Teo Gutiérrez scores two against Arouca in 5-1 win

Teo Gutiérrez spoke with the press this Saturday after bagging two goals against Arouca, on Liga NOS matchday 27.

“We are feeling confident and we want to do our job. We are a team and we want to play the best football we possibly can", opened the Colombian, adding a work on his current form: "I am calm. My teammates and the coaches help me and that is showing on the pitch. There are seven matches left and we have to carry on. Everyone is fighting to win points and it is down to us to do our job."

Sporting put five past Arouca on Liga NOS matchday 27

Sporting CP breezed past the visiting Arouca this Saturday, with two goals from Téo Gutiérrez and João Mário and a strike from Bryan Ruiz closing out what was an easier than expected win against the league's 5th place side.

Arouca looked dangerous in the earlier stages, but it was Sporting who created the first chances on goal, with Bryan Ruiz putting a header just wide in the 4th minute after a cross from Bruno César. Next it was Ruiz turned creator, when the Costa Rican floated a ball across to the far post that Slimani came just inches from converting on. A goal looked to be only a matter of time coming and Arouca finally broke for the first time in the 16th minute, when Coates nodded a header on following a corner from Bruno César. The effort looked to be heading goalwards, but Teo made sure with an easy tap in. Walter González broke away almost immediately following the restart and could havelevelled, but Rui Patrício stood firm and made a comfortable save.

Lito Vidigal's side hadn't conceded a single goal for five straight matches, but the tone had been set for what would be one of Sporting's most clinical attacking displays of the season. Teo Gutiérrez broke away down the right and dragged a pass across to João Mário down the middle and the Portuguese international obliged with a thunderous effort to make it 2-0 after just 19 minutes.

Arouca simply looked lost after the second, particularly with João Mário continuously thundering forward and terrorising the visiting defence. Slimani picked out the midfielder with a delicious back heel, but the final effort finished up high of the cross bar. Not to be dissuaded, a beautiful link up between Adrien saw the Sporting captain dribble past three defenders and release João Mãrio at a tight ankle just inside the 18-yard box and the finish that followed was simple sensational, with the midfielder arching the ball around the Arouca keeper and into the back of the net to make it 3-0.

Sporting's destruction of Arouca didn't stop there and Teo wasn't about to let João Mário claim the title of the evening's best finisher. Another corner from Bruno César was this time flicked on by William Carvalho and the Colombian striker was in the right place at the right time to poke into the back of the net.

The second-half got underway with a break forward from Slimani, but the Algerian was only able to fire into the side netting after being forced into a tight angle. Just after it had been announced that 46,014 fans had packed out Alvalade for what was the third best crowd of the season, Bryan Ruiz produced a bit of his usual magic with a curled shot beyond the reach of the Arouca keeper. Arouca responded with a counter-attack from Ivo Rodrigues, but Rui Patrício made a fine save, before Gegé headed a goal back for the visitors. Sporting could have made it six just before the final whistle, but Gelson Martins was unable to keep his shot down after a fine bit of play between Teo and Aquilani.

Jorge Jesus includes 20 for Liga NOS matchday 27

Jorge Jesus has included a total of 20 players in his squad for Liga NOS matchday 27 against Arouca:

Goalkeepers: Rui Patrício and Azbe Jug

Defenders: Schelotto, Ewerton, Coates, João Pereira, Semedo and Esgaio

Midfielders: Aquilani, Bruno César, William, João Mário and Adrien

Forwards: Slimani, Teo, Bryan Ruiz, Barcos, Carlos Mané, Gelson Martins and Matheus

Sporting CP-Arouca will get underway today at 18h30, in Estádio José Alvalade.

Jorge Jesus ahead of Saturday's hosting of Arouca

Jorge Jesus is expecting a tough hosting of Arouca this Saturday, on Liga NOS matchday 27. However, the Alvalade boss is confident that his side will come away with the three points.

“Arouca are having a decent enough season. They are in fifth and are trying to defend that position. They have already taken points off our main rivals as well. We know it will be hard, against a team who are good on the break. They are a decent side for this league, but we are ready. The lads are in good shape and we are in the fight for the title", opened the Sporting coach, going on to add a word on what is expected to be another capacity crowd: "Sporting CP is not only battling back its identity when it comes to titles, but also with the fans. Everyone is proud of us once again and our fans are really young. How is it possible that a club that hasn't won a title for 14 years has so many young fans? It really should be a case study."

Jorge Jesus further added that his medical staff are pushing to get Jefferson back into action, but affirmed that he has options to come in for the suspended Marvin: "Esgaio is a player who knows the position and some other players in the squad can play there as well. I am sure whoever plays will do a good job."

“Sporting is the team with most players in the national team and that is a good thing. We have a lot of young players who are going through and to be honest the club is growing right across the board", finished Jesus.

