Porto Win Their 23rd Title But Could Be Relegated

By: Inara | April 6th, 2008

Porto cruised to their third successive title today after beating Estrela Amadora 6-0 at home. Now that’s what I call winning with style. Watch Lucho Gonzalez, Tarik Sektioui, Ricardo Quaresma, Bruno Alves, and Lisandro Lopez (as well as Mauricio, who scored an own goal) share the spoils below.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nJylFlGG4V8

Having accumulated 63 points and with only five games left to play, they’re an untouchable 18 points ahead of Vitoria Guimaraes, who could only manage a draw today. Familiar faces Benfica are in third place at the moment while Sporting Lisbon are hanging out in fifth.

This is Porto’s 23rd title, though this is the first time that they’ve won it so early. Compare that to last year, when Porto won the Portuguese league by only a single point on the very last day.

What’s really crazy is the fact that Porto have conceded only nine league goals all season. Their goalkeeper, Helton, needs a big fat raise.

But don’t break out the champagne just yet. Porto and their club president, Pinto da Costa, are currently being investigated for match-fixing during their 2003-2004 season. If the Portuguese Professional Football League (LPFP) find Porto guilty, they can either deduct six points from them or have them relegated. Porto is already busy at work with their team of lawyers and plans to lodge an appeal next week.

The good news – if it can be called that – is even if Porto are found guilty, they still get to keep their 2003-2004 title because the results of that year have already been ratified. And even if they lose six points, which would theoretically reignite the title race, Porto would still have a twelve point lead that would probably see them win the title anyway.

Sweet.

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ricardo

Just 1 more thing: Porto will not be demoted. The only punishment possible is a 6 points deduction. That's it.
We are suspect of passive corruption. And the Champions League and UEFA Cup aren't in anyway in doubt.
Pedro

The truth might be somewhat more complicated than that...

For the past 20 years, the suspician climate surrounding FC Porto, has been immense. And it's not just something Sporting and Benfica fans feel. Likewhise, this climate doesn't revolve around FC Porto exclusivelly.

Some 6-7 years ago, Judiciary Police leader, Maria Morgado, released a book, in which it was more or less insinuated that +/- all the portuguese football world, was like a big net. You start pulling a string and it all follows...

Like Italy but at a smaller scale...
Although in PT the two biggest clubs aren't yet "owned" by the prime minister and media owner, nor the biggest car industry group... 8)

Now, the reality seems to be that the it all boils down to 2 matches, where ironically FC Porto had absolutelly no need of bribing refs, in a season they dominated everything and also won the Champions League.
One particular case is a ridiculous draw against all mighty Beira Mar, not even in the 1st currently, in Mourinho's days...
This is absolutelly ridiculous...

So, they'll either be found guilty on that, which means that all the suspicions were sort of right and nothing other than these 2 matches could be found, (which gives you a feeling of utter injustice and that everything everybody noticed, for some 20 years, was actually true, and in that case 6 points is really close to nothing); OR they are not found guilty, and the satus quo remains, and it all goes down in history books as portuguese/latin tendency for a suspicion climate, they're all in it and none is better than the other, etc...

I'm not an expert, but if you ask me, it's obvious that in past years FC Porto was clealry favoured by refs, with worse than all, a certain sense of impunity.

Problem is this has to be proven.

In the middle of all this, FC Porto has, at the same time, deserved all their victories. This year was paradigmatic. Their dominion was clear. And for them, the thought is obvious: "we're that good, you can take away 6 points, we still have a 14 lead, we're still champions". Their economic and sportive managment, together with their performanvce, along the years, has clearly been a notch above the others. Like it or not.

Contrary to Italy, Portugal does not have a Sports Tribunal. So everything has to go through "civil"/"normal" chanels.

If you ask me, they might be charged, loose 6 points, their past gets errased and cleansed, and other smaller teams will get more severe punishments, as others will probably also be found guilty. I don't think a revolution will happen.

Just to finish, it is important to say that in PT, complaining about the ref and a general suspicion climate is the atmosfere. Which makes it very difficult to judge the facts, or even determine them.

@Jon: like it or not, Mourinho is currently the best coach in the world, by a long, long mile... One might argue about C Ronaldo, but I think that there's no possible argument around Mourinho...
@Dave: if FCP'd get banished from Europe, you'd have to ban Juve from the globe...
Jon

Ahhh, so THAT'S why Mourinho won games.
VictorM

If the charges are true, the punishment must be severe.
Imran

...if they are found guilty. let's just give them the benefit of the doubt.
Kevin

Ban them from the Champions League and UEFA Cup...and subtract the six points from NEXT SEASON at the start.
Dave's Football Blog

Could they ban Porto from Europe? That would seem like a more appropriate punishment than either a meaningless points deduction or a harsh relegation.