Sporting pulled off a remarkable comeback on Tuesday night, thrashing FK Bodø/Glimt 5-0 after extra time to book their place in the Champions League quarter-finals.
After a harsh 3-0 defeat in Norway in the first leg, the Lisbon side turned the tie around in dramatic fashion at home.
Goals from Gonçalo Inácio (34 minutes), Pedro Gonçalves (61) and Luis Suárez (78, penalty) brought Sporting level on aggregate by the end of the 90 minutes.
With momentum firmly on their side, Sporting pushed on in extra time, with Maxi Araújo scoring just after the restart (92) before Rafael Nel sealed an emphatic victory deep into stoppage time (120+1).
The result sends Sporting into the quarter-finals of the UEFA Champions League for only the second time in their history, the first time since the 1982/83 European Cup campaign.
The ‘Lions’ will now face Arsenal, the current leaders of the Premier League. The matchup will also serve as a reunion between Sporting and Viktor Gyökeres, the Swedish star striker who wowed the Portuguese League for two seasons before departing for the UK last summer.
