Jorge Jesus sees Sunday's win in Braga as more than deserved and looks to Bas Dost as inspiration for the rest of the squad

Jorge Jesus spoke with the press after his side's 3-2 win in Braga this Sunday afternoon and the Alvalade boss was sure to thank the players and fans for the tribute to his father, who passed away last week.

"My players always want to give me wins and it would have been a huge injustice if we didn't get the three points today. We were really good in the first-half, we missed a penalty and Sp. Braga scored from the only chance they had. This team is growing with every game and we just need a bit more defensively. At half-time I told the lads that goals will come, but that we had to defend better out wide", said Jesus, adding a word on the unstoppable form of Bas Dost: "Bas has the mentality of champion, the image of what I want the future of Sporting CP to be. If he can win the Golden Boot, well Messi is having a really good end to the season."

Bas Dost hattrick sinks Sp. Braga

An injury, a missed penalty and five goals made for an emotional afternoon in Braga this Sunday, with Sporting CP coming away with the three points on Liga NOS matchday 31 courtesy of a hattrick from none other than Bas Dost.

Jorge Jesus' side were dealt an early below with an injury picked up by Alan Ruiz in the 25th minute, which saw the striker carried away to the dressing rooms obviously suffering with his right knee. Not to worry though, as Bas Dost was of course on hand to compensate. With another hattrick added to his personal tally, Dost has now netted on 31 occasions in 28 Liga NOS appearances, totalling 50% of all of Sporting CP 's goals scored in league matches so far this season. The three strikes also keeps up the pressure on Lionel Messi in the race for this season's Golden Boot.

Despite the Dutchman's masterclass, it was a hard afternoon's work for the team from the Portuguese capital, who battled through to secure three points in tribute to Jorge Jesus after the Alvalade boss lost his father during the week. On 13 minutes Ricardo Horta opened the scoring after capitalising on a shot from Rui Fonte that fell into his path after hitting the woodwork. Trailing, Sporting CP rallied on the attack, but possession was proving difficult to translate into chances.

With Podence thrust into the action in place of the injured Ruiz, Sporting CP's first chance to equaliser soon materialised. The number 56 was brought crashing down for a penalty and Adrien Silva stepped up for the spot kick, which he uncharacteristically put wide. Despite a good string of chances, led mostly through the restless Gelson Martins, Sp. Braga held on to their slender lead until the break. However, the second-half was a completely different story, with the starting gun fired from the penalty spot by Bas Dost as Marcelo Goiano fouled Gelson Martins in the area.

Jorge Jesus' charges needed just another 15 minutes to go 2-1 up, when Bas Dost did the business after a pass from Zeegelaar. Braga responded four minutes later when Rui Fonte made the most of a defensive mix-up, but Sporting's Dutch assassin wasn't about to be out done and Dost rounded off his hattrick with a header from a cross whipped in by Schelotto.

Jorge Jesus names squad to face Braga

Jorge Jesus has named his squad for Liga NOS matchday 31 against Sp. Braga on Sunday (18h00).

1 – Rui Patrício
2 – Ezequiel Schelotto
4 – Jefferson
10 – Bryan Ruiz
11 – Bruno César
13 – Sebastian Coates
14 – William Carvalho
15 – Paulo Oliveira
18 – Francisco geraldes
20 – Luc Castaignos
23 – Adrien Silva
28 – Bas Dost
31 – Marvin Zeegelaar
34 – Beto Pimparel
35 – Rúben Semedo
47 – Ricardo Esgaio
56 – Daniel Podence
77 – Gelson Martins
99 – Alan Ruiz

Raul José guarantees a strong Sporting CP for the weekend's trip to Braga

Standing in for Jorge Jesus in this Saturday's pre-match press conference, Raul José promised "a strong Sporting CP", in tribute to the Alvalade coach following the death of his father this week.

"Whenever you lose a loved one it is always painful, but Jorge will be back with the same dedication and passion and the players are with him to get the win on Sunday", opened the Sporting CP assistant coach, adding: "Winning is always the priority for Sporting CP. We are with Jorge (Jesus) and we will go to Braga to get the win with the support of the fans."

As for the weekend's opposition and Sporting CP's chances of still finishing 2nd in Liga NOS, Raul José commented: ""Sp. Braga have some great players and are always strong at home. They have shown against the big teams that they are a solid team, who are difficult to play against. We will have to be at our best to win. We are focused on winning our games and at the end we will see where we finish."

Ticket news for Liga NOS matchday 31 and 32

Sporting Clube de Portugal has announced ticketing information for the coming Liga NOS fixtures (ticket offices open from 10h to 20h).

Matchday 31
Match: Sp. Braga vs Sporting CP
Date: 30th of April (Sunday) at 18h
Location: Braga Municipal Stadium
Price: 20€
Sales: Thursday and Friday in Alvalade

Matchday 32
Match: Sporting CP vs CF Os Belenenses
Date: 7th of May (Sunday) at 11h45
Location: Estádio José Alvalade
Prices from: 5€ (Member) or 13€ (fan)
SALES ALSO AVAILABLE ONLINE

The match against CF Os Belenenses will be dedicated to Sporting CP's ladies, with various special offers:

Ladies ticket + exclusive scarf: club member 7€ or fan 13€

- promotion only valid at Estádio José Alvalade ticket offices
- ticker available for any sector of the stadium (subject to availability)
- Scarf offer subject to availability

Anti-crisis tickets (from 5€ and exclusively for club members) and family tickets (21€ for 3 people, one of whom must be a club member with fees paid up to date) are also available.

Jorge Jesus highlights his side's dominance going forward in the Lisbon derby

Sporting CP was not happy with the split points in the Lisbon derby on Saturday night, after what he saw as a dominant display from his side.

