A trio of strikes help Sporting CP to a 3-0 victory

Sporting Clube de Portugal bested FC Paços de Ferreira 3-0 on Matchday 14 of the Liga Portugal season, with goals in the first half from Pedro Porro, Nuno Santos and Paulinho.

Coming into the game on a run of six consecutive victories in which they scored 23 goals and conceded just once, Sporting CP were in good form as they continued to try to move their way up the table.

After just three minutes, when the FC Paços de Ferreira defence lost the ball, Nuno Santos crossed from the left for Pedro Porro, in the heart of the area, to head in to open the scoring.

The perfect start set the tone for the game, and soon after a tremendous long pass from Matheus Reis found Marcus Edwards, the Englishman knocking an opponent out of the way before shooting wide.

The second goal arrived in the 22nd minute, off a counterattack emanating from an FC Paços de Ferreira free kick. A slick transition saw Pedro Gonçalves releasing Edwards and he, selflessly, set up Nuno Santos.

The match was being completely dominated by Sporting CP, who continued to threaten through Paulinho, Trincão and  Edwards, while FC Paços de Ferreira managed their first and only shot of the first half in the 36th minute - Antonio Adán saving Holsgrove's attempt.

Before the break, Sporting CP made it 3-0, this time thanks to Paulinho's header from Porro's cross. It was the striker's seventh goal in the last five matches.

The masterclass continued in the second 45 minutes, with only only team managing to create opportunities in the opposing area. Early on, Gonçalves headed wide, which was followed by a shot by Matheus Reis from distance that was saved by goalkeeper Jordi, who then kept out an attempt by Paulinho.

Trincao, from outside the area, missed the target, and with 20 minutes left, coach Rúben Amorim started to make substitutions, bringing Arthur Gomes and Jovane Cabral on in place of Nuno Santos and Edwards. For Paços de Ferreira, an emotional Vitorino Antunes, league winner with Sporting CP in 2020/2021 and captain of the visitors, was substituted and left the pitch to applause from the Estádio José Alvalade.

The pace and intensity of the game dropped and the substitutions continued, with Paulinho and Gonçalves giving way to Rodrigo Ribeiro and Mateus Fernandes, respectively.

In the 82nd minute, referee António Nobre showed Dário Essugo a straight red card after a challenge on Holsgrove, leaving the team down to ten men. However, they remained firmly in control and claimed another victory.

Sporting CP will return to action in January, traveling to Madeira to play CS Marítimo.

Sporting CP: Antonio Adán [GK], Gonçalo Inácio, Sebastián Coates [C], Matheus Reis, Pedro Porro, Dário Essugo, Pedro Gonçalves (Mateus Fernandes, 78'), Nuno Santos (Arthur Gomes, 71'), Marcus Edwards ( Jovane Cabral, 71'), Francisco Trincão (Sotiris Alexandropoulos, 85') and Paulinho (Rodrigo Ribeiro, 78').

The coach looks at the final game of 2022

Sporting Clube de Portugal round off 2022 with a Thursday game against FC Paços de Ferreira, on Matchday 14 of the Liga Portugal season.

Ahead of the match, coach Rúben Amorim gave a press conference at the Academia Cristiano Ronaldo and, rather than taking stock of the year as a whole, he preferred to focus on the contest ahead.

"We played an excellent game last time out, but that's done now. We're feeling good, we've won six straight games and we're returning to league action, which is our priority. What we want to do is keep playing well, because that way we are closer to winning, not conceding and scoring as many goals as possible," he began by telling journalists.
 
Amorim also warned of the "uncertainties" that FC Paços de Ferreira pose, as the team in 18th place in the table and with only two points to their name.

"We know that they are not in good form, but that brings us many uncertainties. We don't know which starting XI they will have or how they will play, as they have their third coach of the season and they have already used several formations. We have tried everything to try to understand and be prepared for everything, but we have to play our game."

"We have to win games to bring our good feelings back. I think we've recovered that 'hunger' we had, and we're playing more intensely and better. Six or seven wins in a row is nothing for a team who want to get closer to the places above us," underlined Amorim, reinforcing the focus on the game.

"Our focus is to win matches, go game-by-game and then in the end we will do the maths."

