Bruno de Carvalho speaks in radio interview with TSF

Bruno de Carvalho spoke in an extensive radio interview with TSF this Friday, reflecting on everything from his proposals for the coming elections to how the season is shaping up on the pitch.

"Things are tough right now and we have to focus on the objective we still have. Contrary to our expectations, we have missed out in two competitions that we wanted to win. It is not true that I have an alterative to Jorge Jesus. I have said in several interviews over the last month that Jorge Jesus is my coach, even if we don't win...Like any fan, I feel frustrated, because we had other expectations for this season and things haven't gone well in terms of football. However, Sporting CP is must more than that. I don't see any other candidate speaking about the other sports we are involved in, or the profits we have been making, or the biggest ever transfers we oversaw. I don't want to belittle anyone, but I don't think a successful project should only be supported by football. Our other sports and financial restructuring are going well."

Speaking about the consequences of the recent pair of loses against Desportivo de Chaves, Bruno de Carvalho guaranteed: "We had four objectives, which have been set back to just one. That changes a lot of things. We took some gambles which did not work out, but I am not going to start pointing the finger in public. The players know perfectly well what is going on. At the start of the season we had a meeting with the coach and, independent of what happened in Chaves, we had already spoken about shrinking down the squad. The job had already been done and their is no issue in the dressing room. Our policy is that no fundamental players will leave."

Jorge Jesus puts players through their paces in Vila Pouca de Aguiar

Vila Pouca de Aguiar hosted an open door training session for Sporting CP's senior squad this Sunday morning. Around on hundred fans braved the cold to show their support.

The players who saw most time on the pitch on Saturday night were given a rest for the session, while the rest of the players made the most of the opportunity to practice penalties ahead of the coming midweek Cup tie against Chaves.

At the end of the session the younger generations made the most of the opportunity to snap some photographs with Jorge Jesus.

Jorge Jesus praises Bas Dost for battling through injury

Speaking with the press at the final whistle on Sunday after his side's win against Feirense, Jorge Jesus thanked Bas Dost for playing though injury in a match which saw the Dutchman net twice.

"Bas Dost was in doubt right up until the last minute. He didn't train yesterday or today, but he said he would be okay so we used him. He is an excellent professional, but we can't be dependent on him. He needs players to support him, both through the middle and from the wings. Normally my teams don't have such a focus on just one player for goals", said Jesus.

The Sporting CP coach wen on to speak in greater depth about the match and the injury picked up by Adrien: "It was a good first-half, with 45 minutes of really dynamic play. The positioning of Adrien and Alan Ruiz gave us a bit more creativity in the build up. We didn't score a third goal and Feirense managed to find their footing a bit. Adrien isn't just any player, he is a starting midfielder for the European champions. We don't quite win every time he plays, but we did feel a bit fragile after he went off. After that Bryan Ruiz settled things down."

To finish, Jesus reflected on Alan Ruiz's performance: "He has always been a player we were going to invest in, but he came in from Colón, who don't have big objectives. He has come in to a very demanding club and he still doesn't have the capacity to play 90 minutes the way we want, but he is a quality player. His pass for Bas Dost was fantastic."

Jorge Jesus looks ahead to Sunday's Liga NOS hosting of Feirense

Jorge Jesus sat down with the press this Saturday to speak about the weekend's hosting of C.D. Feirense. With recent refereeing performances attracting attention both on and off the pitch, the Sporting coach did not shy away from revealing the impact on his team.

"The lads were really hurt by us getting knocked out of the League Cup, especially with how it happened. We won't hide the fact that confidence is low after a loss. Making mistakes is natural, but always making the same mistakes against the same team isn't", said Jesus, going on to reflect on what he expects from Sunday's match: "Hopefully we will get past this and beat a team who will sit back and look to attack us on the break. We want the tree points."

Jorge Jesus on Wednesday's CTT Cup loss to Setúbal

"It is a lack of respect for Sporting CP, for the players, the coach and our directors", opened Jorge Jesus in a post-match interview with the press this week, after his side's loss to V. Setúbal (2-1), courtesy of a last-minute penalty.

"The match was decided by one incident. It was an important game for us, worth a place in the League Cup semi-final. Naming a referee with no experience with the three big teams shows the lack of interest in this competition. I have been a coach for many years and I have never seen giving penalties against Sporting CP be so easy", added the Alvalade coach, finishing: "We are upset, because we feel like we have been robbed of the opportunity to get into the semi-finals. We did what we needed to and scored, but we can't control what the referee does. The players feel like it is easy for people to attack Sporting CP."

Jorge Jesus on Wednesday's CTT Cup showdown with Setúbal

Speaking with the press before Wednesday's final CTT Cup Group A encounter, Jorge Jesus relayed his confidence in securing the result needed to get into the semi-finals.

"We need the result to get into the final four and well all know that. We have two wins and we need another result on the way to the final, which is what we have been working on in training. We are feeling confident and the lads have been responding well during the week. It will be a hard game, but we feel we will get over this hurdle", affirmed the Sporting coach, adding: "Vitória de Setúbal also have a chance of qualifying, although it depends on the other match, but we have everything we need to get a good result. This is an important phase for us and we are battling on all fronts, but that is exactly where we want to be."

Jorge Jesus satisfied with his side's performance but is looking for better finishing

A satisfactory performance with some spells of attractive football, despite a frustrating number of wasted chances on goal. That is how Jorge Jesus saw Friday's CTT Cup win against Varzim, which projected his side to the top of Group A.

Jorge Jesus looks ahead to Friday's CTT Cup encounter

More than 5500 fans attend open session in Estádio José Alvalade

The Sporting Foundation took the lead in promoting a charity training session this Wednesday, with the professional football team being put through their paces in front of 5500 fans in Estádio José Alvalade. The fans responded in kind to the gesture, contributing 8000 presents for those most in need.

"Thank you for participating today, as part of the Sporting family. Happy holidays and a happy new year", said coach Jorge Jesus to the fans after the session.

Alvalade beach soccer legend, Madjer, was also in Alvalade. "We made a point of bringing a little something along today. Attitudes off the pitch are what make the difference", said the beach soccer skipper.

Alvalade boss on Fernando Santos' nomination as 2016 National Coach of the Year

Sporting CP boss Jorge Jesus personally issued his congratulations to Fernando Santos this Tuesday for the Portuguese coach's nomination as National Coach of the Year 2016 by the International Federation of Football History.

"I want to congratulate Fernando Santos for his nomination as National Coach of the Year 2016 by the International Federation of Football History and Statistics. It is more than deserved, it is fair and it proves what I have been saying for years: Portuguese coaches are the best in the world", said Jesus.

Fernando Santos was actually Sporting CP's coach for the 2003/2004 season.