The perfect midfield: It starts with never passing the ball to Ronaldo.

The numbers on the scoreboard changed again: Benfica 1-2 Porto

The stadium fell into a deathly silence, except for the volcano of thousands of Dragons fans who erupted at that moment.

Louis-Jacques stood with his hands on his hips, head bowed, his chest heaving violently.

His mind went blank, with only that eerie arc replaying on and on.

As an experienced Brazilian veteran, he has seen countless long-range shooting masters and has been teammates with masters such as Roberto Carlos and Ronaldinho.

But he still found it incredible that he could use the outside of his foot to hit such a beautifully sloping, free-kick ball from that position.

Their skills and speed are both top-notch!

That eighteen-year-old, a full twelve years younger than me, is truly a genius!

On the sidelines, Benfica manager Gabriel Jesus turned away and waved helplessly. His tactical arrangements and defensive strategies seemed pale and laughable in the face of this extraordinary goal.

Genius is truly difficult to measure using common sense...

Damn Sporting Lisbon! Giving away a player of this caliber to the opponent is simply unforgivable!

There's not much to say. The Eagles of the Stadium of Light are not going to sit idly by. Jesus waved his hand and continued his fierce attack.

Porto, on the other hand, did not retreat while they were ahead. Instead, they used the interception ability of their two defensive midfielders to keep their formation high.

The two sides engaged in a fierce battle in midfield, and a dramatic scene unfolded in the 17th minute.

Benfica goalkeeper Arthur receives a back pass from his teammate, but the Brazilian, who has performed well for half a season, seems hesitant at this moment.

He initially intended to launch the ball long, but then decided to make a short pass to right-back Almeida.

Just as he adjusted, a blue and white figure darted out like a cheetah!

"Jackson Martinez!"

Porto's high-pressing tactics in the attacking third paid off!

"This time he successfully anticipated the opponent's pass!"

The Colombian striker intercepted the soft pass with precision and easily slotted the ball into the wide-open net.

1:3

Porto have changed the score again!

"A super, super, super, super basic mistake!!"

"Martinez seized this gift!"

"To be honest, this shouldn't have happened!"

"For Benfica, things have gotten even worse!!!"

The commentator couldn't believe his eyes and used a lot of reduplicated words when he spoke.

In Benfica's own half, Arthur knelt in front of the goal, looking dejected, with his hands covering his head.

The entire Stadium of Light fell into a deathly silence, and the cheers of the home team's fans came to an abrupt halt.

Less than 20 minutes into the game, we, the league champions, conceded three goals. The die-hard fans in the stands rubbed their eyes, looking incredulous!

This mistake was absolutely unacceptable!

Club management, hurry up and get the goalkeeper back from the loan to River Ave!

Defensive players are so pitiful; for them, a single fatal mistake can make them the villains of the team.

Jesus looked equally speechless. He wanted to vent his anger on the water bottle next to him, but fortunately, the assistant coach pulled him back in time.

"The game has only just begun, and this is our home ground!!"

"In the El Clásico, we'll show the Porto people the courage and strength of the eagles!!"

Matic and Gaitan, who displayed impressive mental fortitude on the field, encouraged their teammates while also urging the fans to raise their cheers.

In a derby match, the phrase "surrender" will never come up!

The Benfica players on the field played more aggressively.

The scene shifts, and the home team launches an attack down the right flank.

Facing a double-team, the Argentine winger Salvio made a sudden stop and change of direction to create space, and then immediately delivered a cross.

Move past the front point and sweep towards the back point!

Argentine midfielder Gaitán also displayed his attacking instincts, making a beautiful forward run to find a gap in Porto's defense.

Control the ball with your chest, then take a step to adjust.

Facing Elton, he opted to shoot into the far corner!

Both are veteran Brazilian players, but Porto's goalkeeper was in better form today, making a beautiful diving save to tip the ball out of bounds!

"Gaitan's handling of the situation was quite excellent!"

"The entire sequence from unloading the ball to kicking it was executed flawlessly!!"

"It's just a pity that Elton kept the ball out of the net!!"

"A corner kick opportunity!"

"The battle between the two teams in the penalty area was very intense, and the referee has already warned both teams twice!"

"A golden opportunity was saved by the opponent, and Benfica became even more impatient!"

"Keep in mind, they were already in the chasing position on the leaderboard!"

"If they lose this match, they can only wait for their opponents to make mistakes, and they can't afford to make just one mistake!!"

The ball was kicked out again, and Salvio looked for the far post again, this time another Argentine got to it.

Otamendi successfully cleared the ball, Jackson headed it to Moutinho and then quickly moved forward himself.

During the brief transition between attack and defense, before the Benfica players had a chance to fully retreat, Mario, a representative of the fiery midfield style, had already taken off and sprinted ahead.

Without a moment's hesitation, the Porto captain launched a long pass, and the ball landed precisely in front of Mario on the right side of the center circle.

Porto's counterattack!

Quickly get through the midfield!

Mario, whose physical fitness is above average, can handle the back-and-forth running during this period with ease.

He skillfully used his chest to deflect the ball sideways.

The ball, which was falling at high speed, obediently stopped a meter in front of his left foot in an instant. The whole movement was smooth and fluid, as if the ball itself was sticky.

The weakness of being able to quickly catch up with the ball and advance, but not being able to overwhelm the opponent with speed, becomes apparent at this moment.

The sprint was rather long, and the Thunder's left-back, Melgar, was slowly closing in.

On the other side, the center-back Luisão, who was dragging back, was also moving laterally towards the left side of the penalty area, aiming to form a standard double-team with his teammates.

He lowered his center of gravity, blocked the inside line, and left Mario with a seemingly safe but actually ineffective way out, either to walk to the sideline away from the goal or to pass back to turn the game into a positional attack!

The defenders behind him were getting closer and closer, and in a flash, Mario seemed to give in to their guidance.

He gently touched the ball forward with his left foot, and his body weight shifted towards the sideline, as if he was about to get away from the goal and go down the wing.

This tricked Melgar of the Thunder, who, after tracking back to his position, tried to block the path of their breakthrough on the wing.

Luisão also slightly relaxed his absolute blockade of the inside, ready to cover for crosses from the byline at any time.

However, Mario's tilted center of gravity was just an illusion. His left foot did not move the ball forward, but at the moment of contact, he used the outside of his foot to sharply cut the ball to the right front!

Reverse bulltail dribble!

It's still my non-dominant foot!

Although it was slightly less skillful, this handling was truly beyond the opponent's expectations!

At this moment, Benfica's defense has a tiny gap due to a misjudgment!

As the ball changed direction, Mario's body also twisted back from its leftward lean, stepping into the narrow passage created by the spike.

Louisson was terrified and hurriedly turned around to block, but this one-step difference was enough for a top attacker.

Mario doesn't need any extra step adjustments.

This spot!

Just shoot!