Sporting CP play Casa Pia AC on Wednesday night

Sporting Clube de Portugal play in the Round of 16 of the Taça de Portugal against Casa Pia AC on Wednesday, and coach Rúben Amorim spoke about the contest in his pre-match press conference.

Amorim knows the opposing side well, since it was there that he began his coaching career, and he made clear that his team will have to be “intense and serious” in order to progress in the competition.

“We expect a difficult game, and the game in Penafiel also served as a warning, at a distinctive ground against a team that play the same formation as us and had been rising up the table in the Second Division," he said.

"I know the coach well, and he also knows me well; we have very similar dynamics," he continued.

"Casa Pia AC have nothing to lose and we will have to be very serious. We have to go into the game knowing that we can lose, because if we're not intense, serious and don't treat the fixture as a final, we won't be able to win".

Ricardo Esgaio may be an option to start, as he is on the cusp of a return from injury, but the coach believes that whoever plays, he has no doubts.

“The strength of this group is that we have everyone prepared. The best team we have to win is that which will play. I'm not going to keep anybody in reserve, but I'm going to change some things".

Amorim also spoke about Pedro Gonçalves, who missed a penalty in Barcelos this past weekend.

“Pedro, for better or for worse, doesn't think about things too much. Obviously he wants to score and every game is a new opportunity, but he's not anxious, because it's not his profile”.

Asked about some of the youth players that he has brought through, the coach explained that “Rodrigo Ribeiro has now moved down to the B team, [José] Marsá is still with us and is getting better and better. Geny [Catamo] will also return to the B team, but he was two minutes away from coming on in Barcelos - before Nuno Santos' goal. They, and others, will have to move up, because of our needs and because they deserve to have opportunities”.