Asked about Paulinho, who has scored six goals in the last four games, Amorim said that "He lives off good games and goals too. It's important to have good moments, but knowing that each game is a different story and everything changes from game to game."

"Dário Essugo has responded well, he's evolved with the work we've been doing with him and he's only 17 years old. He made his debut when we were champions, when he was very young, and today he's a completely different player. He is the most similar player we have to [João] Palhinha, with very specific characteristics, and we believe in him a lot."

Captain Sebastián Coates could reach the mark of 300 games with Sporting CP, but his coach still believes he has more to offer.

“I want to offer him congratulations on his beautiful career, but he can still improve a lot. That's what I tell him every day. Nowadays he's still considered a very young player and he can evolve a lot. He's not such a slow or static player, he can improve on the ball and we're going to demand more and more from him. I congratulate him on what he's doing, but he has only one league title, so we have to demand more from all of us and especially from the captain. We will be here to help him."

With the winter market just around the corner, Amorim fielded a question about potential interest in Pedro Porro.

"He is experiencing one of the best moments of his career and is focused on Sporting CP. He can only leave if his clause is met. My contract renewal has been done, and there is trust from the board and the coach."

"There may be some adaptations in the market. We have to know exactly what we are going to do, not only now but in the future as well. I think there is a lot of talent in the Academy in certain positions and we will have to take risks. I am focused on the youth players, such as Rodrigo [Ribeiro], who renewed this week and will start to have more of a role on our team, but it depends on him. I think he will be a great player in the future."

New contract agreed for 17-year-old midfielder

Sporting Clube de Portugal and Dário Essugo have agreed terms on an extension to the player's contract, through to 2025 with a buyout clause of 45 million euros.

The 17-year-old midfielder expressed his satisfaction with the confidence shown in him by the club since he arrived in 2014.

“I'm very happy to have renewed my contract. I have always been working towards this and it's like a Christmas present for me. I'm very happy," he said at the official presentation of the renewal.

"I will continue to work with my feet firmly on the ground, because I know I want to achieve many things here. It's all about focusing on the day-to-day work, because everything will happen naturally that way."

The Portuguese Under-20 international, who has played five matches this season and last year became the youngest player ever to make his debut for Sporting CP, aged just 16 years and 6 days, reflected on his time at the club so far.

“I've had a lot of good times here already. It was easy for me to join the first team, because my teammates help me and, in addition, all the young players who come to train for the first team are very well received. This is very important. The coach believes in youth a lot. I will work to earn his trust.”

“Professional football is faster, and we also have to take into account that it's more physical, but you get used to it. Winning Liga Portugal in 2020/2021 is something I will never forget. It will stay in my memory forever because it was a dream come true. I still get goosebumps thinking about that moment."

He also had words for the supporters, saying that "They are spectacular. I can really feel their support and that's the most important thing, because they're always with us. We are relying on their support for what remains of this year and for the next."

The coach analyses the 5-0 win over SC Braga

After his side made it through to the Final Four of the Taça da Liga with a 5-0 win over SC Braga (5-0), Sporting Clube de Portugal coach Rúben Amorim praised his players by saying that the first half “was close to perfection."

“There are days when everything goes well, and this time it happened due to the intensity we imposed at the start of the game. We started well, we scored from a set piece and from then on we played differently, as we went from an organised attack to a lot of transitions. This is a good sign, because it means that we know how to adapt to games, and then we resolve the situation early with the talent of the players,” he began by saying in his post-match press conference.

“The only criticism I have to say is that we lowered the pace in the second half, but I can't be upset with the players because I think it was really an inability to keep up the intensity. That concerns me because we are going to have very difficult games and when we are in a game like that, more or less solved, and the players are no longer able to maintain their speed going backwards and forwards, it is something that we have to work on. I congratulate them on the excellent game they played. We killed it off early, but also deserve a lot of merit."

Amorim then commented on the performance of Francisco Trincão, who played on the left and scored one of the goals.

“Trincão improved a lot when he went onto the left. He moved there because Marcus Edwards doesn't have as much speed to play on that side, besides he likes to come inside and he's very good between the lines. He adapted well and we discovered that we have a player who can play on both flanks, and he is better on the left."

