The midfielder talks ahead of the game in the Champions League

Daniel Bragança commented on the Tuesday night meeting with PV Eindhoven in the UEFA Champions League, and said that he expects a competitive game.

“Our team are confident and I believe PSV are too. They have won seven league games, just like us, and the only difference is their start in the Champions League: We got the three points on Matchday 1 and they didn’t. They may be more alert because of that, but we are two very confident teams who want to win," he began by saying in the press room.

“This one will be decided by details, but our preparation was done in the best way possible to get the three points. It is always a mistake to come into a game more comfortable after having taken the three points, so we have to be alert," he added.

As for his possible starting position, Bragança did not reveal the plan, but stressed that all of the players are ready to contribute.

“As for starting positions, you will see tomorrow. We are all prepared and we have already shown more than once that, whoever plays, the team win and play well."

On his numbers of two goals and three assists so far this season, Bragança analysed that “It is easier to have good stats when the team play well and reaches the opposition area more often. The important thing is for the team to win, to continue with our offensive flow, because if the team are doing well, the individual players will stand out."

“The Champions League is a dream for any player and for me it is no different. It is up to us to enjoy these games and the atmosphere to take advantage of this competition. The Champions League is a higher level, but every game makes a difference."

When asked about his role as one of the team captains, the 25-year-old admitted that it is “an added source of pride and responsibility."

"I was already a captain at youth level, but here it has a different meaning. It’s special, but it’s a feeling I’ve had before."

Finally, he talked about the adjustments made over the summer by Sporting CP.

“We lost important players who I miss spending time with, but that’s part of football. We made good signings, they have adapted very well and the group are doing well. It's also easier to manage everything when we win, and we’ve done that," he concluded.

The coach looks at the Champions League meeting with PSV Eindhoven

Sporting Clube de Portugal visit PSV Eindhoven this Tuesday in the UEFA Champions League. Speaking in the Netherlands upon his team's arrival, coach Rúben Amorim began by commenting on the many compliments that Peter Bosz, the opposition boss, had for the team. He previously faced Bosz' Olympique Lyonnais side in the 2021 Cinco Violines game.

“We've all evolved in terms of our style of play, and I also remember that game well. What I take away from that game is that Peter [Bosz] always sends his side forward. I think it's a cultural thing here. His teams are always on the attack and that's what we can expect tomorrow: two attacking teams. We have different cultures, but similar results throughout the season," he noted.

“There is not that much difference between the two teams this season. There has been just one game in the Champions League: ours at home and PSV away, in Italy, against a club with a great history in European competitions. This one is going to be a good game, with goals."

“Just like when we play at Alvalade, we don't think that since we always win it will be easy, when we play away we always think about playing our game and we believe that we can win at any ground."

Amorim considers that the focus is on “improving on what was done against Lille OSC."

“To be able to play in a stadium like this, with intense pressure, against a Dutch team, we have to have a different capacity to build and have a different presence even to the what had in the first year, when we got past the group stage."

“We have proven that we are competitive, year after year. We have been consistent performers in Portugal and now people expect us to take the next step in Europe, but we also have to understand that there are teams like PSV, from a similar league to ours and used to these games, and others with different levels of investment."

Next, Amorim spoke about the current situation with Jeremiah St. Juste, who although is not fit for this game.

“We will have a training session here on Wednesday morning, and we want St. Juste with the team as much as possible. We didn’t want to leave him in Lisbon. We want him to feel this relationship with his teammates and everything is important in his recovery," he explained.

Daniel Bragança was also discussed at the press conference, with Amorim commenting on his midfield dilemma.

“It is difficult to choose one of the three midfielders, out of Hjulmand, Morita and Bragança, but Bragança has reached another dimension. He is a different player and he has the ability to play for the national team. For me, he is a starter, but sometimes I have to rotate the central midfielders, because everyone can play and it is a position that does not worry me at all."

When asked about the replacement in consideration for the injured Pedro Gonçalves, he played his cards close to his chest.

