The coach reacts to the 1-3 win over BSC Young Boys

After the 1-3 home win against Swiss side BSC Young Boys, which put Sporting Clube de Portugal in a positive position in the playoff to reach the Round of 16 of the UEFA Europa League, coach Rúben Amorim expressed his happiness with the performance of his players, only regretting the fact that the team did not score more goals.

“We knew it was going to be a tough game, with a lot of duels and against players strong in one-on-ones close to the area. We started very well, but we always missed the final pass and that is something we have to improve. Antonio [Adán] kept us in it with two great saves and there were a lot of transitions in the first half. We scored the first goal and then the second, but we can't concede to make it 1-2 on the very next move,” the coach began by saying at his press conference.

“We rectified some things at halftime, but what helped a lot was the third goal, because it broke BSC Young Boys down a little, gave us confidence and then we managed the scoreline until the end. We could and should have scored more goals, especially in the second half, as the tie is only halfway through and is very dangerous. The opposition had their chances, but they will be even more courageous in Alvalade to try to turn things around. We have to be prepared for that.”

The coach was then asked why he substituted Viktor Gyökeres in the 73rd minute, in a game in which the Swede was constantly found by his teammates and made numerous runs.

“I wasn't worried at all about his physical capacity, especially because he tracks back slower than the others and we balance that as a team. He came off to manage the game, and in the last 15 minutes there was going to be even more space. The way he looked at his number in amazement [at the time of his departure] is not the look of a player who is tired. Obviously he is very hungry and wants to score a lot of goals, but he will have a lot of games to do that.”

With this result, Sporting CP now have 11 victories in the last 12 games, in addition to 19 goals scored and only one conceded in their last four. But Amorim does not want to relax, and is focusing on Monday's game with Moreirense FC.

“As we won, we will go to  Moreira de Cónegos happy and all the players will feel important because they know they can play. This helps us to prepare for the next game, but now we have to study Moreirense FC and we will be prepared. We know we can't drop points in the league and sometimes the mind is more important than the body. As for the 19 goals scored and one conceded, these are numbers that can change from one moment to the next, as we can lose confidence by dropping points, so we want to maintain this winning streak. This game only helped us confirm that we are on the right path,” highlighted the coach.

In closing, Amorim also made a point of praising the enormous support of the thousands of Sportinguistas who were at the Wankdorf Stadium.

“We started hearing them from when we were at the hotel, it wasn’t even during the warmup. The players are confident and believe in what we are doing, but they also know that there is a way to go and we need their help. We are still only halfway through the tie,” he concluded.

The team move closer to the Round of 16 with a 1-3 first leg win over BSC Young Boys

Sporting Clube de Portugal beat Swiss side BSC Young Boys 1-3 in the first leg of the play-off for the Round of 16 of the UEFA Europa League. The result gives a precious advantage for the second leg, which will be played in one week's time at the Estádio José Alvalade.

At the Wankdorf Stadium in Bern, the first ever meeting between these two teams saw an own goal by Amenda, plus strikes from Viktor Gyökeres and Gonçalo Inácio.

Paulinho missed the game through injury, whilst Sebastián Coates stayed in Lisbon as a precaution due to the risk involved with synthetic playing surface. Coach Rúben Amorim made four changes to the first XI by bringing in Matheus Reis, Ricardo Esgaio, Daniel Bragança and Edwards. Rafael Nel, an 18-year-old striker from the B team made his maiden appearance in the squad.

Sporting CP started out with constant attacks in the final third, and came very close to scoring in the opening moments. Gyökeres went forward on the run, played a one-two with Pedro Gonçalves and saw his shot bounce off the goalkeeper's face. In response, from a corner, BSC Young Boys also gave a scare to Antonio Adán.

The opening half hour was almost exclusively a Sporting CP show, as the always had more of the ball and were sharper in attack. Gyökeres created two more excellent opportunities without success, as in the first he shot into the side netting and then the opposition goalkeeper safely stopped his effort.

However, with 31 minutes gone, they finally got the much sought after goal. In a move from the right, Edwards crossed into the area and defender Amenda appeared at the near post, deflecting the ball into his own net and putting Sporting CP 0-1 up.

From there the champions and current leaders of the Swiss league attempted to react, but it would only last for a short time: In the 39th minute, Edwards was again decisive when he was brought down in the area, which resulted in a penalty. From the 11-metre mark Gyökeres increased the lead to 0-2 and scored his 28th goal of the season.

