Coach reacts to triumph against SC Farense

Following Saturday's victory over SC Farense, Sporting Clube de Portugal coach Rúben Amorim admitted that his side were not at their best - but considered the win a fair result.

“Today was not our best; there was not much inspiration, but there was hard work. We may not have had the quality in our play, but we had other things", he told the media.

"SC Farense lined up with a low block and created many difficulties for us. When that happens, when there is no inspiration and time starts to tick away, things get difficult. We ended up scoring from a penalty, and if there had to be a winner it would have to be Sporting CP, because we always held the initiative. SC Farense, with their weapons at their disposal, had an extremely competent performance, but we ended up being slim victors".

“We lacked some energy. We need a lot of energy and this team thrive on that. You depend on your talent, but also your energy, the way the players run during the game. The effort was there, but we lacked a little bit of energy and inspiration. We misplaced a lot of passes and lost balls when it was easy to make a pass. This made the game tough. Sporting CP lacked something. It happens, but the important thing is that we won anyway”, said Amorim, who also praised the showing by young striker Tiago Tomás.

“Tiago Tomás did well, but Sporting CP live off how the team play as a whole. Tiago tried hard and looked for space, but we were always missing something. We pushed SC Farense back, but we didn't create as much danger as usual. If there are not many opportunities, then the forwards feel it. Šporar came on with a desire to score, and that's how I want my players to be; they have to fight for their place. Tiago Tomás did very well against FC Paços de Ferreira and won his place, and now it could be Šporar's turn. This is part of the growth of the team", he concluded.

Injury time penalty against SC Farense maintains league advantage

A late goal from the penalty spot by Andraž Šporar handed Sporting CP a slim 1-0 victory over SC Farense on Liga NOS Matchday 10, as the team continue top of the table.

Os Leões had to adjust to two absences in their game against the newly promoted side: Jovane Cabral was unavailable for selection due to injury, whilst coach Rúben Amorim saw out the final fixture of his 15-day touchline ban incurred against Famalicão.

Returning to the squad and the starting lineup was Nuno Mendes, in one of the adjustments made for the Saturday encounter.

SC Farense were daring in the early going at the Estádio José Alvalade, and were even the first side to create danger, through former Sporting CP player Ryan Gauld. However, the home team soon imposed their own pace on the encounter -albeit without testing the opposition goalkeeper.

With more than half an hour gone and practically no opportunities created, the difficulties in penetrating SC Farense's defensive wall became increasingly noticeable, with the only two exceptions being Zouhair Feddal's header over the crossbar and João Palhinha's shot wide off a deflection.

Moments before the halftime break, Gauld had a half-chance for the visitors. The response from Sporting CP was a powerful Tiago Tomás shot from a narrow angle that slammed into the post. Neither side could break the deadlock, and the game went into the interval 0-0.

After the restart, a 52nd minute effort from November's Player of the Month, Pedro Gonçalves, gave the opposition cause for concern. SC Farense defended solidly, and Sporting CP decided to bring on Bruno Tabata or Nuno Mendes on 70 minutes. He came close off a devilish delivery in, which Rafael Defendi clawed out for a corner.

In the last 10 minutes, with time slipping away, Nuno Santos tried his luck from a free kick, but to no avail.

Finally, the winning strike came from a penalty, deep into stoppage time. Following a cross into the area, Rafael Defendi brought down Feddal, earning him a red card and Sporting CP a lifeline from the spot. Andraž Šporar stepped up to convert, with no time for a fightback from the visitors.

The hard fought win keeps Os Leões top of the table with 26 points. Next up for them is a game away to Belenenses SAD on December 27th.

