The coach looks ahead to O Clássico against FC Porto

Sporting CP coach Rúben Amorim held a pre-match press conference on Friday afternoon, previewing the first edition of 'O Clássico' this season against FC Porto. The Saturday 8:30pm kickoff at the Estádio do Dragão is expected to be a tough game, the coach says, but the focus is on taking all three points back to Lisbon.

“This week was strange and different for reasons that we all know, but we have reorganised ourselves, started to focus on the game and prepared for it in the best way possible. We know the importance of this game, because we have already had a draw this season and we are going to play at the home of the champions, but we had the normal preparation required for a club that want to win at every ground. In that aspect, it was a normal week," he said.

“FC Porto have many strengths. They are a team who are scoring a lot of goals, conceding few and are very competent in all aspects of the game, especially when they win the ball. We know what we're going to encounter and that we're going to be playing in a full stadium, but we like these types of challenges."

With a draw and a victory from the first two matchdays, Sporting CP are looking for three more points for their tally. Amorim said that he is not worried about the points gap compared to direct rivals, because he believes his side will get the win.

"It doesn't worry me at all. We know from the beginning that life as a coach is like this: When you win and when you lose, we are always under pressure. We will see. Our idea is to win and the idea is to get ahead of FC Porto and catch the top sides. If that doesn't happen, we'll be going for the win in the next game”.

The coach will be without Paulinho, who remains injured, but Sporting CP will also now be without Matheus Nunes, who has left the club.

“I will not say who will play in his place. Of course, that doesn't change much in terms of FC Porto's approach, but we'll keep the characteristics of the player who will play in Matheus Nunes' role for game time. We have several players who can play there: Pote, Morita and Mateus Fernandes. We have an idea: Someone will play there and will be prepared to help the team win the game”, said coach Leonino.

As for the departure of Matheus Nunes and possible movements in the transfer market, Amorim admitted that “it is difficult to sign at this time, because clubs don't want to lose their best players. We do not want players who are below our level at the moment. We have some players with potential that we have already identified and we might speed up their signing, but for now I have no idea and I'm trusting in those who are here already."

“The offer for Nunes was an attractive proposal and it is a great comfort for the club in financial terms, for all departments and for everything, and we will find solutions for his departure."

Asked if Mateus Fernandes could be the natural replacement, Amorim commented: “I don't know, it's still early. It would be a mistake to try to find another Matheus Nunes. We're going to look at the players. Mateus Fernandes is a player in our project and we believe in him a lot. We have to be careful not to push players beyond the stages they have to go through. He is still young, and Matheus Nunes was older when he moved up. There are different situations and we will see who will adapt there. There are also other players from the B team who can move up. What we want is for them to have competition among themselves."

The Sporting CP coach also spoke of the reintegration of Jovane Cabral, saying that “it was a matter of clarifying the situation with him."

"We were left with one less player and I always look at which players we have. I decided to talk with Jovane. I understood his idea, he understood mine and he is another player to help us. It's better to go get the players we have here to make up for some absences."

A tense Clássico ends in a stalemate at the Estádio do Dragão

Playing for almost the entirety of the second half down to ten men, Sporting Clube de Portugal drew 2-2 with FC Porto in O Clássico at the Estádio do Dragão. Paulinho and Nuno Santos both struck for the team to establish a 0-2 lead, but the hosts responded with two goals to share the spoils.

Sporting CP made changes to their starting XI, Rúben Amorim fielding Antonio Adán, Gonçalo Inácio, Sebastián Coates, Zouhair Feddal, Ricardo Esgaio, Matheus Nunes, Manuel Ugarte, Matheus Reis, Pablo Sarabia, Paulinho and Nuno Santos.

As expected, FC Porto started well and pressed high, but Sporting CP's response was immediate. Paulinho recovered the ball on the edge of the area, turned and shot at Diogo Costa, in a warning of what was to come.

Paulinho's opener came off a quick move by Os Leões, involving a cross from the right by Matheus Reis into the six-yard-box and the striker heading in on 8 minutes.

Opportunities for both sides followed, but without significant danger until the last ten minutes of the first half, when Sporting CP scored again: Another cross from Matheus Reis was not cut out by FC Porto defender Pepe, and Pablo Sarabia cut back to Nuno Santos. With only Diogo Costa in front of him, he picked his spot to make it 0-2.

The two-goal lead at the Dragão would not last long, however, as three minutes later FC Porto's Fábio Vieira received a pass from Vitinha and pulled one back with his strike.

An intense first half concluded with the score at 1-2.

The second half picked up from where the first left off, and Sporting CP found themselves reduced to ten men due to the sending off of captain Sebastián Coates. The centre back had previously been booked in the first half, after reacting to a poor challenge from Evanilson, and saw a second yellow for a tangle with the same player.

His side outnumbered, Amorim brought on João Palhinha at the expense of Sarabia, to shore up the midfield.

On the hour, FC Porto threatened to equalise, but Zaidu's shot hit the post. 