Despite this, practically from the next move, BSC Young Boys closed the gap again, as Filip Ugrinic found the net just before halftime.

After the break, there was an almost immediate goal, this time for Sporting CP. In the 48th minute, Gonçalves sent a free kick into the area with precision, and Gonçalo Inácio, with the central defender rising high and heading in to make it 1-3.

They never took their foot off the accelerator, continued to insist on the attack and came very close to scoring the fourth goal shortly after. Following another great run by Gyökeres on the left, the Swedish forward entered the penalty area and set up Gonçalves who, unluckily, struck against the post.

The last 15 minutes were played at a slower pace, with BSC Young Boys having more of the ball for the first time, but failed to give Adán much cause for concern -despite having a goal disallowed.

Amorim gave debuts in the competition for winter signing Koba Koindredi and also youngster Nel.

Before the end, Mohamad Ali Camara was sent off for the home team and the intensity faded for both sides. A 1-3 lead gives a healthy advantage to Sporting CP, who will play next Thursday in the second leg with a place in the next round up for grabs. Before that, they play in Liga Portugal this coming Monday, against Moreirense FC on the road.

The midfielder speaks before the UEFA Europa League playoff

Morten Hjulmand talked to the press before the first leg of the UEFA Europa League play-off for the Round of 16, which takes place in Switzerland against BSC Young Boys.

The midfielder acknowledged that the victory against SC Braga in Liga Portugal at the weekend gave even more morale to the team, but he also assured that this is a feeling that has been around since the beginning of this season.

"The team are very confident at the moment, but it has been like that since I arrived. Sporting CP are a great club and we want to demonstrate this in every game we play, but of course when we score a lot of goals that gives us even more confidence", the Danish international began by saying.

The 24-year-old was then asked whether he sees himself as one of the squad's captains - despite not officially being one -, due to the leadership he has demonstrated on the pitch and off it, but he preferred to highlight the fact that several players on the team have this capacity.

"I feel like myself and I don’t think I need to change that. Still, I see many captains in the group and many players with strong personalities who are ready to lead. It’s something you see on the pitch, but I also feel it in the dressing room and when we travel together".

In closing, Hjulmand refused to reveal whether he will be one of the starters in the game, in what is his first season playing in the UEFA Europa League. "The manager will be able to respond to that question".

The coach looks back on the Europa League loss to Atalanta BC

After the defeat against Atalanta BC in Group D of the UEFA Europa League, Sporting CP coach Rúben Amorim gave a press conference to provide his analysis of the match.

"The word 'if' doesn't count in football. A draw was the fairest option, but it didn't happen. In the first half we had a lot of difficulties; we didn't have the quality with the ball that we should have and when we didn't have it we had more problems," he acknowledged, before talking about a second half that he considered "completely different".

"It was mainly because we had the ball, because tactically we did the same things. We tried our best, Geny [Catamo] and Marcus [Edwards] did well in attacking the opposition and that changed the game a little. It was enough to have more time in control of the game and we were better then".

"There were two distinct halves and we didn't manage to score two goals in 'our' half, which for me made the difference in the game. We demonstrated, from the first minute of the second half, that we wanted to chase the win. In the first half we also wanted to, but we didn't achieve it because Atalanta BC were the better side. The urgency was always there, but sometimes we didn't get what we wanted. It's part of football", he summarised.

Once again, Amorim underlined that "in case of doubt, the domestic league is the priority," recalling the club's European experience last season.  “In Europe we were very good and in the league we made it easier for the opposition. We also have to learn from our mistakes".

"No one is more upset about losing tonight than the coach and the players, as we haven't lost in I don't know how long. We have to face it head on. I know that after last season we have to win and play well, I know that and there will be zero tolerance, but we do the maths only at the end. We are top of the league and nothing is lost in the Europa League. I wouldn't say that first place in the group was at risk. We have to win our games and whoever gets more points will go through. We're going to do our best to achieve that".

When asked about replacing Morten Hjulmand at halftime, Amorim explained that the Danish international midfielder "comes from a different team and a different league" and highlighted that now, at Sporting CP, he is "making the transformation to go and look for opponents further away than he's used to doing".