Sporting CP: Antonio Adán [GR], Zouhair Feddal, Sebastián Coates [C], Luís Neto (Gonzalo Plata, 80’), Pedro Porro, João Palhinha, João Mário (Andraž Šporar, 80’), Nuno Mendes (Bruno Tabata, 57’), Pedro Gonçalves (Matheus Nunes, 90+3’), Nuno Santos and Tiago Tomás (Gonçalo Inácio, 90+3’)

The coach previews a return to league competition against SC Farense

After wins in the Taça de Portugal and Taça da Liga, Sporting Clube de Portugal return to Liga NOS action this weekend against SC Farense. Ahead of the Matchday 10 contest, coach Rúben Amorim previewed the fixture against the newly promoted side from the Algarve.

"It's an historic game in our league that hasn't happened in a long time, but the important thing is to win. We know that they have a very good team in individual and collective terms. They have been improving a lot and already had a great performance at the Estádio da Luz, against Benfica", Amorim warned.

"They have shown good signs, but we want to keep on the path that we are on. We are in good form and all of the squad played this week, which was good and raised the level of the group".

Whilst several less frequently used players had the opportunity to show their skills, Rúben Amorim would not be drawn on possible changes to the attack.

"I had the opportunity to see the press conference with Sérgio Vieira, the coach of SC Farense, and he didn't reveal much about his defense either, so I won't say anything about our attack. We have all of our players ready, they have responded excellently and, as always, we will choose the best options for tomorrow's very tough game".

As for individual players, the coach said that Nuno Mendes will be in the squad, whilst Jovane Cabral is unlikely to feature. "He is making his recovery but he still has a small problem. We are taking great care of him, as he is an important player and we are waiting for him", assessed Amorim.

When asked if Sporting CP are the best team to play in Portugal, he replied that, whilst satisfied with present form, he believes there is still room for improvement.

"We are in good form, clearly, and the credit for that goes to the players. They are all in good form, but that can change from one week to the next. I think Sporting CP are playing very well, but that we can still improve too", he admitted.

"The players themselves are aware of the difficulty of each game and are very concerned with guaranteeing their place in the team, besides guaranteeing the spot in the table".

"We have to work with the young players to be prepared to play for Sporting CP. Above all, they have to be concerned with being prepared to win against SC Farense; that is the most important thing and it is our only concern", he concluded.

The Sporting CP coach was pleased by the cup performance by his side

Rúben Amorim reviewed the 2-0 win over CD Mafra in the Taça da Liga in his post-match press conference, praising the performance of some of the less frequently used members of his squad.

"I made life difficult for them, but they responded very well. Some did better than the others, but they all gave everything they had", he told the media.

"Everyone had positive points and should be congratulated, and in the future they will do even better," said the coach, emphasising that he was "satisfied with the result and the performance". "We played with some Junior players, and that comes with a price, but it's our idea. That means that the blame for the goalless first half is on the coach."

"The players weren't affected by the pressure; it's just a normal thing that happens when a lot of players who don't usually play together are in the same lineup. They have been training together and I thought they were prepared to play in a cup tie. The others played on Friday, and did very well, so I understood that it was time for them to get into the game and they gave an excellent response."

Amorim made clear that Sporting CP has "every possibility to win both cups". "We are ready to beat any team. In the league, we are taking things game-by-game", he said.

Victory against CD Mafra books the team's place in the January showdown

Sporting Clube de Portugal secured a spot in the Final Four of the Taça da Liga with a 2-0 win against CD Mafra, ousting the lower division side to move on in the competition. 

As expected, coach Rúben Amorim made plenty of rotations to his side, fielding a starting lineup of Luís Maximiano, Eduardo Quaresma, Gonçalo Inácio, Cristián Borja, Gonzalo Plata, Daniel Bragança, Matheus Nunes, Antunes, Tiago Tomás, Andraž Šporar and Pedro Gonçalves for the game at the José Alvalade. 

Up against them were a side fourth in the II Liga, who defended resolutely to keep Sporting CP waiting for the opening goal. In the first half, Šporar was denied by Carlos Henriques and then a defender as his two best efforts were sent away. Meanwhile Maximiano had a very quiet time, and the contest went into half time 0-0.