He also addressed the improvements seen from Paulinho, who scored his sixth goal in four matches.

“Paulinho is doing very well physically and his head rules everything. He's scoring goals and we look at his game in a different way because of that. He's had games where he played well like today, but he didn't score,” he underlined.

The coach was then asked about the team's 100% winning record in the League Cup, which has seen four wins and 18 goals, with none conceded.

“Above all, we have to be aware that everything can change. We are in good form, we have had more time to train and the players are growing. The players have the potential for more, but I know that we will suffer in many games because when the pace drops as it did in the second half...

"It was a good result, we are doing better because we had more time to train and we are defending with more rigour, but we still have a lot to improve," he stressed.

“About two months ago I said that the team lacked some hunger, but the truth is that many of them are the same players as two years ago, and they have that hunger. What they have to do is have consistency, and then talent appears, but hunger is essential."

Os Leões beat SC Braga 5-0 at home in the Taça da Liga

Sporting Clube de Portugal booked their ticket for the Final Four of the Taça da Liga by thrashing SC Braga 5-0 at the Estádio José Alvalade in the quarter finals.

Having come through the group stage with a total of three wins, 13 goals scored and zero conceded, Sporting CP had been impressive in the competition to date. For the first knockout game, coach Rúben Amorim made four changes to the starting lineup, bringing in goalkeeper Antonio Adán, Nuno Santos, Pedro Gonçalves and Marcus Edwards. Rochinha, meanwhile, was left out due to flu.

In what was perhaps their best first half played this season, Sporting CP surprised Braga by taking a 2-0 lead very early on. Just 4 minutes in, Gonçalo Inácio appeared in the area to finish off a flick by Paulinho to the near post off a corner, and on 8 minutes Paulinho himself finished off a pass from Trincão. It was his sixth goal in the last four games in the Taça da Liga.

In the 18th minute, Edwards stole the ball from Tormena, broke into the area and was brought down by the defence. The resulting penalty was dispatched by Pedro Gonçalves for his ninth goal this season.

Half an hour into the game, Gonçalves had everything in his favour to score again, but had his shot blocked by a defender. Exactly the same thing would happen shortly afterwards to Paulinho.

Sporting CP scored two more goals in the final stretch of the first half, as first Trincão finished off a Nuno Santos cross from the left, then Edwards converted a second penalty.

With the team 5-0 up at the interval, Sporting CP played with a lower block after the restart, but always with an eye on quick transitions to score the sixth goal of the night.

In the 71st minute, Amorim made his first moves. Dário Essugo and Jovane Cabral, as well as Ricardo Esgaio and Arthur Gomes, came on in the final stretch, as did Sotiris Alexandropoulos. Sporadic chances had occurred during the second half, but there were no further goals and the game ended 5-0.

Os Leões, who achieved their sixth consecutive victory and consolidated their best run of the season, will play in the Final Four of the Taça da Liga in Leiria from January 24-28th, against the winners of Moreirense FC vs. FC Arouca. Before that, and after a break for the Christmas holidays, Liga Portugal returns for the last game of 2022, with a home match against FC Paços de Ferreira on December 29th.

Sporting CP: Antonio Adán [GK], Matheus Reis, Sebastián Coates [C], Gonçalo Inácio, Pedro Porro (Ricardo Esgaio, 76'), Manuel Ugarte (Dário Essugo, 71'), Pedro Gonçalves, Nuno Santos, Francisco Trincão ( Arthur Gomes, 76'), Marcus Edwards (Sotiris Alexandropoulos, 86') and Paulinho (Jovane Cabral, 71').

Os Leões win 5-0 against CS Marítimo

Sporting Clube de Portugal secured their spot in the quarter-finals of the Taça da Liga by beating CS Marítimo 5-0 at the Estádio José Alvalade. The win took them to three wins in three games, as they defend the trophy in 2022/23. They will now play SC Braga in the knockout stage of the competition on December 19th.

Weather conditions in the Lisbon area meant that the contest was held behind closed doors.

For the last match of the group stage, Rúben Amorim fielded a starting XI of Franco Israel, Gonçalo Inácio, Sebastián Coates, Matheus Reis, Pedro Porro, Manuel Ugarte, Mateus Fernandes, Jovane Cabral, Arthur Gomes , Paulinho and Francisco Trincao.

