The coach gives his assessment of the loss in O Clássico

Following the 3-0 defeat for Sporting Clube de Portugal against FC Porto, Rúben Amorim analysed the match at the Estádio do Dragão.

"We played our game and FC Porto played theirs. They scored three goals and we didn't score from any of the many opportunities we had. We suffered close to halftime, which is difficult, and our best moment was when we came back after the break and dominated. We didn't score or take advantage of our opportunities, and FC Porto were very mature," he explained.

"Conceding three goals in two different games concerns any coach, but we have to analyse it. FC Porto didn't create many opportunities and took all the ones they had. We didn't. There are things we have to improve, but there were very good things as well. There have been games at the Dragão in which we have played much worse. We had shots come back off Diogo Costa's face and we couldn't score. There were phases in which everything went wrong. In football, everything changes suddenly," he stressed.

For Amorim, the absence of the departed Matheus Nunes did not influence the result.

"I really liked [Hidemasa] Morita. The coach is the only one responsible for defeats. The change in midfield had no influence on the result. What we didn't manage to do was kill off FC Porto once and for all, to make them feel uncomfortable."

Admitting that he would be "happier if we had more points", the coach also said he has seen the team grow. "We know the points gap that we have now, but it's not worth thinking about it. It's part of our race and our focus has to be on winning against GD Chaves."

Asked about a possible lack of reaction to losing possession, Amorim explained that "when we win the ball we always want to play forward, and the FC Porto players are closer. We play differently. We were on top of FC Porto many times and we had several opportunities that we didn't bring to fruition."

After praising the entries of Fatawu and Rochinha in the second half and ensuring that he is "very satisfied with the players," Amorim concluded by recalling that "this is football" and that his team "have to be able to deal with the situation and take away the positive and negative aspects."