Nuno Mendes and Tabata would be brought on after the break to change things up, replacing Antunes and Tiago Tomás.

CD Mafra would become more ambitious in the second half, trying to threaten the Sporting CP goal -albeit without success. Gonçalves and Tabata efforts came closer, but both were off target.

Matheus Nunes was then withdrawn to bring on João Mário, and it was in that very minute that the team finally broke the deadlock. Šporar received a ball from Nuno Mendes from the left, after Daniel Bragança's precise pass, and finished past Carlos Henriques on 64 minutes.

The second goal would arrive just six minutes later: CD Mafra lost the ball, Plata took it to the byline and slipped past defender João Miguel, cutting it back to set up Tabata to take the score to 2-0.

The advantage was the signal for Gonçalves, Nuno Mendes to go off, with João Palhinha and Pedro Porro entering for the final quarter-hour.

Sporting CP continued to look for more goals, and Plata and Šporar both came close only to fall foul of the goalkeeper. In the end, a 2-0 win carried the team into the Final Four, which will be played between January 16th and 23rd in Leiria.

A place in the Taça da Liga semifinals is at stake on Tuesday night

Sporting CP's treble campaign continues on Tuesday with the quarter finals of the Taça da Liga, in which the team take on CD Mafra - currently fourth in the Segunda Liga.

Coach Rúben Amorim, who returns from suspension to occupy his place in the dugout, talked to the media about the cup contest in his pre-match press conference.

"It will be a tough game, because they will be coming here to show what they can do, with no responsibility - which removes a lot of pressure from the players. Nowadays, all teams have players who have experience in the youth ranks of big clubs, and CD Mafra are no exception. They are a team that don’t seem like a Second Division side. I say this because they are a team that like to play the ball, that have a lot of possession and will want to play good football”, said the coach after Monday training at Alcochete.

The pressure to reach the final four will be on Os Leões, something that Amorim is taking in his stride.

"We have this responsibility to be in control and dominate the game, and that's what we are going to do, but I think it will be a good match", he mused.

"The opponents are a very well organised team, with a lot of courage, but I think that also favours our game. We are in a good moment of form, and every time there is a game I'm excited about watching the team. That's the same for the fans. We go into this one with maximum pressure, which is all on our side. We have to live with it”.

Amorim will be without the injured Jovane Cabral and Luiz Phellype, but otherwise there is a strong side available for a competition that is being given importance by Sporting CP.

"The way we look at things is game-by-game anyway, but the cups really are like that. We are clear about one thing: We want to win the Taça de Portugal, we want to win the Taça da Liga and in Liga NOS we are going game-by-game, aware that we will have ups and downs throughout the season due to how young the squad is and the intensity that will be present. We have to prepare the whole group so that they are ready for whatever comes up," stated the coach.

"More than the results, our performances have been very good and we have improved in many ways, like in how we control the game and how we have pushed teams back. We dropped points in Famalicão - which shouldn't have happened because we had several opportunities to win -, then we had a great performance against FC Paços de Ferreira, in which we were much more effective. We want to win thi one, knowing that this decides who goes through in the competition. We want to go on to the final four”.

Less frequently used players like Tiago Tomás and Bruno Tabata took their opportunity against FC Paços de Ferreira, and will be in with a chance to start on Tuesday.

"It's a good time right now. Everyone trains and works the same way, and everyone is prepared”, Amroim emphasised.

"I am very excited because the team are responding well. This sequence of games forces us to rotate the team, which is good for the group, and we have to find opportunities to see other players. I am excited to see Tabata, Tiago Tomás, Daniel Bragança, Matheus Nunes and other players who have not had so many opportunities in action. I want them to be prepared because at Sporting CP it doesn’t matter who plays, it’s always mandatory to fight for victory - and that’s what we’re going to do”.