Sporting-Arouca contributes to the João Rocha Arena

A total of 40,000 tickets have already been sold for Liga NOS matchday 27, which will see Sporting host Futebol Clube de Arouca at 18h30 on Saturday.

CELEBRATE FATHER'S DAY

Family of 3 tickets (Club Member + Adult + Under-11) are available for the North Goal End for just 21€.

CELEBRATE JUVENTUDE LEONINA'S 40TH BIRTHDAY

Portugal's oldest organised fan group celebrates its 40th birthday this Saturday.

CONTRIBUTE TO MISSION PAVILION

With a year to go until the opening of the João Rocha Arena, 2€ from each ticket sold will be donated to Mission Pavilion.

The Alvalade ticket offices are open from 10h to 20h. Non-renewed special seats will go on sale on Thursday, freeing up tickets for Stand B. Anti-Crisis tickets, priced at 5€ (sectors A9 and A11) are still available for Club Members.

With 13 league games played so far this season in Estádio José Alvalade, a new record for the average attendance has already been set, standing at 38,577.

Sales underway for Liga NOS matchday 27

Tickets for Liga NOS matchday 27, between Sporting and Arouca, are on sale as follows:

STAND A
Central – 22€ for Club Members and 32€ for fans
Lateral – 17€ for Club Members and 27€ for fans
Goal End – 12€ for Club Members and 22€ for fans
Under-23/Senior – 12€ for Club Members
Under-11 – 3.5€ for Club Members

STAND B
Central – 17€ for Club Members and 22€ for fans
Lateral – 12€ for Club Members and 17€ for fans
Goal End – 7€ for Club Members and 12€ for fans
Under-23/Senior – 7€ for Club Members
Anti-Crisis – 5€ for Club Members
Under-11 – 3.5€ for club Members

Family tickets - 21€ (3 people) // 25€ (4 people)

'Mission Pavilion' Match
A year until the opening of the João Rocha Arena, €2 from each ticket sold will be donated to 'Mission Pavilion'.

SALES POINTS

ESTÁDIO JOSÉ ALVALADE TICKET OFFICES

- 15th to 18th of March: from 10h to 20h
- 19th March (matchday): from 10h until half-time

OFFICIAL WEBSITE

- payment methods available: Multibanco, VISA and Mastercard
- multibanco option available up to 24 hours before kick-off
- PDF ticket: to be printed on A4 (can be in black and white)

REGRAS DE ACESSO AO ESTÁDIO

- Entry prohibited to children under the age of 3
- Children over the age of 3 (inclusive) require a ticket
- Under-11 Club Member ticket: from 3 (inclusive) to 11 years old and valid for any section
- Under-23 Club Member ticket: from 11 (inclusive) until 23 years old with different prices for Stand A and B
- Senior Club Member ticket: from the age of 65 (inclusive) with different prices for Stand A and B
- Special Seats have preference until 72 hours before kick-off
- Fan tickets purchased on matchday are subject to a 3€ tax
- Match included in all 2015/2016 Gamebox packages
- Member fee applicable: February 2016

FAMILY TICKET

- Available for all North Goal End tickets of Stand A and B

- Family of 3 (Member + Adult + Under-11): 21€

- Family of 4 (Member + Adult + Under-23 + Under-11): 25€

- Additional tickets available for Family of 4 (minimum of 2): Adult (10€) and under-23 (5€)

- Club Members can take advantage of this promotion (replacing their usual seat)

- Category B Club Members can purchase this promotion for North Goal End - Stand B
 

ANTI-CRISIS TICKET

- Sector A9 + A11 (limited to 723 tickets) and priced at 5€

Jorge Jesus on his side's win in Arouca

Jorge Jesus used Tuesday's League Cup encounter to give a run out to his squad this Tuesday night, in Sporting's 1-0 win over Arouca.

“We can take two positives away from this to be honest. The win and the fact that some young players came on. You can train all you want, but it is matches that give confidence and fitness to get us ready for the league run in. We managed the squad in Portimão and that allowed us to go to Paços de Ferreira and push really hard. We wanted to be in the semi-final of this competition and we did everything we could to do that", said the Sporting coach at the final whistle, adding: "The League Cup is an important competition which I have already won five times.Getting into the final is really nice, but most teams are obviously focused on the league."

To finish, Jorge Jesus also tackled a question on the transfer window: "I am not going to speculate. I said we wanted a defender and our priority was the return of Ruben Semedo. We reached a deal with V. Setúbal and he trained at the Academy today."

Sporting win but finish second in League Cup Group C

Sporting claimed the win in Arouca this Tuesday night, but were left to settle for 2nd place in League Cup Group C after Portimonense 3-2 in in Paços de Ferreira. Marvin was on target for the team from Alvalade, with 10 minutes left on the clock.

As promised in his pre-match press conference, Jorge Jesus rang the changes for the encounter and also handed a debut to Azbe Jug in the Sporting goal.

