Portimonense save themselves and send Farense into relegation playoff – Portugal Resident
Portimonense secured survival in Portugal’s second division on Sunday night after beating rivals Farense 1-0 in a decisive Algarve derby that pushed the Faro club into the relegation playoff.
The final round of the Liga Portugal 2 season settled the battle to avoid relegation, with Portimonense surviving on the final day while Paços de Ferreira were relegated to Liga 3 despite winning their own match against Penafiel.
Going into the decisive match, Farense held a three-point advantage over Portimonense and sat just outside the bottom three places. But the clash at the nearly packed Estádio Municipal de Portimão changed everything.
The only goal of the match came in the 26th minute when Samy scored a powerful header from a corner kick, giving Portimonense the victory they needed to stay in the division.
Managed by Tiago Fernandes, the Portimão side defended their lead strongly in the second half as Farense pushed for an equaliser that would have allowed them to avoid the playoff place.
Farense coach José Faria, who replaced Jorge Silas earlier in the season, saw his team fall into the relegation playoff despite finishing level on points (40) with Portimonense due to an inferior head-to-head record, as Farense had already lost to their Algarve rivals in Faro earlier this season.
Farense will now face historic Portuguese club Belenenses – one of just two clubs, alongside Boavista, to win the Portuguese first division title outside of Benfica, Porto and Sporting – in a playoff to decide who plays in next season’s second division.
