The coach says what he expects from the cup game against Gil Vicente FC

Sporting Clube de Portugal play Gil Vicente FC this Thursday, in the quarter-finals of the Taça de Portugal. Coach Rui Borges gave his thoughts before the game in his pre-match press conference.

“Gil Vicente FC are a side that play very well, especially their attacking play -where they have a lot of mobility, a lot of quality and a good ability to make decisions. Therefore, I consider them a difficult team to face. They really enjoy their football and are not afraid of exposing themselves to mistakes," he analysed.

"They have a new coach, who hasn't changed the defensive or offensive structure much, but, in any case, due to the individual and collective quality they have, Gil Vicente FC will cause us many difficulties -so at no point can we afford to switch off. In addition to being a good team, they will certainly be motivated to reach the semifinals of the Taça de Portugal, which is a competition where, as a rule, smaller clubs gain courage and have greater ambition. All of this together leads us to think that it will be a difficult game, but, of course, we also have the ambition of reaching the semifinals."

Asked about his squad, he said that "We'll see if Geny Catamo can be an option or not."

“Pedro Gonçalves is not yet fit and Viktor Gyokeres is available, but we have to control the minutes he plays and continue to be careful. We would like to have everyone available, but we have to be strong and capable of fighting against all the setbacks we have to go through to the semifinals."

“We all feel the adversities, be they injuries or the amount of games, but, above all, I see the squad focused on the ultimate objective, which is to be two-time league champions. The group are calm, happy, focused and resilient amidst everything that has happened to us, in addition to being very human in terms of the connection between everyone. Despite everything, and despite the fact that at times we have not been as competent, we are still joint top of Liga Portugal, have our objective intact and it's down to us," continued Borges.

Asked about Sporting CP's dip in the second halves of recent games, the coach said that it was due to tiredness.

“We, the coaching staff, have to think about how we can be more intense, but we know that physical freshness leads us to be more alert in our behavior and it is natural that, as time goes by, we are not able to press as much. This makes the performance drop and gives more space to the opponents. I don’t ask them to drop off, and I think this is due to the physical tiredness that leads to mental tiredness as well.”

Borges was also asked about referees, making it clear what he meant after the last game.

“I spoke about VAR because I had already asked for the same criteria 15 days ago. I wasn't talking about the refereeing in that game, because the refereeing was good, I was talking about the moves requiring a VAR decision. I didn't say whether they were right or wrong, I just asked for the same criteria. As for those harmed or benefited, the president has already said, and rightly so, that in the 'league of truth', which you sometimes talk about, Sporting CP should have four or five more points, but I'm not going there and I didn't criticise the refereeing. I just ask for the same criteria for everyone, big or small.”