suárez with a beautiful pass, and the Colombian rounded the goalkeeper to finish into an empty net. With the game practically decided, Sporting CP continued to play better and threatened a fourth goal with a great team move, but Issa Doumbia missed the target. Catamo and Flávio Gonçalves were replaced by Luís Guilherme and Nestory Irankunda, who played his first minutes for the club and was greeted by a loud applause from the crowd. After another shot from Issa Doumbia went wide, Rui Borges took off Zeno Debast and Luis Suárez and brought on Eduardo Quaresma and Rafael Nel. FC Alverca enjoyed a rare chance in the 81st minute, with a shot from Zakaria Kessary that was saved by Rui Silva. Five minutes later, consecutive shots from Luís Guilherme, Rodrigo Zalazar and Rafael Nel were saved by Matheus Mendes. Pedro Lima came on to make his debut for Sporting CP, replacing Rodrigo Zalazar, and FC Alverca scored a consolation goal with a powerful shot from Figueiredo. Issa Doumbia had two chances and Lima another, but the score remained 3-1 at full time. Sporting CP will now visit Rio Ave FC on Friday, August 28th, at 8:15pm. Sporting CP: Rui Silva [GK], Iván Fresneda, Zeno Debast (Eduardo Quaresma, 75'), Ibrahima Ba, Maxi Araújo [C], Sergi Altimira, Issa Doumbia, Geny Catamo (Luís Guilherme, 68'), Rodrigo Zalazar (Pedro Lima, 88'), Flávio Gonçalves (Nestory Irankunda, 68') and Luis Suárez (Rafael Nel, 75').