Sporting CP triumph 3-0 at home to progress to Last 16

Sporting Clube de Portugal booked their place in the Last 16 of the Taça de Portugal on Friday night, beating FC Paços de Ferreira 3-0 at home through goals from Tiago Tomás, Bruno Tabata and João Palhinha.

Without Jovane Cabral through injury and Pedro Gonçalves through suspension, coach Rúben Amorim - also suspended for 15 days due to his sending off against FC Famalicão - opted to field Nuno Mendes in the starting lineup, as well as bringing in Bruno Tabata and Tiago Tomás.

Amidst light rain at the Estádio José Alvalade, the game started at a low pace, with several stoppages for fouls in the opening minutes. 

After two initial chances from Pedro Porro and then Sebastián Coates, the first goal of the match arrived on 26 minutes. Nuno Santos headed a masterful assist for Tiago Tomás to provide a precise finish past the Paços de Ferreira goalkeeper for his fourth goal of the season.

Despite a reaction from the visitors, who came close to equalising through João Amaral, Sporting CP continued to dominate, and extended their advantage just before half time. After threatening moments before, Bruno Tabata ducked into the central channel and delivered an arching shot that found its way into the net. The great goal was the first for the Brazilian in official appearances for the club.

After the break, the match became more intense and FC Paços de Ferreira came out more boldly, but it would be Sporting CP who would strike again, in the 64th minute. Following João Mário's free-kick, João Palhinha headed in to make things even more comfortable on the scoresheet.

Before the end there would be chances for Tomás and for substitute Gonzalo Plata, but at the final whistle the score remained 3-0, seeing Sporting CP through to the next round of the Taç de Portugal.

Sporting CP: Antonio Adán, Luís Neto (Gonçalo Inácio, 85'), Sebastián Coates, Zouhair Feddal, Pedro Porro, João Palhinha, João Mário (Andraž Šporar, 72'), Nuno Mendes (Antunes, 68'), Bruno Tabata ( Matheus Nunes, 72'), Nuno Santos and Tiago Tomás (Gonzalo Plata, 85')

Sporting CP assistant coach gives lowdown on Taça de Portugal encounter

Assistant coach Emanuel Ferro was on press conference duty for Sporting CP on Thursday evening, previewing a Taça de Portugal Fourth Round tie against FC Paços de Ferreira. Whilst he assessed the upcoming Friday night contest, he also moved to put the events of the controversial Liga NOS encounter with FC Famalicão in the past.

“The matter is completely closed", he told journalists. "Our reaction is the work that we are doing this week to prepare for tomorrow's game."

"It will be a match of great importance, against opposition who are in excellent form and who have been having a great season. We want to give our best showing in order to win a game that has continuation in the Taça de Portugal at stake,” he said of FC Paços de Ferreira, whose coach Pepa has reiterated that his team will take the fixture seriously".

"We didn't expect anything less from FC Paços de Ferreira or their coach, who is ambitious and believes in the work that he does. We expect to come up against a competitive side that will demand the best from us, but we know that we will rise to the challenge".

"Our objective remains to win the cup. This will only happen if we continue the work that has been done well tomorrow, but our ambition makes sure that we always want to do better -and we are fully convinced that this will happen.” remarked the Sporting CP assistant.

Ferro confirmed that Nuno Mendes will be back in the squad, as well as the absence of Jovane Cabral for the game. Meanwhile, coach Rúben Amorim and top scorer Pedro Gonçalves both have suspensions to their names after respective red cards against FC Famalicão.

“We know that we are stronger when we have everyone available, and without a doubt those two people are major absences. However, what has made the difference has been the way the squad and club have worked over the weeks. Pedro Gonçalves' masterclasses are the result of what the collective produces. He has been standing out a little more as a result of scoring goals, but he only gets those because his teammates perform their tasks well and the team make good decisions".

