March 17, (THEWILL) — Sporting CP produced one of the most striking UEFA Champions League turnarounds in recent memory, beating Bodo/Glimt 5-0 on Tuesday to overturn a 3-0 first-leg deficit and progress to the quarter-finals 5-3 on aggregate.
The Norwegian visitors had looked set for the last eight after their dominant display in the opening leg, but they were largely toothless at Estadio Jose Alvalade and paid dearly for their failure to threaten the Sporting goal with any consistency.
Goncalo Inacio gave the Portuguese side the perfect foundation in the 34th minute, meeting Trincao’s corner with a precise header. Pote doubled the advantage after the break, firing home from close range following a swift counter initiated by Luis Suarez. Suarez then took responsibility from the penalty spot after VAR penalised Fredrik Bjorkan for handball, sending the goalkeeper the wrong way to level the tie at 3-3.
Odin Bjortuft struck the crossbar twice in quick succession for Bodo just before the interval, while Nuno Santos clipped the post in the 83rd minute, with the aggregate score remaining tied heading into extra time.
Maxi Araujo settled matters within 83 seconds of the additional period, curling his finish past the goalkeeper to put Sporting ahead on aggregate for the first time. Rafael Nel then rounded off a comprehensive victory with an emphatic finish into the roof of the net in the 121st minute.
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
