Sporting CP held by Nacional on a foggy night in Madeira

Sporting were held to a stalemate in Madeira this Friday night by Nacional, in a match which saw both teams come together in a tribute to the fight against brest cancer and strokes.

Jorge Jesus made two changes to his side that took on Tondela last weekend, introducing Lazar Markovic and Bruno César for André Filipe and Elias. Sporting did look the most likely to score right from the off and a brilliant chance went wanting in the 8th minute thanks to a last ditch tackle, when William Carvalho saw a penalty saved after a push on Sebastian Coates inside the area.

The team from Alvalade were also looking sure in defence, thanks largely to some calculated defending by Sebastian Coates. On 14 minutes the big Uruguayan dispossessed Hamzaoiu, just before the Algerian broke through against Rui Patrício.

Choupana's typical fog shrouded the stadium half-way through the first 45, but it wasn't enough to slow Sporting's forays forward. Next up it was Gelson Martins with a darting run in the 21st minute, but his shot across the face of goal was denied by a sensational save from Rui Silva. The fans were up celebrating what looked to be a certain goal on the half-hour mark when Bas Dost connected, but the big Dutchman wasted his golden opportunity to open the scoring.

Manuel Machado's dug in after the break and Sporting's attacks slowed. Meanwhile, Nacional started establishing a bulkhead down the other end. On 64 minutes, Ricardo Gomes raced away from Coates and almost got the better of Rui Patrício.

Jesus responded with the replacement of Markovic and Bryan Ruiz for Alan Ruiz and Campbell, but it was Bruno César who came closest in the dying stages, testing his luck on 58’, 74’ and 82’.

Ricardo Gomes had an opportunity to steal the points in the 89th minute, but the Cape Verdean was unable to find the target with his header after getting slightly ahead of Rui Patrício.

Crowd turns out at team hotel ahead of encounter with Nacional

Dozens of Sporting fans made their way to Hotel Meliá in Madeira this afternoon, eager to catch a glimpse of their favourite stars. Goalkeeper Azbe Jug was on hand to oblige, posing for photos and signing shirts.

Sporting will take on Nacional in Estádio da Choupana, at 21h00.

Information for Club Members and fans

Sporting Clube de Portugal headed to Madeira today, ahead of Friday's encounter with Nacional.

The club will hold a some special initiatives for the local and traveling fans:

- Ticket sales for 10€ (with a free postcard gift), from 11h to 17h, at the Hotel Meliá Madeira Mare;

- Autograph session at 15h00 at the same place with one of the players.

Jorge Jesus looks ahead to a tasking trip to Madeira

After last week's slip up to Tondela, Jorge Jesus's side takes aim at Nacional, with a usually difficult trip to Madeira awaiting on Friday.

"It is hard to play against Nacional. It is hard to play Choupana. The big sides have a tough time in this stadium, but we are ready for a competitive match. To come away from Madeira with three points we will have to play well on the attack, like we did against Guimarães. We will face a Nacional team that will play like they usually do", opened the Sporting coach in his pre-match press conference this Thursday afternoon.

For Jesus, it was a meeting of reflection with the press, with the Alvalade boss going on to speak about how his team approaches each game: "We try to get the best out of the team. You can look at that as a strategy for each individual game, but what we do is believe in our players and the way we play. Of course we could look to take advantage of Nacional's weaker points, but the fact that they are letting in goals doesn't mean much.

Sporting CP will take on Nacional at 21h00 on Friday, on Liga NOS matchday 9.

Information from the club's medical department

Sporting's medical department has released the following clinical update:

Petrovic - muscle injury to the left thigh - in treatment

Jefferson - twisted right ankle - in treatment

Adrien - recovering from knee surgery and a muscle injury to the left thigh

Spalvis - recovering from knee surgery

Bruno Paulista - recovering from dental surgery

Sporting CP held to draw in Alvalade

Sporting CP were held to a draw this Saturday evening by Tonela (1-1), on Liga NOS matchday 8.

