The 18-year-old striker gave victory to the lions over Amora, in the 1st round of Liga 3
• Photo: Sporting CP
Sporting B triumphed on Wednesday against Amora, in what was the 1st round of the 2023/24 edition of Liga 3 and that had some new faces in the young lions. Among them, Rafael Nel, an 18-year-old striker who last season reconciled the evolution between juniors and the under-23 team, and this time he started the new season with the ‘bês’ and… on a hot foot.
In his debut for the team coached by Filipe Çelikkaya, Nel was decisive when he scored the only winning goal (1-0) over Amora, at Estádio Aurélio Pereira, at Academia de Alcochete, and speaking to Canal 11 highlighted the special moment lived in his still short career.
“It was an incredible moment! Scoring on your debut is always special. We are the youngest team in Liga 3 and that is important for us to improve as players and men. Catching older teams is very good for growing up”, confessed the 18-year-old striker, addressing the difficulty of facing opponents with different experience: “It’s always different to catch older guys. We have a very young team and taking a victory away from Amora was very positive. We managed to create many opportunities, we have a very competitive championship and a tough season is coming .”
Already with an eye on the next round, against Sp. Covilhã, Rafael Nel, who has a contract for two more seasons with the lions and is shielded by a clause of 45 million euros, was optimistic. “Covilhã has experienced players, many of them with a career in the 2nd League. Which is good for them and for us. They have a lot of experience, but we are prepared and we are not going to make it easy”, made it clear the young striker who reached the green and whites from Belenenses, this already after having been in the initial phase of training at Benfica, and this calendar year he has already played four competitions (1st junior division, Liga 3, Liga Revelação and Youth League).
By Record
2023-08-10 17:22:25
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