Os Leões took under a minute to open the scoring. Matheus Reis fed the ball to Arthur Gomes on the left and he crossed low into the area, where Paulinho finished off the chance.

The second goal came from a ball in from the right, played in by Pedro Porro and again converted by Paulinho.

With the score at 2-0, the striker rounded off his hat trick on the half-hour. Jovane Cabral played a through ball and Paulinho ricocheted the ball in off the goalkeeper as Miguel Silva tried to smother.

Just before the break, and after Porro had also put the CS Marítimo goalkeeper to the test, it was Cabral's turn to have an attempt off Trincão's pass from the left, but the ball went over the top.

The visiting team even tried to respond, with Bruno Xadas striking wide.

A series of chances opened the second stanza, including Cabral receiving from Trincão and shooting off target with only the CS Marítimo goalkeeper in front of him.

The pace dropped as the second half progressed, but some goal opportunities continued to be created. The best, at the start of the last 20 minutes, saw Matheus Reis shoot with his right foot and be denied by Miguel Silva.

The fourth goal was a result of a Mateus Fernandes pass on 73 minutes, and although Porro had work to do, he hit the ball with pace to score.

Soon after, Rúben Amorim made three substitutions at once, taking off Manuel Ugarte, Porro and Trincão, bringing in Sotiris, Ricardo Esgaio and Pedro Gonçalves. Fatawu also entered, for the last ten minutes, replacing Paulinho.

Sporting CP continued to look to increase their advantage and, in the 86th minute, scored again. Arthur Gomes attempted a cross which the visiting goalkeeper ended up deflecting into his own net

With a perfect record and 13 goals scored -with none conceded- Sporting CP move on to the quarter-finals on Monday night.

The coach gives his thoughts ahead of the game against CS Marítimo

This Tuesday, Sporting Clube de Portugal face CS Marítimo at the Estádio José Alvalade in the Taça da Liga. So far, the team have six points from a possible six, and are very close to qualifying for the quarter finals.

On the eve of the game, coach Rúben Amorim gave a pre-match press conference.

“We will field a very strong team to win the game, score nine points, not concede goals and increase the goal difference. What we want is to continue winning games and achieve our fifth consecutive victory, keeping a clean sheet, because that gives us confidence for what is to come," he underlined.

“Winning games creates a dynamic that helps us. We are a big club and we have to go on this winning streak."

The coach also addressed the importance of the break due to the World Cup for the team.

“It depends on the results, but I would say that the break has been good for preparing the present and the future of Sporting CP. Above all, players like Mateus Fernandes and Dário [Essugo] have grown, Sotiris [Alexandropoulos] has had more time to train and I think all the players have improved in the process. I think the games are proof of that, with us not conceding goals either," he explained.

"Now, the internationals are back. [Hidemasa] Morita has returned with injuries and we will have to put him through rehabilitation again. This break was important for us as a team, to work on everything we didn't have time for, because the initial phase of the season was very busy.”

Amorim promised that Mateus Fernandes will be in the starting lineup against CS Marítimo, as well as Jovane Cabral.

“[Mateus Fernandes] worked hard for this and he has to live up to it. It's also a message for all the young people at Sporting CP, who have to fight and work hard to join the first team. I know the value of Mateus, he doesn't have any extra pressure on him and he's going to play because he deserves it."

The coach insisted that he does not know for sure when St. Juste, Daniel Bragança and Morita will be back available, saying that  “Day by day, game by game, we are evaluating things, and what we have to do is prepare for any eventuality. That's why Mateus is playing, we have Pote, Soto and Dário who is growing very well and can play alongside Ugarte."

Training for the Sporting CP squad

This Saturday, Sporting Clube de Portugal began preparing for their home game against CS Marítimo (Tuesday, December 13th, 8:45pm, Estádio José Alvalade) with a training session at the Academia Cristiano Ronaldo in Alcochete.

The presence of Hidemasa Morita, returning after his participation with Japan in the World Cup, was the biggest novelty, and Rúben Amorim also called up young goalkeeper Francisco Silva for the session.