“We will play according to what we want from the game, in order to create more problems. There will be a player there ready for the challenge,” he assured.

The coach responds to the win over GD Estoril Praia

Rúben Amorim was pleased with the 0-3 victory over GD Estoril Praia on Matchday 7, and talked up the effort from his players in the Friday night fixture

“We started the game very strong, we dominated it from the start and we pushed GD Estoril Praia back. We didn’t let them play, we played differently on the left and on the right. In the second half we slowed down the pace and could have been hungrier, but I think that was a bit of a management issue. However, with Daniel Bragança coming on we gained more speed and we closed off the game again," he began by saying.

“The way we started this one shows that the team know what they want, are not getting carried away by anything and know that we have to run to win games."

The coach was “satisfied” with the performance, congratulating the players, although he felt that the result could have been better.

“Have we scored more goals than our rivals? I don’t do the maths; I don’t even look at the others, I just look at ourselves and I saw that today we could have scored more goals. I’m satisfied with the number of opportunities we created, but we have to be better at finishing. If we had kept up the pace we would have scored more."

“I’m not worried, because I know that this team may have missed a few chances today, but tomorrow they’re ready to score again and they will score three times because of the quality of our players”.

He explained that he replaced Viktor Gyökeres in a tactical switch and because he saw that the Swede was tired, and also spoke about Maxi Araújo, who made his debut as a starter.

“He played well, especially in the first half, because in the second he started to get more tired, which is normal. He was good, but I think he will improve a lot and I know he can do better," concluded Amorim.

Catamo, Morita and Bragança score in a dominant showing

Sporting Clube de Portugal beat GD Estoril Praia 0-3 in the opening game of Matchday 7 of the Liga Portugal season, played at the Estádio António Coimbra da Mota. It was the seventh win in as many league fixtures, making it their best start to a campaign this century.

With one eye on a midweek European away trip, coach Rúben Amorim once again changed his starting XI, including bringing in new signing Maxi Araújo. He played alongside Franco Israel, Zeno Debast, Ousmane Diomande, Matheus Reis, Geny Catamo, Hidemasa Morita, Morten Hjulmand, Nuno Santos, Francisco Trincão and Viktor Gyökeres.

Sporting CP encountered a well prepared GD Estoril Praia side, but grew into the game during the opening spell. It was mainly on the left that they created the greatest danger, thanks to Nuno Santos and Maxi Araújo. A pass from the Uruguayan winger in the 18th minute saw Francisco Trincão go centimetres away from scoring, after two previous shots had been sent just over the top.

The home team tried to delay the almost inevitable as much as possible, but in the 25th minute their resistance was finally broken. After a clearance, Matheus Reis passed to Geny Catamo, who, inside the area, had time and space to shoot inside the far post and make it 0-1.

Focused on increasing the advantage, just over five minutes later they took the score to 0-2, this time from the right. Catamo passed to Trincão, the winger went to the line and then cut back, where Hidemasa Morita was ready to tap the ball in.

Before the break, several chances were closed down by the defence and Trincão also hit the woodwork, keeping it 0-2 at halftime.

Gonçalo Inácio started to warm up at the interval and came on close to the hour mark to replace Matheus Reis, with Conrad Harder and Daniel Bragança also introduced in place of Maxi Araújo and Morten Hjulmand. These substitutions were made when Sporting CP were playing at a slower pace and allowing GD Estoril Praia to be more dangerous than in the first half, even though they were unable to test Franco Israel.

The opposition defence did manage to reduce the space available to Viktor Gyökeres, and Amorim took him off in the 75th minute to introduce Geovany Quenda.

A good chance was presented by a cross from Nuno Santos from the left, but Harder was unable to meet it cleanly and Bragança struck into a defender on the rebound.

After the 80th minute, Sporting CP made their last substitution, taking off Zeno Debast and bringing on Eduardo Quaresma, returning from injury.

The team threatened from set pieces, including a free kick met by Geovany Quenda with a shot against the wall, but it continued to be difficult to score another goal.

