The coach looks ahead to the Clássico against FC Porto

This Saturday at 8:30 pm, the Estádio José Alvalade hosts the first Clássico of the season. In his pre-match press conference before the game against FC Porto, coach Rui Borges highlighted the new dynamics of the opposition that Sporting CP face.

The UEFA Champions League Draw
"I'm happy, above all, that we can enjoy this competition, which is the best in the world at club level. We want to honour Sporting CP in the best way possible, do our best, and continue on our path, always taking each game at a time, with great passion and a desire to achieve great things."

FC Porto
"We've had some time to understand FC Porto's dynamic under their new coach. They're a side that's true to their style, very strong in terms of acceleration, very dynamic and aggressive with the ball, and very hard pressing, competitive, and strong in defensive duels.

Physically, they’re stronger now, with taller players, and they win many duels with their first press. We have to be prepared to balance this momentum and then impose our style against strong opponents. We are two confident teams that play good football. Above all, let it be a great game, at home, in front of our fans."

Differences between Sporting CP and FC Porto
"We don't have many players whose primary individual strength is winning duels, but we have the technical quality to overcome that.

We're used to teams using man-to-man marking with us, so I believe the team are prepared for the physical demands of the game. These are two teams that like to press and have the ball, and that display good quality in their play."

FC Porto's attacking options
"FC Porto, as their president has said, had the biggest spending transfer window in their history. They have many options, a lot of quality, are a big club, and have great players capable of delivering a good response.

Luuk de Jong brings some solutions, Samu others, but I look more at the collective than the individuals. I believe Samu will play, but we'll be prepared for either solution."

Changes in FC Porto's approach
Strategically, there may be different behaviours from them, depending on the opposition. But I believe that FC Porto -based on our knowledge of [Francesco] Farioli-, will not compromise much in their approach, whether offensively or defensively. FC Porto will try to be a pressing team, and it's up to us to be able to counter that pressure.

Who the favourites are
I can say that we could be slight favourites because we're playing at home. Our fans can tip the scales in our favour. That's what led us to become champions last season.

Set pieces
Regarding set pieces: We've conceded three goals from them. CD Nacional were stronger than us in that aspect, always creating danger from set pieces, but we were very competent throughout the game. It's natural that at some point we would have conceded a goal from a set piece by now. We know FC Porto are strong in this aspect of the game, but we have to be competitive and outplay that. Our focus and momentum haven't changed at all because we conceded from a set piece.

Responding to FC Porto
It's important to respond in every game, because tomorrow's game won't decide who will be champion. We're on Matchday 4. It's an important game on our journey, a big game against a great team, but these are the games that stress me out the least. We want to be strong, in front of our fans, and keep winning.

Conrad Harder
Conrad [Harder] is prepared for the demands of the FC Porto game. It's that simple. He and Luis Suárez are in our plans. They're different attackers, who offer different things. I'm happy with both of them, but the choice of who plays depends a lot on the opposition’s profile and the strategy for each game.

The transfer market
I'm not thinking about it quite honestly. I'm thinking about tomorrow's game, which will be very difficult, and I want to make the most of it. We want to go into the international break with a win, but the game will demand a lot from us. That's my focus.