The coach reflects on the draw with Juventus FC

Following the 1-1 draw between Sporting Clube de Portugal and Juventus FC in the UEFA Champions League, Rui Borges gave a press conference to review the game.

Analysis of the game
"I think in the first half we had ability, inspiration and quality in terms of positional play in attack. Defensively, we managed to neutralise Juventus -sometimes with greater difficulty, but we were playing against a great side. In the second half, we lacked a little more inspiration to better control the game when we had the ball, but we had commitment and a competitive attitude. The game was difficult, against a very high-quality opponent, at a difficult ground. It was a very competitive and intense game -a big UEFA Champions League match. It had a bit of everything. The team gave a great response and if we want to be among the best we have to have this ability, humility and courage, both with and without the ball."

Georgios Vagiannidis and Geovany Quenda’s substitutions
"In the first half they were having some difficulty. We were letting the opposition move and face our defensive line, which forced us to run much more. In the second half they improved a little, but they lacked some freshness. To be honest, I was tempted to make a change earlier because of the difficulty we were having in that area, which was actually Juventus FC's strongest point. We had some difficulty, but we were having a great game regardless."

João Simões
"He was a doubt until the start of the game. He had a small setback in training, but he felt very good today and had a great showing. When he came off, he was at the limit of his effort, and was removed due to fatigue."

Luis Suárez
"Him starting on the bench was a tactical choice. He also had a slight discomfort in his knee from the last game, but it wasn't an impediment."

The team’s performance
"We weren't playing against just any team. They're a great side, playing at their home ground, in front of their fans, at a place where no away side has won yet this season. We had a lot of quality in the first half. We made it 1-0, and Francisco Trincão hit the post later on. We didn't have as many shots as we usually do in our league, but the demands are much higher. They had two shots, both saved by Rui Silva, in the first half. In the second half, they had some superiority, and we had some possession, but little purpose. We lost some of our edge, and it was noticeable in our decision-making. We were on the counter-attack more often, and we didn't want to enter into that game. Juventus FC showed more freshness, but they only managed to create danger in the final minutes."