Some 65 minutes in, Amorim introduced Slimani and Luís Neto for Nuno Santos and Paulinho. Sporting CP looked to hold their lead, but also wanted to score a definitive goal.

Unfortunately, it was FC Porto that, in the 78th minute, found the net. Taremi headed in with a controversial goal, having left Zouhair Feddal laying on the pitch and having to receive medical assistance.

At 2-2 the game became even more intense, with both sides looking for the winning goal. FC Porto created more danger, but Sporting CP remained compact defensively. Late on, Adán made a massive save before the final whistle to ensure that the team took a point back to Lisbon.

The Clássico ended with a series of expulsions in a fracas after the final whistle. Bruno Tabata and João Palhinha were sent off and will miss the next Liga Portugal game against Estoril Praia, as will Sebastián Coates and Ricardo Esgaio, who saw his fifth yellow in the league this season.

The coach talks in the run-up to O Clássico against FC Porto

Sporting Clube de Portugal plays FC Porto this Friday at the Estádio do Dragão, and coach Rúben Amorim is expecting a different game from the 1-1 draw in the first half of the Liga Portugal season. He spoke to the media in his pre-match press conference to preview O Clássico.

“It will be a somewhat different game. Both teams have improved in some aspects and the players have changed. FC Porto have lost some players, but they are in better form," he explained.

"We're also going to present a slightly different eleven. It will be a different game. The previous meeting was very early on in the season, and now we are six points behind them. That changes the characteristics of the game. We're also going to play away from home, so the circumstances are completely different. We have taken reference of how FC Porto play and what they have been doing. We have done normal preparation for an important game."

"I predict an excellent game and I know that our team are prepared," he told journalists, before confirming that neither Pedro Gonçalves nor Pedro Porro will be available for the game.

“We have solutions and we have already proved this. The other players are prepared to give a good response.”
Sporting CP are currently six points behind league leaders FC Porto, making victory imperative.

“It's an opportunity to take points away from FC Porto, and it's about much more than that as well. This is a direct clash that can make the difference between a gap of nine points or three points. We have to treat this game as a final, like how we faced the game with FC Famalicão. We cannot drop points. Sporting CP fans have sold out our section of the stadium and we will do our part," expressed Amorim.

“It is our obligation to win. A loss would take the gap to nine points, and a draw would keep it at six, but we can't forget that we still have another side behind us. We have to win, as we cannot reduce the advantage that we have over SL Benfica. If we want to fight for the title,  we have to win. Nothing is decided in this game, but I've been on the other side and I know it gets harder later on. The obligation for this club is always to win; we are not obliged not to lose, but rather to win."

The coach said he expected a Sporting CP showing at the Estádio do Dragão similar to what he saw at the Estádio da Luz against Benfica.

“It's our identity. We know that we will be up against an equally aggressive team. It will be a very competitive game. We will have to be very strong mentally, physically and tactically to respond to the requirements of the game, knowing that we have a responsibility to win because we are the ones who are at a disadvantage in the table."

"I can't say it's a beneficial pressure, but this pressure will make us grow, it's part of the players' lives and it's a good thing. Sporting CP are where we should be. We are fighting on all fronts."

The coach reflects on the 1-1 draw with FC Porto

Following the 1-1 draw (1-1) against FC Porto, Sporting CP coach Rúben Amorim analysed O Clássico and explained that the result was more unfair on his side.

"The opposite has happened before and there have been games that ended in a draw. This time around, we had more chances. That is neither here nor there, however, as we didn't control the game how we should have controlled against a mature team, but we could have killed the game off in the first half. There weren't any great opportunities for FC Porto in the second half either. After their goal, we looked for the win again, but it was very stop-start," he began by saying in his press conference at the Auditório Artur Agostinho.

"All unavailable players are missed, but those absent today were well replaced. I believed that I should bring on those who are fresher from the bench. We lacked some depth in the squad, but that is normal and part of our project. If it weren't, we would be buying players all the time and would neglect our commitment to youth. We were the better side and, compared to the Clássicos last season, there was an evolution."

Regarding the large number of fouls and cards shown to both sides, the coach stated "there are games for all tastes."

"Both coaches like intensity and our teams are aggressive. I've seen many Clássicos and derbies like that. It was very tactical, but there were good moments. There was individual quality from both sides and it ended up being entertaining. There are those who like very beautiful football with a lot of goals, and there are others who like the competition of these games."

Asked about Pablo Sarabia, the new signing who made his debut in the second half, Amorim said that "You could tell that he was off the pace, and making your debut always brings an extra nervousness. He lost some balls that he will not lose in the future. He has a lot of quality, he is very humble and he has absorbed a lot of information."

Finally, the coach underlines that Sporting CP's focus is to go game by game.

"Last year, despite the different calendar, we won in Braga, drew here with FC Porto and drew in Famalicão, just like this year. We have to win the next game, instead of thinking about the points that we have dropped. Our next game is against AFC Ajax, then we'll think about GD Estoril Praia. We don't have to think about anything else," he said.