Costa Rican finishes close second in Player of the Week nominations

Bryan Ruiz finished a close second in the Europa League Player of the Week nominations this week, after his brilliant performance against Besiktas which saw him score Sporting's second in a 3-1 win.

Ruiz talled 43% of the vote to finish behind Fenerbahçe captain Gökhan Gönül.

Also in the running for the award and all finishing with 1% of the vote were Erik Lamela (Tottenham), Henrikh Mkhitaryan (B. Dortmund), Dries Mertens (Napoli), Choupo-Moting (Schalke 04), as well as Piotr Trochowski (Augsburg) and Nathaniel Clyne (Liverpool) with 0%.

Find out more about who Sporting could face in the Europa League knock-out stages

Sporting secured second place in Europa League Group H this Thursday, courtesy of a memorable 3-1 over Besiktas in Lisbon. Lokomotiv Moscow topped the group, leaving Sporting with 13 possible opponents in the next round, to be drawn on Monday in Nyon.

Possible opponents:

- Manchester United (England)

- Bayer Leverkusen (Germany)

- Olympiacos (Greece)

- Molde (Norway)

- Liverpool (England)

- Krasnodar (Russia)

- Napoli (Italy)

- Rapid Vienna (Austria)

- Lazio (Italy)

- Tottenham (England)

- Basel (Switzerland)

- Athl. Bilbao (Spain)

- Schalke 04 (Germany)

Memorable comeback sees Sporting through to the Europa League knock-out stages

With just 25 minutes left on the clock, the odds were certainly stacked against Sporting: Lokomotiv held a lead a lead in Albania and Besiktas were 1-0 up in Alvalade. However, Jorge Jesus' side once again showed a cool head that has been so characteristic of this season, coming back to win 3-1 and secure a place in the next round of the Europa League.

It was Sporting who made the stronger start of the two sides, creating a chance almost from the off with a delicate first touch from Montero and a shot from João Mário to test Zengin. However, Besiktas soon found their footing, courtesy largely of some aggressive midfield play and high pressure defending that saw a fair share of passes miss the mark. Again Montero was the instigator up front for Sporting with a dangerous shot that was deflected wide, before the the visiting Turks saw a few chances of their own go wanting.

Clean chances on goal for Besiktas were few and far between, but the Turkish outfit did a commendable job of smothering the space down the middle. Reading the game, Jorge Jesus introduced  Gelson Martins into the action in place of Montero, bringing João Mário into a more central role in a move that saw Sporting almost instantly improve.

Sporting started the second-half with more possession, but passes continued to go wayward. Quaresma made the most of a hashed counter-attack to put a ball across the face of goal that Mario Gomez comfortably converted on to open scoring. Facing an uphill battle, Jesus brought on Teo Gutiérrez and the tables soon turned in the hosts' favour. After a warning shot on 63 minutes that ended up just over the bar, Slimani struck three minutes later after showing nerve to stretch for a pass from Ruiz to beat the onrushing Zengin. On 72 minutes, Bryan Ruiz completed the turnaround with a low drive that the Besiktas keeper could to little to keep put.

Besiktas could do little but admire the Sporting rally, as Gelson's speed and Teo's movement carved holes in the their defence as the clock ticked over. It was actually the two substitutes who finally finished off the Turks, with showing some brilliant composure to wrong-foot a defender and score Sporting's third.

The win sees Sporting finish in second place in Group H with 10 points, being Lokomotiv Moscow.

Gelson Martins and Bryan Ruiz on Thursday's Europa League win

"We kept looking for the win. We fell behind but we showed character and we didn't give up", is how Gelson summed up his side's 3-1 win against Besiktas in the Europa League on Thursday night.

Bryan Ruiz was also on hand to share his thoughts on the win. "It wasn't an easy game. Besiktas are a great side, but we knew we had to win tonight. It was made that bit harder when we conceded, but we carried on working and we are really happy right now", said the Costa Rican at the final whistle, adding: "We have some tough matches coming up in the league and the cup. We are hoping for another win on Sunday and we will push on from there."

Jorge Jesus praises his team's fighting spirit in 3-1 comeback against Besiktas

Jorge Jesus was understandably full of praise for his side at the final whistle of Thursday's comeback against Besiktas, securing a place in the Europa League knock-out stages.

“The lads worked really hard to win 3-1 after being 1-0 down. We didn't just lay down and accept defeat. I want to highlight the quality of this squad. We played against the top team in Turkey and the second placed team in Russia. Our group had two really strong teams and it really wasn't a Europa League group. We are through, which was our goal, without risking what we are doing domestically", opened Jorge Jesus.

The Sporting coach went on to dedicate the win to president Bruno de Carvalho, before casting his thoughts to coming fixtures: "This one was for the players, the fans and especially the president, because he has changed this club over the last two years. In February the team will be stronger in every competition, because have some time now to work. However, what matters most now is our next game on Sunday."