The coach reflects on the 2-1 win over Olympique de Marseille

After the 2-1 victory against Olympique de Marseille in the UEFA Champions League, Sporting CP coach Rui Borges gave his thoughts on the match in a press conference.

The impact of Geny and Alisson's introductions on the victory
"It speaks volumes about the spirit of this team. I can't say it enough; we have a fabulous group. Quenda wasn't offering much directness in one-on-ones, and we wanted to push Olympique de Marseille back into their own box. We had to have that ability, so we tried bringing Geny in and pushing Maxi out wide. Then with Maxi tiring, we tried with Alisson on the left. We know what that entails. We knew we might have to resort to balls into the box as well, and with Fotis, we gained an extra man in the box.

The difficulties posed by the opponents and the team's response
"I’ll take away the fact that it’s another victory. I’m happy to have six points from three games, to have won against a great team, which really were a ten-man side tonight. They're a very dangerous team on the counterattack, very direct, and in the first half, we left them open three or four times and conceded a goal exactly like the one we conceded in Naples. We've been talking about this all week, but it's part of the team's growth. It has to serve as an example again. We didn't need to expose ourselves to this, but otherwise, the team complied with the tasks we had planned for the game. We still had a good first half, but we grew at the end with a different competitive spirit and doing better in the duels.

The importance of the victory at this stage
"We won a big Champions League game, but we weren't in a bad run of form. We won't always play well, but this team just gave a response. They are ambitious players who have already won a lot, but they still have a huge desire to win, and that's what they want to demonstrate. We want them to challenge themselves more and more, in order to get better."

A possible lack of inspiration
"My opinion is that Trincão and Pedro Gonçalves both had a great game. We didn't have the offensive flow we had against SC Braga. Aside from that, we're the team that produces the most and makes the most mistakes with our finishing -because we're the team that produce the most."

Six points giving more confidence about knockout stage qualification
"We still have many games ahead against great teams. We’ve faced the French league leaders and the Italian champions already, and the team gave a fantastic response."

Zeno Debast going off for Diomande
"I don't know exactly what Debast’s issue was. I still have to ask. Diomande is an important player, with different characteristics than those who played today from the start. I'm happy to see him back playing, and he could have even played from the start, but we were a little cautious."

Unity and harmony within the group
"The team spirit is fantastic and unique. I'm happy to be coaching Sporting CP. I won the title and the cup with this side, and we're in second place now, we're through in the cup, we have six points in the Champions League, and we're trying to qualify for the Taça da Liga Final Four. I'm comfortable with the criticism. I'm well aware of the confidence I have in me and that everyone who works at the Academy conveys to us. Above all, I'm a happy coach."