Finally, Sporting CP made it 0-3 in the first minute of stoppage time, thanks to a Bragança hit from the edge of the area.

Sporting CP will be in action again on Tuesday, away to PSV Eindhoven in the second game of the Champions League. In Liga Portugal, they play next Saturday, hosting Casa Pia AC.

​The coach previews the contest against GD Estoril Praia

The goalkeeper is back with the group after injury

Sporting Clube de Portugal returned to training at the Academia Cristiano Ronaldo after their victory over AVS SAD.

The players who started the match undertook recovery work, while the remainder of the squad trained normally on the pitch.

Goalkeeper Vladan Kovačević was back as part of the group following his injury.

After a day off, the squad will next train on Wednesday morning, behind closed doors.

The coach gives his verdict on the win over AVS SAD

Following the victory over AVS SAD in Liga Portugal, Sporting CP coach Rúben Amorim praised the performance of his players, while also stating that there is always room for improvement.

“We didn’t let AVS create any danger, we were strong in our reaction to losing the ball and once again had a competent showing. If we look at the numbers, it was an excellent game from our team, but I feel we can do better,” he began by saying in his press conference.

“Due to the tactical changes in the starting lineup, we lost some fluidity. Dani [Bragança] likes to play more inside and we lacked a right footed player to combine with Nuno [Santos]. Despite this, we gained some extra aggression going forward," he explained.

Amorim then assessed the contribution of Danish forward Conrad Harder, who scored and provided an assist on his starting debut.

“He had a good game," analysed the coach. “He is still at 50% of his potential, but that is normal. He hasn’t trained much with the team yet and it is difficult to guide him with his positioning. You can see that sometimes in the flow of the game. Obviously, scoring and providing an assist is always good and he felt that the atmosphere in the stadium was very good. The way they cheered him on… He lived a dream come true today, but tomorrow it will be over and we have to think about the next game."

With this result against AVS SAD, Sporting CP have made their best start in the competition this century. For Amorim, these numbers are positive, but there is still a long way to go.
“We are obviously happy and we understand from these results that it is difficult to start like this. (…) But it is only a 3-point lead, we have our rivals close to us and there will be many games to come. When you start playing several games in a week, that is when teams tend to lose points. It was important today, the first time we have had a game in the middle of the week beforehand, not to drop points, especially at home. It is another three points, but we want to continue to build on this good start,” he stressed.

Finally, Amorim explained the reasons that led him to calling up Miguel Alves, João Simões and Bruno Ramos for the first time, players who usually play for the B team.

“Miguel is a left-sided centre-back and we don’t have many centre-backs. Bruno is right-footed and didn’t play for any national team during the last international break, he was the central central player in our B team and he is a very fast player. Despite not being a starter in the B team, and still lacking something in the way he plays with the ball in an organised attack, I really liked him. He is very strong physically and difficult to get past in one-on-one situations. He often catches Viktor [Gyökeres] in training -and that is not easy. We are trying to work on his understanding of the game with the ball, because without the ball he has the perfect characteristics to be a central defender on this team. Simões has been playing on the wing, but he is a central midfielder. I watched the Under-17 European Championship and I liked him in that position. Although he is not very fast, he is resilient and has great physical ability. (…) He could play in the position of Morita or Dani [Bragança] because sometimes he has to play between the lines and he has spent his whole life doing that for the B team.”

A trio of goals make it six wins from as many games for Sporting CP

Sporting Clube de Portugal beat AVS SAD 3-0 on Liga Portugal Matchday 6, capping an exceptional week with victories both in Europe and domestic competition. In front of a sold-out Estádio José Alvalade, they dominated proceedings and took all three points.

Without Vladan Kovačević, Eduardo Quaresma, Jeremiah St. Juste, Gonçalo Inácio, Pedro Gonçalves and Marcus Edwards through respective injuries, coach Rúben Amorim made four changes to the starting eleven. Matheus Reis, Daniel Bragança and Nuno Santos returned to the starting line-up, with a debut in the first XI for Danish forward Conrad Harder.

