FC Porto's perfect start to the Primeira Liga season rolled on in Guimarães on Sunday, as substitute Martim Fernandes struck an 86th-minute winner to beat Vitória 2-1 at the Estádio D. Afonso Henriques and make it 11 wins from 11 for the leaders.
Porto had already seen one effort ruled out midway through the first half when Borja Sainz swept home the opener in the 38th minute, giving the visitors a lead their early pressure had threatened. It was the Spanish winger's latest contribution in a Porto shirt, and it silenced a home crowd that had come hoping to bloody the nose of the league's runaway early pace-setters.
Vitória, to their credit, refused to treat the afternoon as a coronation. The hosts racked up 16 shots to Porto's 12 and forced Diogo Costa into five saves, the Porto captain standing firm behind a defence that has built this winning run on control as much as flair. For long spells of the second half, an equaliser felt inevitable rather than merely possible.
Substitutes settle a contest Vitória refused to lose
It arrived in the 77th minute, and it came from the bench. Alan, introduced in the 64th minute, turned in Gustavo's pass to level the scores and spark bedlam among the home supporters. Vitória had chased the game for almost 40 minutes, and for nine minutes they could dream of taking a point — or more — off the leaders.
But Porto's bench had the final word. Martim Fernandes, himself a 58th-minute replacement for Sainz, converted Pepê's pass with four minutes remaining to restore the lead and break Vitória hearts. As VAVEL's full-time report noted, the right-back's late strike sealed a win that had looked to be slipping away, while Tuga Futebol's match analysis underlined the difference between the sides: Vitória's volume of shots produced an expected-goals figure of just 0.72, against Porto's 1.64. The visitors carried the sharper threat, and Costa's five saves did the rest.
It continues a start to the season that is gathering a relentless momentum, on every front. Domestically flawless, Porto have also announced themselves in Europe this month with a 4-1 Champions League rout of Napoli at the Dragão — the same blend of defensive discipline and clinical finishing that was on show again in Guimarães.
So what does it mean for the title race?
Porto move on to 33 points from 11 matches — 11 wins, no draws, no defeats. Benfica, on 25 points with a game in hand, can trim the gap to five when they visit Estrela Amadora later on Sunday, but even a win there leaves them chasing a side that simply refuses to drop points. Sporting, 1-0 winners over Moreirense on Saturday, sit third on 24 points, already nine adrift of the summit.
The calendar now offers the race its first true flashpoint: Porto host Sporting at the Estádio do Dragão on November 29, a night that could either crack the title race open or effectively end it before December. For Vitória, meanwhile, a spirited performance brought no reward; they remain stuck on nine points, and performances like this one will need to start producing results if their season is not to drift into the lower reaches of the table.
Beyond the Final Whistle: This is what champions-in-waiting look like. Porto did not dominate in Guimarães — they were outshot, pegged back and pushed to the brink — but they found a winner from their bench in the 86th minute, because that is what relentless teams do. Eleven wins from eleven is no longer a hot start; it is a statement. Can anyone stop Porto's perfect run, or is the Primeira Liga title race already a procession? Have your say in the comments.
