Brentford had scouts in the stands as Sporting beat Famalicão 2-1 on Saturday, with Portuguese newspaper [**A Bola**](http://abola.pt) confirming their presence.
The Bees were part of a long list of clubs represented in the stands, alongside Barcelona, Atlético Madrid, Elche, Almería, Deportivo, Rennes, Bologna and even the Angolan FA. The London side used the trip to make notes on possible targets.
The match offered no shortage of strong individual performances for scouts to note down. Pedro Gonçalves stood out once again for Sporting, scoring with a trivela finish and later providing the assist for Luis Suárez’s winning goal. The Colombian striker continued his excellent run of form after the international break, finding the net for the fifth time in just a few days.
Sporting also had contributions from Georgios Vagiannidis, who is showing signs of development in demanding circumstances recently. Famalicão, meanwhile, saw 20-year-old midfielder Gustavo Sá open the scoring, while Senegalese centre-back Ibrahima Ba showed lots of quality on defense.
The fixture was seen as one of the toughest tests in the league, with Famalicão arriving unbeaten at home in 2025 and boasting the best defensive record in Portugal before the weekend. That context made Sporting’s win more significant and gave scouts an opportunity to watch players performing under pressure in a competitive environment.
For Brentford, the Portuguese market has become a familiar hunting ground, with the club repeatedly sending representatives to Liga Portugal games over recent seasons.
While the specific targets from Saturday remain undisclosed, the opportunity to see experienced leaders like Pedro Gonçalves and Suárez alongside emerging talents such as Ba and Sá will have provided plenty of material for analysis.