The game was in many ways a reflection of the midweek Champions League hosting of Borussia Dortmund, with Jorge Jesus's side struggling to get a foothold in the first-half against a team that looked happy to sap away time.

The usual suspect Gelson Martins looked the most likely to score in the early exchanges and actually hammered a shot against the post after just four minutes. The next opportunity was made to wait until the 21st minute, when a cross from Schelotto ended with a header high over the bar from Bas Dost. One minute before the break Schelotto carved out another chance, this time with Bryan Ruiz arriving just a second to late to convert.

With Bruno César introduced at the restart, there was a clear improvement from Sporting CP and chances soon began to follow. A goal looked likely, but it was Tondela who struck, when Jaílson put in a hopeful cross that ended up with Jhon Murillo for a simple finish (74').

With the fans feeling disgruntled with Tondela's far from deserved goal, Jesus introduced Campbell to the action four minutes later and the Costa Rican soon pulled a stop out of Cláudio with a header. Tondela dropped back in an effort to defend what would have been a precious three points and time wasting became the theme of the evening, with a touch of facilitation from referee Rui Costa. Five minutes into added time Campbell struck to avoid what would have been an extremely harsh defeat.

Jorge Jesus on Saturday's draw against Tondela

Jorge Jesus was far from sparing at the final whistle on Saturday when reflecting on the evening's refereeing, before dismissing a potential gap of five points between his side and Benfica.

“We had a tough match and we came into it on the back of a very intense week. We lacked pace and our dynamic in attack in the first-half and Tondela did well in defence. In the second-half we started putting the pressure on and created a lot of chances. We reacted well despite some tired legs, but that is no excuse. There were a lot of interruptions and Tondela did what they had to do, while the referee let them. Obviously we would prefer to have the same amount of points as Benfica or to be ahead of them, but we are fighting to close the difference. It could be five points, but there is still a lot of football to play", said Jesus.

Bruno César reflects on Saturday's Liga NOS draw

"We did everything we could, but Tondela closed ranks", said Bruno César after his side's draw in Saturday evening.

For the Brazilian, there is still plenty of time to close the gap on the league leaders: "In the first-half we didn't play like we have been. In the second-half we took control, but we let a goal in from a counter attack and then they just kept stopping play like Borussia Dortmund did. We just have to focus on our football now."

Jorge Jesus on Liga NOS matchday 8

The opposition might be different, but Jorge Jesus has the same idea: three points.

"The players are only thinking about getting the win. We had an experience against Tondela last year which didn't go well for us. They are the image of their coach [Petit], meaning they are aggressive", opened Jesus ahead of the weekend's Liga NOS encounter, going on to answer a question his recent changes out wide in defence: "We are learning and that isn't something that happens in a couple of months. If being the most consistent team is what is needed to win the league, then we want to be more consistent."

Bas Dost looks ahead to the weekend's hosting of Tondela

Bas Dost was picked to accompany Jorge Jesus in looking ahead to the weekend's hosting of Tondela this Friday. While analysing the game, the Dutchman also couldn't turn down the chance to share his thoughts on refereeing: "We are expecting a win. We are playing really good football and with the exception of the match in Guimarães we have been doing well. I scored against Sweden in the last minute, but the referee said I had pushed a defender, which didn't happen. The game thing happened in the Champions League with Coates's goal, which also wasn't a foul. In the Santiago Bernabéu, with Ronaldo's goal, that wasn't a foul either. This is nothing to do with Portuguese football of course, because that all happened in the Champions League and with the Dutch national team."

Also sharing his thoughts on his time in Portugal so far, Bas Dost has already fell in love with Alvalade: "I am learning Portuguese, but it will take a while until I am comfortable. I love the people, the stadium and the weather. I was playing for Wolfsburg, who would get around 30,000 people in the stadium. In Alvalade we always have between 40 and 45 thousand. The fans sing for the whole match and we want to pay them back with goals."