Portuguese Abroad goals round-up: Brilliant Leão puts Milan on brink of Scudetto; Champion Jota signs off with Celtic goal; Amaral fires Lech Poznan to Polish title; Bruma on target for PSV; Carvalho, Candeias score in Greece, Turkey
AC Milan are on the brink of their first Italian title in eleven years, with Rafael Leão once again proving the catalyst in another Rossoneri win on the penultimate weekend in Serie A. The Portuguese forward scored a second-half opener in a 2-0 win over Atalanta at San Siro, which gives Milan a two-point lead over Inter heading into next weekend’s final round.
Elsewhere, Jota was recently crowned Scottish Premiership champion with Celtic, and he ended the season with a goal in their 6-0 win over Motherwell on the final day. Lech Poznan are the new Polish champions with João Amaral again on the scoresheet, while Bruma also scored for runners-up PSV as the Dutch Eredivisie played its final matchday.
AC Milan are just one point away from clinching their first Italian league title since 2011, after victory against Atalanta at San Siro gave them a firth straight win. Once again, Portuguese forward Rafael Leão was instrumental in deciding the outcome, with the former Sporting man racing through to put Milan ahead ten minutes into the second half. Theo Hernandez’s wonderful solo goal made it 2-0 and put the Rossoneri within touching distance of glory.
Milan lead city rivals Inter by two points with one match remaining, and a superior head-to-head record means just a draw will do away at Sassuolo next Sunday. Leão has been instrumental in Milan hitting winning form in recent weeks, scoring three goals and providing three assists in their last six outings.
Newspaper La Gazette dello Sport was glowing about Leão in Monday’s edition, writing “give him a game to break through and he won’t let you down.” With 11 goals in Serie A, Leão is enjoying the best season of his career so far, and could be rewarded with his first league title if Milan can get the result they need at Sassuolo.
Jota signs off with a goal
One Portuguese forward already celebrating a league title is Benfica loanee Jota, who last week clinched the Scottish Premiership with Celtic. The hoops clinched the title last week and end the season four points clear of Glasgow rivals Rangers, after a convincing 6-0 win over Motherwell on Saturday at Celtic Park.
Jota got the fourth with a precise finish on his favoured left foot from close range, putting him on 10 league goals for the season. With goals in domestic cups and the Europa League, the 23-year-old ends the campaign with 13 in all competitions, representing his breakthrough season as a goalscorer.
Many Celtic fans are eagerly awaiting a decision on Jota’s future, as his loan deal expires this summer. A report in Portugal earlier this month suggested Jota’s preference is to stay with Celtic on a permanent deal, but it remains to be seen whether the clubs will come to an agreement for the Lisbon native.
???????? ???????????????????????????????????? ???????????????????????? ????????????????????!
— Celtic Football Club (@CelticFC) May 15, 2022
⚽️⚽️ @Kyogo_Furuhashi
⚽️ @10DavidTurnbull
⚽️ Jota
⚽️⚽️ Giakoumakis
All the goals from Trophy day as the #cinchPrem Champs hit SIX past Motherwell! ????????️ pic.twitter.com/pISbNWIzIM
Amaral scores as Lech clinch Polish title
Lech Poznan are the new champions in Poland, and it was fitting that star man João Amaral was one of the scorers in their crucial 2-1 win at Warta Poznan. Amaral has been one of the standout players in the Ekstraklasa this season with 14 goals all scored from open play, and his lethal finish on his left foot drew Lech back on level terms in the game. Title rivals Rakow Czestochowa were beaten later in the afternoon, giving Lech a five-point advantage at the top with one game left and therefore securing their 8th league title.
The rest: Bruma scores for PSV, as Carvalho celebrates title with goal
Roger Schmidt took charge of his final game with Netherlands giants PSV on Sunday, ahead of his proposed move to Benfica this summer. Having already won the Dutch Cup, PSV missed out on the Eredivisie title to Ajax, but ended the season with a 2-1 win at PEC Zwolle, with Portugal international Bruma getting the opener in the 11th minute.
Olympiacos were crowned Greek champions for the third year running earlier this month, with several games left to play. Their penultimate match took place this weekend as they drew 1-1 with PAOK at home, and both goals were scored by Portuguese: Filipe Soares gave visitors PAOK the lead inside two minutes, before João Carvalho levelled. Elsewhere in the Greek Super League, Dálcio struck for Ionikos as they ran out 3-1 winners of Panaitolikos.
In the Spanish Segunda Division, Real Zaragoza played out a six-goal thriller in drawing 3-3 at Real Oviedo on Monday, which saw defender Jair Amador among the scorers. In Turkey, Daniel Candeias got the third as Alanyaspor beat Gaziantep 3-0 to keep their hopes of European qualification alive, while there was a brace for the free-scoring Pedro Eugénio in Kazakhstan for Astana as they won 6-0 at home against Kairat.
Finally, there were goals for Tino Barbosa in Luxembourg with Differdange and Miguel Vítor in Israel with Hapoel Be’er Sheva, and in Cyprus as André Teixeira (AEL Limassol), Benny (Doxa) and Miguelito (Nea Salamis) all found the net this weekend.
By Sean Gillen