"Matches aren't defined by possession. They are defined by opportunities and we were better in that regard. We had two good chances though Bas Dost, who is still having a tough time from long range. We didn't win because we didn't take the two or three chances you have in these games. I am happy with how the lads played, but now with the result. One team went for the win and the other one didn't create chances. I wouldn't say that one team was better though", said Jesus.

Speaking about SL Benfica's approach to the encounter and his introduction of Jefferson and Paulo Oliveira in defence, the Alvalade boss affirmed: "Benfica didn't have chances on goal. In the second-half we were not as good in defence,bur we tried to hit on the counter-attack where we could. Benfica ended up scoring from a well-taken free-kick. Jefferson has a bit more pace than Bruno César, which is why I picked him to deal with Salvio's movement. On the other hand, I made the right choice with Paulo Oliveira. Rúben Semedo is carrying a bit of a physical problem and Paulo gave us the security we needed."

Points split in the Lisbon derby

The Lisbon derby ended in a 1-1 draw this Saturday, on an evening which saw an absolutely tremendous display of support from a capacity Estádio José Alvalade.

Pushed on by the crowd, Jorge Jesus' charges absolutely burst out the blocks at the starting whistle and hd the ball in the back of the net after just give minutes, when Adrien kept his cool from the penalty spot after Ederson had fouled Bas Dost. referee Artur Soares instantly blew for the spot kick and the Alvalade captain didn't disappoint. Incredibly, it was actually the first time that SL Benfica had conceded from a penalty since the 1st of April 2016. The numbers speak for themselves.

The visitors looked nervous and Sporting CP continued to press, but Rui Vitória's side held out on the explosive start to the encounter soon boiled over. Sporting CP led by the narrowest of margins at the break, but Jorge Jesus' side came out firing on all cylinders for the second-half and Bas Dost came close to doubling the lead on two occasions (48') and (54').

Unable to open up a more secure lead, SL Benfica were always in with a chance of getting back into it and Lindelof equalised six minutes after the hour mark. Jesus responded with the introduction of Daniel Podence, but the scoreboard remained unaltered until the final whistle.

Jorge Jesus looking for quality from Saturday's Lisbon derby

Jorge Jesus was in the Alvalade press room this Friday for a much awaited meeting with journalists ahead of the weekend's Lisbon derby.

This will be the 300th meeting between the two giants from the Portuguese capital and Jesus did not play down the occasion, despite the title race being largely out of Sporting CP's hands: "Winning won't save anything, because this club lives on titles. We are on the road to recovery, after the brilliant season we had [in 2015/2016]. We are not fighting for the title right now, but we are building a structure that can fight against our rivals. The result won't have a direct impact on the league standings, but we still want to play some good football and get the win. This fixture is always a passionate one, it is completely different from every other match. A Sporting CP-SL Benfica is always a brilliant spectacle and we want to be the best team out there."

The Alvalade coach touched on the absence of Marvin Zeegelaar, but left his actual squad list to matchday to announce: "Based on various factors, I wouldn't say that we have to change a lot of things to surprise Benfica. I know a lot about every team and we know about the characteristics of the players. I think coaches are a lot more important during the match than before it. Jefferson, Esgaio and Bruno César all have a chance of coming in and what I do not want to do is limit us in attack. I am not worried in terms of who is better in defence."

Sporting CP will host SL Benfica in Alvalade on Saturday, at 20h30.

Alvalade completely sold out for the Lisbon derby

Estádio José Alvalade will host the Lisbon derby this weekend, with a sold out crowd guaranteed to add to the occasion.

Considering that the match is considered as high risk, Sporting CP has issued the following recommendations:

. gates will open at 18h30 (two hours before kick-off)
. we recommend that fans enter as earlier as possible in order to avoid excessive waiting times
. it is advisable to use public transport to reach the stadium
. children under the age of three are prohibited 
. all fans must have a valid ticket
. Sporting CP members mus have March 2017 fees paid up to date

Sporting CP fans entering through Gate 1 (NOS) can use alternatives, particularly when this area is controlled by the police on arrival of the visiting supporters. Fans with tickets for A1/A3/A5 and B1/B3/B5 can use Gate 4 and fans with tickets for A13/A15 and B15/B17 can use Gate 2.

Jorge Jesus and Adrien Silva on Friday's win in Setúbal and next week's Lisbon derby

"Vitória de Setúbal are a good side who play quality football. Their coach likes to see good football and Couceiro (V. Setúbal coach) has been very positive for the club", affirmed Jorge Jesus in a flash interview at the final whistle on Friday night.

Speaking in greater depth about the evening's action, the Sporting CP coach highlighted Setúbal's form against Portugal's top side: "When you face on of the big clubs you need to a certain kind of strategy. They hadn't lost against one of the big clubs before night. We played really well and in additional to some really effective attacking play we were strong at the back. Only a really strong Sporting CP team could win 3-0 here. We were smart and I thought we managed the occasion well, so the lads deserve a pat on the back."

The Lisbon derby is up next and Jesus was inevitably asked to share his thoughts: "We want to beat Benfica, just like we wanted to beat Vitória de Setúbal tonight. It is a derby and is the focus of a lot of passion across the whole country. We are feeling good right now and it will be a great match to match. It won't decide the title, but we always go for the win and it is even better when it is against one of our rivals."

Adrien Silva returned to the starting line-up against Setúbal, but the Alvalade skipper preferred to praise his colleagues for filling in during his absence through injury, rather than focus on himself: "I am finding my confidence and form from before my injury. I want to congratulate the squad for how they have plated recently. They really showed professionalism and personality. Benfica is just another match that we want to win, but it is a derby and we can't hide from that."