八字万年历

Chapter 215: First Domestic Cup

The referee blew for kickoff and the match resumed once again and Benfica’s battle against time began.

Porto was the team with possession since they were the ones who kicked off, but Benfica wasn’t planning on letting them hold the ball for long and ran at them with as much strength as they could muster, desperation in their every step.

Benfica soon regained possession of the ball and immediately tried to launch an attack, but Porto responded defensively with even more vigor than the Benfica team was putting out.

On the sidelines, an assistant referee held up the board to show that there would be four additional minutes.

The Benfica team seemed a bit energized by the fact that they had been given four extra minutes to try and get the breakthrough they so dearly wanted, but the Porto team thought differently… they would have to hold onto their lead for the next four minutes if they wanted to lift the trophy without having to go into extra time.

They didn’t want to have to do things the harder way by conceding and then have to fight tooth and nail in extra time and maybe even end up in a penalty shootout.

They didn’t need that when they could win by simply just holding out.

Thus they stood strong in the face of every Benfica attack, blocking, marking, and tackling for all they were worth.

They were doing their utmost best to keep the Benfica team at bay and they were succeeding at running down the clock as well.

Of course, every now and then, the Benfica team managed to get past the Porto defense, but the efforts of the Porto defense at throwing the player with the ball off and preventing them from getting a clear shot kept them from being able to send a single shot on target and finally…

*Fweeeeeeeee*

}

The dreaded whistle that the Benfica players and fans didn’t wish to hear at that moment blared loudly through the stadium.

For the Porto players and fans, however, it was like a signal to start celebrating and they did just that.

Gathering around in a team circle, they began jumping in joy and even the players on the bench and the team staff came to join them.

{It’s been blown!}

{With that final whistle, the Taca de Portugal’s much anticipated final has come to an end!}

{Porto come out on top after a hectic battle that displayed much of why these two teams are known to be rivals!]

{For today, however, Porto come out on top!}

{They have proven that the dragons are indeed the masters of the sky and they have covered the sky at the moment, leaving no space for the eagles to fly!}

{After losing the Taca da Liga trophy to Braga earlier in the season, Porto have gone on to claim what was left of the Portuguese accolades for this season and they have done so greedily!}

{Not only did they take the title of League Leaders home with them, they have now taken the Taca de Portugal trophy!}

{They’re leaving nothing in their wake!

The Porto fans in their respective residences began dancing around their living quarters while pulling out their beer cups.

It was going to be a long night in Porto.

The fans could not be physically present at the stadium to witness their team lift the trophy, but they would watch it from their homes while warming up their bellies with beer that the city of Porto was famous for.

Back at the stadium, the Porto players continued celebrating, not caring for their dejected opponents who were lying, kneeling, and sitting on the ground with utter dejection on their faces.

Some of the Benfica players even looked like they would cry and some of them probably were already doing so, but no one could tell since their faces were covered.

For any player, it was already hard enough to lose a match, and if it was a match that held a lot of stakes, it felt even worse.

The Benfica players were experiencing this pain at the moment.

They had tried and tried, but the goal just didn’t come and in the end, they had lost.

They had no excuses, they had not played as well as the Porto team and had gone behind not just once, but twice in a game that was supposed to be played with full focus.

As a consequence of their actions, they would be going home as the second best and that was a lot to take in for a team like Benfica, especially when it was against a rival team like Porto.

The same could be said for the Benfica fans. Some of them were already tearing up in their homes as the reality set in that their team had lost.

Their hopes of taking at least one trophy home in the 2019/20 season had been dashed and they would be empty-handed until the next season.

It truly was a lot to take in.

The Porto players though, didn’t care and were already preparing to receive their medals at the Estadio Cidade de Coimbra.

The stage had been set and the people who would present the trophy had arrived.

Player after player went up, received a medal, and went up the stage behind the Taca de Portugal trophy.

Soon it was the team captain’s turn.

Pepe not only received a handshake and a medal, he was also handed the trophy that he then took over to his teammates, holding it up carefully with both of his hands.

The Porto players bounded around, jumping on their feet while still in place. The excitement flowing through them made it hard for them to stay still as Pepe brought over the trophy.

Arriving in front of the players, the players all crowded around as the trophy was brought low, and then at the count of three it was raised up high with the players’ cheers and the unheard cheers of the fans in their homes.

Camera lights flashed everywhere and dazzling sparks burst forth on the sides.

Even fireworks were sent into the sky and they burst forth in a beautiful array of color showers.