Luis Neto, Jeremiah St. Juste and Daniel Bragança underwent treatment with the medical department.

"It was a consistent victory from a team that still have a lot to improve," says the coach

At the end of Sporting Clube de Portugal's 0-2 victory away against Rio Ave FC, coach Rúben Amorim analysed the match and praised the performance of his players.

"We are facing every game in the same way. We have to win, which is the weight that being a big club carries. We have to win the game against CS Marítimo. Today was a consistent victory for a team that adapted well to all the situations in the game," he explained.

“Rio Ave FC didn't create great opportunities, but forced us to run after the ball. We created danger in the first half and in the second half we tired Rio Ave FC out. We were very strong and could have scored more goals. We scored from two dead ball situations with a team that were not very tall, but that showed aggression. It was a consistent victory from a team that still have a lot to improve.”

The coach also spoke about how his players are earning their minutes, giving two examples.

"Looking at Dário [Essugo's] game, he managed to earn more minutes with his quality. There's also Mateus Fernandes, who didn't come in today and may have the opportunity to feel what it's like to start a game. They will have to train well. because all of the training sessions and games have an impact on the team. We have to take advantage of every day to create a team that is stronger all the time.”

Finally, Amorim reminded journalists that "difficult times are coming, with big decisions and a league table in which Sporting CP are off the pace.”

“We have to be much better, but today we were consistent against a good team. We didn't let Rio Ave FC create great opportunities and we created many.”

A 0-2 victory over Rio Ave FC keeps them top of the group

Sporting Clube de Portugal beat Rio Ave FC 0-2 on the second matchday of the Taça da Liga group stage, maintaining their 100% record in the competition. A goal by Gonçalo Inácio and an own goal by the home team's Boateng -both in the second half- moved the team one step closer to advancing in the competition.

Coach Rúben Amorim made only one change in the starting lineup from the clash against SC Farense, bringing in Antonio Adán in place of Franco Israel.

The first half started at a relatively slow pace, but Sporting CP had a good opportunity after just three minutes, when Nuno Santos shot wide following a clever move by Pedro Porro. Moments later, José Marsà also tried his luck, but missed the target.

Rio Ave FC responded in the 15th minute, with Leonardo Ruiz shooting over. At the other end, Pedro Gonçalves found a good position in the area, but was unable to finish off the chance.

After a Paulinho header saved by Jhonatan, Rio Ave FC could have scored when Leonardo Ruiz went through on Adán, but the Spanish goalkeeper prevented a goal with his block.

In the 41st minute, Nuno Santos had a shot saved by the goalkeeper, and the game went into the halftime break with the score at 0-0.

Sporting CP's dominance was accentuated in the second half and both Nuno Santos, Marcus Edwards and Francisco Trincão tried to make it 0-1 in the opening minutes.

Porro then crossed, Paulinho's shot forced a save from Jhonatan defense and, on the rebound, Francisco Trincão was unfortunate not to hit the target. Rio Ave FC had one of their few dangerous attacks of the second half, with Leonardo Ruiz shooting narrowly wide.

Finally, the deadlock was broken in the 62nd minute. Off a direct free kick, Edwards sent the ball into the area and Gonçalo Inácio, with an excellent header, scored for Sporting CP..

With the score at 0-1, Jhonatan once again denied Paulinho and Trincão, before Amorim brought in Arthur Gomes and Manuel Ugarte in place of Marcus Edwards and Dário Essugo.

The second goal was not long in coming as, in the 73rd minute, Porro sent in a free kick from the left and Boateng deflected it into his own net.

Doubling the lead brought tranquility to the team and to the match itself, which ended 0-2. Sporting CP are the outright leaders of Group B with six points, three more than Rio Ave FC and SC Farense. CS Marítimo, last placed in the group, are the next opponents on Tuesday, December 13th.

Sporting CP: Antonio Adán [C] [GK], Gonçalo Inácio, José Marsà, Matheus Reis, Pedro Porro, Dário Essugo (Manuel Ugarte, 71'), Pedro Gonçalves (Sotiris Alexandropoulos, 84'), Nuno Santos, Marcus Edwards (Arthur Gomes, 71'), Francisco Trincão (Rochinha, 84') and Paulinho (Jovane Cabral, 84').