With less playing time together, Arouca were able to establish a foothold early on and Walter was able to get a shot off after beating Paulo Oliveira at the sprint, but the final product ended up wide of the post. Another chance quickly followed for the hosts, this time with Gegé heading over the target following a corner. Some insecurity in the passing game also saw Arouca claw back possession and break forward on occasions and Sporting's first clean chance on goal was made to wait until the quarter of an hour mark, when Paulo Oliveira turned a Nildo free-kick wide.

The anticipated reaction from Jorge Jesus' side really clicked into gear in the 19th minute, when a deep cross from Tanaka picked out André Martins at the far post, but the stand-in captain was unable to find the back of the net. The attack was the signal for a spell of pressing football from the visitors and brilliant bit of play saw Matheus Pereira spray a pass long to Tanaka, who controlled well and set up Montero, but the Colombian was off target. With 30 minutes on the clock the deadlock persisted, while Paços de Ferreira took the lead in Mata Real to begin to tip goal difference in Sporting's favour.

With Arouca mathematically unable to secure a place in the next round of the League Cup and Sporting looking uninspired, 0-0 persisted at the break, while Paços de Ferreira were leading Portimonense 2-1.

Jorge Jesus brough Gelson Martins and Carlos Mané into the action at the start of the second-half for André Martins and Matheus Pereira and it seemed to inject new urgency into the Sporting attack. Chances soon began to follow, first from Montero with a stinging effort that ended up wide, before Carlos Mané followed suit. The pressure on the Arouca goal began to build and on 58 minutes Aquilani had what was arguably Sporting's best chance of the night, but the Italian was also off target.

Sporting had done more than enough to take the lead, but while opportunities were in good supply, clinical finishing was lacking. Paulo Oliveira skimmed the paint off the outside of the post with a header in the 65th minute and on five minutes later the Alvalade defender again game close. Aquilani followed with a free-kick over the bar and Mané saw a shot deflected wide with a last ditch challenge, before Marvin finally opened the scoring ten minutes from time with a rebound after Rui Sacramento had denied Monteero.

Despite the win, Sporting's League Cup campaign comes to an end this season, with Portimonense topping the group with three wins out of three.

Jorge Jesus includes 19 for League Cup showdown

Jorge Jesus has included 19 players in his squad for League Cup Group C matchday 3 against Arouca:

Goalkeepers: Marcelo Boeck and Azbe Jug

Defenders: João Pereira, Ricardo Esgaio, Schelotto, Paulo Oliveira, Ewerton, Domingos Duarte and Marvin

Midfielders: Aquilani e André Martins

Forwards: Carlos Mané, Gelson Martins, Dramé, Daniel Podence, Matheus Pereira, Cristian Ponde, Montero and Tanaka

Arouca-Sporting will get underway at 18h30 on Tuesday, in the Arouca Municipal Stadium.

Jorge Jesus ahead of tomorrow's visit to Arouca

O Sporting will travel to Arouca tomorrow for a 18h30 kick off, in League Cup Group C. Although mathematically possible to secure a place in the next round, Sporting require Portimonense to lose in Paços de Ferreira and for goal difference to turn in favour.

“We know what happens depends on other results and we have to get a better goal different than Portimonense, so of course we want to win. In Portimão we didn't want to put this match at risk. We still have a chance and we are going to take it. I will included four or five players from the B team, who will bring a bit of balance", affirmed Jorge Jesus in an exclusive interview with Sporting TV, adding: "I don't know what team Arouca will use, because they have no chance of getting into the next round. It is going to be a competitive match, but it definitely won't be Arouca's best team because they have other priorities. What matters is that we at least win, then we will see what happens with Portimonense."

Jorge Jesus went on to explain further his inclusion of players from Sporting B, including Gelson Martins and Matheus Pereira: "This is their time to adapt to how we play. It will help them be ready in the future. They are still young lads and I believe a lot of them can go on to do what Gelson and Matheus are doing. Honestly I didn't know a lot about Sporting's youth players, although I knew some from the national team, like Gelson for example. I was surprised to come across players like Gelson and Matheus, with such quality and potential to play for Sporting."

Asked about Adrien and Gelson Martins' time with the club doctors this week, Jesus proved untroubled. "Adrien doesn't look too bad, but Gelson is a bit different. He is coming on, but we have been limiting his playing time because he isn't fully ready yet", explained Jesus, going on to add a word on Slimani's impervious form: "He has a lot of potential and we want to help him. We is doing a great job individually and collectively and we believe in him."

The January transfer window is still wide open and there has been no shortage of links with Alvalade, however Jesus finished with a word of praise for his currently available squad: "We can work more with the squad as time goes on and get more quality out of the lads. The players have come on really quickly in six months and they deserve praise for that. It will be a hard run in at the end of the season and we will have to be ready. When I see we, I don't only mean the players. I mean everybody, because our rivals are going to try and unsteady us."