Santa Clara, a club from Portugal’s top football league, narrowly avoided a humiliating upset in the Taça de Portugal on Saturday, defeating district-level Sp. Espinho 4-2 on penalties after a scoreless 120 minutes.
The Liga Betclic side was pushed to the brink by an aggressive Sp. Espinho team from a regional district league, with the lower-ranked club battling equally throughout regulation and extra time. Santa Clara goalkeeper Neneca emerged as the hero, saving two crucial penalties in the shootout.
Despite the significant league disparity, Sp. Espinho started aggressively, creating early opportunities. Brazilian player Wendel had a clear chance to score in the 14th minute, but Santa Clara’s André Fonseca made the save.
Sp. Espinho’s Willy was sent off in the 60th minute after receiving a second yellow card, leaving his team with ten players. However, Santa Clara failed to capitalize on the numerical advantage, hitting the post two minutes later through José Tavares in their best scoring opportunity of the match.
Frustration mounted for Santa Clara as they struggled to breach Espinho’s resilient defense. In added time at the end of regulation, Santa Clara’s Anthony Carter received a straight red card for assaulting Espinho’s goalkeeper, leveling the playing field to ten men for each side heading into extra time.
In the 30 minutes of added play, Luquinhas had a golden opportunity to secure a win for Santa Clara, but his chip shot went wide of the goal.
The game proceeded to a penalty shootout at Parque de Jogos Joaquim Domingos Maia. Neneca denied Pedro Santos and Guerra from the spot, allowing Santa Clara to convert four penalties through Elias Manoel, Paulo Victor, Adriano, and Sidney Lima to clinch the win.
Sp. Espinho’s goals in the shootout came from Vasco Vieira and Leo Araújo. The result prevented a significant “giant-killing” upset in the third round of the Portuguese Cup.