Three players from the B team were included in the squad, all of whom were called up for the first time. João Simões, a 17-year-old midfielder, Bruno Ramos, a 19-year-old Brazilian defender on loan from Académico de Viseu FC, and Miguel Alves, an 18-year-old central defender, were on the bench.

The match was preceded by a minute's silence in tribute to the victims of the recent fires in Portugal.

Sporting CP established their presence in the opposition half early on, and began to create the first attacking moves. Francisco Trincão forced goalkeeper Ochoa into a save from the opening chance of note.

After the initial threat, Sporting CP made it 1-0 after 15 minutes, with Harder scoring his first goal for the club with a low shot, capping a great move by the players in the middle of the park.

Shortly after, Viktor Gyökeres almost got a second with a header, but was denied by another outstanding save from Ochoa.

Newly promoted AVS SAD, coming into the game after two wins and one draw in five fixtures, only managed to have the ball in transition, although without causing any problems for Sporting CP.

Daniel Bragança struck close to the post and Trincão was denied again by Ochoa, and as half-time approached, the pace of the game slowed down. AVS SAD then took advantage of the opportunity to have the ball for longer periods for the first time, but they were unable to make it count.

To round off the first half, Sporting CP scored again in the fourth minute of added time, with Gyökeres going through one-on-one with Ochoa and making it 2-0 with a deft touch.

The second half followed almost the same script as the first. Sporting CP took control of the match in search of extending their lead, practically reducing their opponents to defensive duties, although this time they were not as incisive in attack. The first big chance came after the hour mark, with the recently introduced Maxi Araújo heading the ball slightly over the target.

Unsurprisingly, the goal to make it 3-0 eventually arrived. In the 71st minute, Trincão made his way down the right and knocked the ball to Gyökeres, who finished off for his brace.

Soon after, Maxi Araújo almost added his name to the list of scorers, but his low shot ended up hitting the woodwork.

Before the end, Diomande drew another save from Ochoa with a header, as the score remained 3-0 at the final whistle.

Sporting CP have the best attack in the division, with 22 goals scored, and the best defence with just two  conceded). Still with a perfect record, the league leaders next play on Friday, at Amoreira, against GD Estoril Praia.

Sporting CP: Franco Israel [GK], Zeno Debast, Ousmane Diomande, Matheus Reis (Ricardo Esgaio, 75’), Geovany Quenda (Geny Catamo, 69’), Morten Hjulmand [C], Daniel Bragança (Hidemasa Morita, 69’), Nuno Santos, Francisco Trincão (Iván Fresneda, 75’), Conrad Harder (Maxi Araújo, 59’) and Viktor Gyökeres.

The coach talks about the game against AVS Futebol SAD

Sporting Clube de Portugal will host AVS Futebol SAD this Sunday, on Liga Portugal Matchday 6. Coach Rúben Amorim began his pre-match press conference by announcing the players who will be unavailable for the game.

“Neither Gonçalo Inácio, nor Eduardo Quaresma, have recovered. Marcus Edwards has a minor muscle problem, Pote too. We have some absentees, but also a team clearly prepared to win the game,” he said on Saturday.

On the opponents, a team coached by Vítor Campelos that secured promotion to the top tier of Portuguese football last season, he gave the following analysis:

“We looked closely at AVS Futebol SAD's characteristics and style of play. We also looked at the Gil Vicente FC side from last year that was coached by Vítor Campelos, especially what they did at Alvalade -because Campelos was no longer there for the away game. We have some doubts about how they will line up defensively, but offensively we don't have so many doubts, because Campelos already played in a certain way that he has repeated and he doesn't usually change much on the attacking side. The defensive aspects in the last game against Gil Vicente FC changed, whilst against GD Chaves it didn't, so we went to do a reconnaissance to make it easier for our players. We looked at everything and tried not to transmit too many doubts to our players. We know how we will defend, and we know how we will attack in this game."

