The coach talks before the Liga Portugal closer

Sporting Clube de Portugal host Gil Vicente FC on Saturday at 8:30 PM, on the 34th and final Matchday of the Liga Portugal season. Coach Rui Borges previewed the match in his press conference and stressed the importance of his team finishing the league campaign in second place.

Playing the last home game of the season
“Above all, let me first highlight the sellout crowd we’ll have tomorrow. It's a sign that they are behind us and that they want to give us that extra strength that has been so important throughout the season -and that will be very important tomorrow if we are to defeat Gil Vicente FC.”

What he expects from Gil Vicente FC
"Gil Vicente FC are a good side who are having an excellent season and are still fighting for European football, so that clearly indicates the difficulty we face. That’s in addition to the team itself, the collective. They are a very well-organised side, a very cohesive unit; sometimes they use high-pressing, with good timing and good triggers, and are very competitive and cohesive when activated. They are a team who give little to their opponents and are extremely strong on offensive set pieces, so that clearly indicates the difficulty we face in tomorrow's game. That's why I started by saying it was important to have a full stadium, so the group could feel that good energy. At the end of a season which has been quite intense at all levels, we need them to help us."

Competing for second place
"I want us to finish in second place. My team and I want to be competent enough to beat a good team who are having a great season. It will be a very competitive, very intense game that will demand the best from us. I’m very focused on tomorrow's game, which is very important and still gives us a lot to work towards. We haven't achieved our main objective yet, which is to be second so we can qualify for the best club competition in Europe."

The transfer market
“I won’t comment on the transfer market, because if we had all of the players linked to us, we would already have two teams for next season. It’s not the time to talk about the transfer market, but rather to focus on tomorrow’s game, which could give us a place in the UEFA Champions League. That’s what we really want and that has to be our only focus at the moment. Regarding farewells for players, there’s the farewell of [Hidemasa] Morita, who everyone knows is out of contract and will be us saying goodbye to a player who made his mark on the history of Sporting CP and on all of us personally.”

Self-critical analysis
“I’m focused on being competent. I know I wasn’t competent in some games and that I didn’t win the title because of that. That’s what I know. It has a lot to do with solutions I can find for my team to become better. I'm focused on being better and better. I want to be a better coach, more competent and win the title, which is our great objective as coaches, as a team, as players, and we didn't manage to achieve it. We didn't manage to achieve it because at some moments we weren't as competent as we wanted to be. That's all."

Sporting CP’s season
"The only thing that bothers us is that we weren't able to be league champions, and next season we have to be better than we were this year. That's what we're focused on. We really want to win the Taça de Portugal. I'm more concerned with what we were capable of and what we weren't capable of at certain moments."

The game against Gil Vicente FC last season at Alvalade
"Gil Vicente FC's desire has been demonstrated throughout the season, hence the great campaign they are having. It’s credit to their coach and players, and tomorrow they still be the Gil Vicente FC that they have been up until now. They are a team that like to have possession and have a well-defined process, are very strong in one-on-one situations and on the flanks, and are very strong with their crossing. They are one of the most effective teams in crossing areas, and a team that score goals from outside the box as well. I believe Gil Vicente FC will be in great form tomorrow, especially since they are still aiming for European competitions and will do everything to achieve it their target -just as we are focused on ours. It was good last year for us to win in the penultimate minute against Gil Vicente FC, but we haven’t talked about last season with the players. We did talk about the game we had this season in Barcelos and we analysed it in the best way possible."

How the team could have improved
"We didn't just drop points in one game, so it's not just in one game that I could have done better. I could have done better in any game I didn't win, because if we didn't win it's because we weren't good enough or we weren't better than the opposition. We have to do our job, analyse things in the best way possible and grow as coaches, as a team, so that we drop fewer and fewer points."

Vagiannidis' availability
"He is a doubt for tomorrow's game. Zeno [Debast] is out, but Morten [Hjulmand] has started training on the pitch."

The games against Gil Vicente FC and SCU Torreense defining Sporting CP's season
"These are two important games that dictate a lot, and we have to have that responsibility, that understanding. It’s the difference between playing in the UEFA Champions League or the UEFA Europa League, and the possibility of winning a trophy. It's much more about that than thinking about whether it dictates what the season was like.”

Future national team call-ups and Sporting CP players
"We would all name a different squad; nobody would name the same squad twice either. My players always deserve it, they had a good season. I'm not going to get into the perspective of who should be called up or not, or which players will or will not be included. I do know, however, that those who have been called up for Portugal have had a great season, and I strongly believe that they will continue to be part of the national team setup."