He also talked about Paulinho's starting in place of Marcus Edwards: "We thought they were going to be a very physical team, and we weren't going to have Sebastián Coates on set pieces and Paulinho was in great form. We made the decision looking at the characteristics of the opposition, but now it's easy to say that. Marcus is in great form because the coach insisted on him even after he had some poor games".

A Gyökeres penalty is not enough to take points in the UEFA Europa League

Sporting Clube de Portugal fell 1-2 to Atalanta BC in their second UEFA Europa League Group Stage game, in front of the best home attendance of the season at the Estádio José Alvalade. Some 42,301 spectators turned out to support the team, who put in a great performance that fell just short of earning points.

To face the side currently sixth in Serie A - just five points off the lead -, coach Rúben Amorim made three changes to his starting lineup: Iván Fresneda – making his debut in the first XI – replaced Ricardo Esgaio, Matheus Reis did likewise for Sebastián Coates, and Paulinho joined the attack in place of Marcus Edwards. Hidemasa Morita played his 50th game for the club.

In the stands, the atmosphere was frenetic from the start with Alvalade roaring loudly, but on the field the play would be defined by patience and a lot of concentration. Before the first ten minutes had elapsed, Atalanta BC had two dangerous approaches: On the first, Ademola Lookman burst into the area but found no recipient for his pass, then captain Marten de Roon's header went wide.

Sporting CP tried to use their short ball output to invite the Italians on, and Atalanta BC responded with their usual man-to-man marking. The intention was to then look for Viktor Gyökeres up front or Paulinho and Pedro Gonçalves between the lines , but there was little progression and the visitors had more of the ball.

As the minutes passed, Os Leões provided two quick attacks in which the only thing missing was better finishing. However, in response, after half an hour, Atalanta BC made it 0-1 with the first goal that Sporting CP had conceded in four games. Davide Zappacosta got to the line and a low cross to the heart of the area found a touch by Giorgio Scalvini. Soon after, Lookman threatened twice, but first shot over the crossbar and then had his effort met by solid opposition from Antonio Adán.

Before the break, Atalanta BC took the score to 0-2 through winger Matteo Ruggeri, who after a tackle went through on Adán and scored off a rebound from his own shot.

Looking to change the dynamic, Amorim made changes at halftime, bringing on Sebastián Coates, Geny Catamo and Marcus Edwards for Nuno Santos, Morten Hjulmand and Paulinho. The team restarted the contest more aggressive and forced Atalanta BC to resort to constant fouls to slow down their movement. From one of these set pieces, Sporting CP finally came very close to scoring, but Inácio's header off Edwards' cross went slightly wide.

There was a new energy and belief amongst Sporting CP, with the game being played almost exclusively in the Italian side's midfield and  the visitors now finding it very difficult to maintain possession. On two different moves in the area, Gyökeres looked for space to shoot, but his strikes ended up being blocked by a defender.

With Ricardo Esgaio replacing Fresneda, it was Matheus Reis' turn to try his luck on goal, and Musso intervened.

The breakthrough finally came from the penalty spot: Diomande shot rebounded onto Scalvini's arm and, after VAR reviewed the images, a penalty kick was awarded. Just like in Faro the previous weekend, it was Gyökeres who took responsibility and confidently dispatched the spot kick.

The shift in momentum led to a great series of chances at an equaliser, as Musso got the better of a one-on-one with Edwards and only the post prevented Geny from levelling.
Atalanta BC were trying to survive as best they could, punctuated by a shot from distance from the newly introduced Gianluca Scamacca that forced Adán to save.

In the end, although they had the better of the shots and possession, Sporting CP suffered their first defeat of 2023/24. Thus, with Atalanta BC taking the lead in the head-to-head duel between the two teams that won on the opening matchday of the group, Sporting CP are in second place, level with SK Sturm Graz.

This Sunday they return to Alvalade to host FC Arouca in Liga Portugal.

Sporting CP: Antonio Adán [GK] [C], Iván Fresneda (Ricardo Esgaio, 66'), Ousmane Diomande, Gonçalo Inácio, Matheus Reis (Daniel Bragança, 90+1'), Nuno Santos (Sebastián Coates, 46'), Morten Hjulmand (Marcus Edwards, 46'), Hidemasa Morita, Pedro Gonçalves, Paulinho (Geny Catamo, 46') and Viktor Gyökeres.