Regarding Conrad Harder's first weeks at Sporting CP and his relationship on the field with Viktor Gyökeres, the coach explained “They have more of a friendly relationship. Viktor is not much of an advice giver. Harder has done the job both as an attacking target man and playing with Viktor, in this case with the two up front, because we have to have different plans to attack against different teams. Sometimes there is a line of six, others a line of five, others a line of four, and he is trying to learn all of that in a short space of time, but he is progressing quite well. Above all, he is very ‘hungry.'"

Debast’s spectacular goal against LOSC Lille also warranted a question for Amorim, who told the media: “As for Debast, the important thing for me is that the goal was a good moment, but it is over now and I will forget that goal. What will help Zeno to be the player he can be, to fulfil his potential throughout his career, is to experience these good moments, and the bad ones, but then quickly forget about them. What I want is for Zeno to maintain his defensive style, his aggressiveness and his physical ability, as he is very fast. He has hardly misplaced a single pass in these last two games. I would say that Zeno needed this goal, but above all he needed to feel like the player he is."

On Morita’s performance, the coach explained the Japanese midfielder’s more specific role after the national team games for his country.

“Football moves so quickly these days that we go from a good moment to a bad moment. Morita was very, very good against FC Porto. Morita was the best player on the pitch against SC Farense and then he went away with the national team. We don’t even realise what it’s like for Morita to travel with the national team. His life completely changes, the time zone changes and then it’s not like he plays one game and then recovers in another. It seems like a normal thing, because it happens to many players, but for him it has a huge impact. We have to manage these aspects," said Amorim.

"He wouldn’t have been taken off against LOSC Lille if he hadn’t been on a booking, because I think Morita has a huge influence on our team. I still don’t feel he’s fresh, and he needs to be fresh. We’re managing that. I wouldn’t say Morita is in a bad moment. Morita’s situation is completely different to the rest of the team."

Regarding Jeremiah St. Juste’s injury, he commented: “We have to wait for St. Juste to come back and show the quality he has shown every time he has played. He lacks consistency. The conversation I have with him is the same as the conversation I have with every player. It's easier for me because I've been through these moments too as a player, and I'm trying to use strategies, this time to do treatment further away from us, closer to his family, to try to manage that psychological part. As long as he's the person he is and gives his all, we'll try strategy after strategy to repay this investment to the Members and our fans."

As for the initial options for the game on Sunday, and the possibilities of Maxi Araújo or Conrad Harder playing, the coach played his cards close to his chest.

"There are several options we can use. It also depends on the training sessions we've done over these past few weeks, and that has an impact. We can also put Morita further up front, because sometimes there are low blocks and there are no big sprints, so we would be putting a midfielder with Morita’s quality closer to the area. Let’s see what we can come up with," he concluded by saying.

The club sign the Danish striker on a 5-year deal

Sporting Clube de Portugal have signed 19-year-old Danish forward Conrad Harder through to 2029, with a release clause worth 80 million euros.

He joins after playing at FC Nordsjælland in his home country, scoring seven goals in 32 games in 2023/2024. This season, he has played seven games and scored two goals in the Danish League.

Talking after the move, Harder stated that he was "very happy" with the move.

"This is a great club and I have big ambitions. I hope to win trophies and score lots of goals", he told the club’s journalists.

“As soon as I heard about the club’s interest, I was very honoured and had no difficulty in making the decision. It was what I wanted and it was an easy choice for me.”

Harder is the third Dane to turn out for the club, following Peter Schmeichel and Morten Hjulmand, and he acknowledged that “it would be great to win many trophies and follow in their footsteps.”

Compatriot Hjulmand is also the current captain of Sporting CP team, and was an extra help in Harder's arrival.

"I spoke to him a few days ago. He told me that it was a great opportunity for me, that this is a great club and that they were waiting for me. He explained to me that Liga Portugal is very strong, that it suits me, and that the atmosphere is very good. And also that the Estádio José Alvalade is fantastic," he revealed.

“I am a strong and very physical player. I hope to please the fans, who are incredible. I'm excited to meet them.”