The Sporting CP coach speaks ahead of the second leg against Juventus

This Thursday, Sporting Clube de Portugal host Juventus FC in the second leg of their Europa League quarter-final. The Italian team hold a one-goal advantage after winning the first leg, but the tie remains open and coach Rúben Amorim believes in his team's chances of moving on to the next stage.

"Our team have already demonstrated that we excel in these games, that we are daring and consistent. We are strong and we had a good feeling in the game in Turin, in which we created several opportunities, controlled Juventus' strengths, but just weren't as effective as they were and that made the difference. The players know that this game will be different from last week, because there are different details, and that we have to be smart. We know that we have 90 minutes in which to manage things, equalise and turn around the tie", he began by saying, in his pre-match press conference.

"We believe we will go through, although we know it will be difficult, but we have the ability to turn around the tie -whether that be in extra time or penalties".

Asked if this was the most important game of the season for Sporting CP, he replied: "I don't know if it is or not. Let's imagine we make it through: The most important game would be the next one. If we get to the final, it would be the final that was the most important. What I do know is the feeling we have, and the fact that the stadium was sold out in such a short time gives the feeling that this is a decisive moment in our season. But we do well in these moments, it is a defining moment and I feel that we are prepared and that we are going to give a good response", he added.

"Juventus are full of good players. If you change two of their players, it changes the team's way of playing, but we are prepared for several scenarios. We have to be prepared and be effective up front and in defence, to have a chance of going through".

"We will always need some heroism to move forward, but we will need to be consistent and effective more than that. I know that if we do our job in the best way in all positions and situations, we will be able to overcome Juventus".

Amorim revealed one of his starters for the game: Ousmane Diomande.

"We maintain confidence in him and he will continue to start, that's the only thing I'm going to say," he commented, also justifying why he sometimes sends Sebastián Coates forward when looking for goals: "He's our best header of the ball and, in certain games, it comes in very handy have him up front".

The coach also spoke of his team's form.

"The oscillation in performances is not as great as it was at the beginning of the season, but there is variability in the results. We started the season very badly and we were playing catch-up. Whenever we had a chance to get closer we drew, with almost no chances against us and having many in favour, and that caused frustration. Our start to the campaign ha a very big impact".