A late equaliser, a sending off and a goal denied by VAR

Sporting Clube de Portugal were left frustrated by a 2-2 draw with FC Famalicão on Matchday 9 of the Liga NOS season, conceding a late goal that denied them another three points. Os Leões twice went ahead in the away fixture, thanks to goals from Pedro Gonçalves and Pedro Porro, but the opposition would equalise on both occasions. Despite the dropped points, Sporting CP remain outright leaders in the Portuguese league.

Coach Rúben Amorim made limited changes to his first choice starting XI, bringing in Vitorino Antunes to replace the injured Nuno Mendes. Adán, Neto, Coates, Feddal, Pedro Porro, João Palhinha, João Mário, Nuno Santos, Šporar and Pedro Gonçalves all began the game on the pitch, in a game that took place on a cold and rainy afternoon.

Sporting CP started well and were the better side throughout the first half although there were goals for both sides. Coates gave the first warning, in the 13th minute, heading wide off a corner.

The best early chance came when Nuno Santos was brought down inside the box, with a penalty awarded. The winger would step up to take it himself, but  FC Famalicão goalkeeper Luiz Júnior guessed the right way to keep the spot kick out.

Half an hour in, João Palhinha came close with a shot from distance, which was punched clear in a reflex save by Luiz Júnior.

The effort was rewarded on 37 minutes, when a cross by Nuno Santos was flapped at by Luiz Júnior. Former FC Famalicão player ran back into the box, weaved past the defence and scored an early Goal Of The Month candidate.

Unfortunately, the lead was short lived. Following a free-kick on the left, Gustavo Assunção turned the ball in at the back post past Antonio Adán. 

Just before half time, a foul on the edge of the area provided a chance to reestablish the advantage. Pedro Porro picked his spot to make it 1-2, two minutes into stoppage time at the end of the first period of play.

When the action got back underway, Luiz Júnior was tested by both Gonçalves and Palhinha, before coach Amorim decided to switch things up: He took off Šporar for Tiago Tomás to enter the fray, and the young striker started well, combining with João Mário -in a move which ended with the midfielder hitting the side netting.

Tabata also came in, on 72 minutes, replacing Nuno Santos, who also set up João Mário for an effort off target. These chances, plus an attempt by Porro, were all unsuccessful, leaving the lead still just a single goal entering into the final 10 minutes.

Things became more precarious with the sending off of Gonçalves for a second bookable offence, leaving Sporting CP down to 10 men.

In response, Matheus Nunes and Borja replaced João Mário and Antunes to try to hold out, but it was not to be. A free kick by Jhonata Robert brough FC Famalicão back on terms one minute from time.

Coates would turn the ball in for Sporting CP in stoppage time, but referee Luís Godinho consulted VAR and disallowed the goal for a foul by the centre back on the opposition goalkeeper. Rúben Amorim was sent off in the subsequent protests.

Sporting CP are still the league's outright leaders, but they felt that they deserved more than just a point on Matchday 9.

Sporting CP's president emphatic that a disallowed Coates goal was legal

Sporting CP president Frederico Varandas spoke to journalists after the game against FC Famalicão, in which a controversial decision by VAR denied the team victory.

“Once again,VAR had an influence at a key moment in one of our games. The final move of the match, in which a goal for Coates was disallowed, would never have been ruled out if it were for one of our rivals", he told the press.

"There are obviously normal mistakes in a football match, but what concerns me is the nature and the way the VAR is looked at. It was a legal goal".

The Club previously experienced controversy against FC Porto, the only other game in Liga NOS this season in which they have dropped points.

“As president of Sporting CP, I find it hard to see four points taken away from us by the misuse of VAR. I have already spoken to the President of the Refereeing Association, who shares my opinion: VAR must only be used when there are glaring errors. Now, the referee validates the goal, then VAR contacts him, he goes over the move with a microscope and the goal is disallowed. At any ground, this goal is clearly legal. The specialists come in and they look at a frame in which the arm touches the ball, but the goal is legal".

“We would have been four points clear, and they would be shaking about this, but the more they tremble, the more strength they give to this group. I assure you of this”, said Frederico Varandas.