Zenit 3-3 Sporting

"A game of two halves" says the old adage... and this one certainly was: one half without Santi, one half with him.

Daniele B put Zenit ahead in the first period and Antonio tried to double the lead early in period 2, but Adriano saved well. Ryan fired a shot in for Sporting but Daniele P scored again for Zenit when he collected a ball in the centre, dribbled past two defenders and squeezed the ball home. Hugo scored a third and the game looked to be beyond the Lisbon team now.

Then Santiago made it down for the third period and had an immediate impact on the game. He was brought down by Diego D on the edge of the area and Marco stepped up to make it 3-1. Santiago kept the momentum going with surging runs in possession and he pounced on a defensive error to make it 3-2. Zenit now resembled a rabbit caught in the headlights, stunned and unable to move. With time ticking away, Marco turned on a ball out on the left and launched a majestic shot into the opposite top corner to make it 3-3.

Zenit collected themselves for the final two minutes and managed to keep Sporting at bay to harvest a precious and hard-earned point.

BEST PLAYER POINTS: Santiago 5, Daniele P 4, Marco 3, Hugo 3, Daniel 3, Diego D 3, Zach 2, Ryan 2, Antonio 2, Daniele B 1