Vice-president Carlos Vieira in interview with Jornal de Notícias

"There is absolutely no obligation at all for us to sell players", guaranteed Sporting's vice-president for finance, Carlos Vieira, in an interview with Jornal de Notícias.

The Alvalade board member proved untroubled by a wealth of financial questions put to him by the daily publication, responding: "The financial restructuring was clear. The first stage was to resolve the financial deficit and to restructure credit, moving a lot of it into medium and long term. The second stage is to get the best out of sporting and its business. The term technical bankruptcy is incorrectly used in the case of sports clubs. Of course their is always going to be a difference between what the squad is worth on the transfer market and what it is worth on the balance sheet. The dynamic that Jorge Jesus has brought in allowed us to seal the biggest television deal ever in December."

Bruno de Carvalho on transfer activity so far

Preparations for the coming campaign actually got underway back in January, with the arrivals of Sebastián Coates, Schelotto and Rúben Semedo. The summer transfer window has also seen a wave of activity, with Sporting bringing in Alan Ruiz, Federico Ruiz, Lukas Spalvis and now Petrovic.
 
“The club will present our new signings without making too much noise about it. We are working on a medium to long term project with well defined objectives, starting with keeping our coach, investing in the youth system and bringing in players who can make the difference", opened Bruno de Carvalho in an interview this week, adding: "It was important for us to stabilise things financially so that we can fight for all national competitions and, who nows, maybe some European ones too in the coming seasons."

The press published this week that Sporting had turned down a bit of 80,000,000.00€, to which the Sporting president responded: "In January we were are the top of the league and focused on winning it, so a financial decision wasn't going to change our sports strategy at that time. Taking apart a team fighting for the league so that we could sell an essential player didn't make any sense."

Petrovic on his four-year deal at Alvalade

Speaking after penning a deal that will see him play in Alvalade for the coming four seasons, Radosav Petrovic proved happy with the opportunity to represent a side that he alraedy knew well.

“I know that this club is at a really high level and is looking to win trophies and to play in the Champions League. I know some players from here, such as Cristiano Ronaldo, Figo, Nani and Peter Schmeichel, as well as some of the lads from the squad, like Slimani, Aquilani, Bryan Ruiz, Rui Patrício and William Carvalho", said the 27-year old Serbian arriving from Dynamo Kiev, adding: "When I decided to come here I didn't even need to speak with Miguel Veloso or anyone from the Serbian team. When the president invited me I really didn't need to think much about it. Of course I had spoken to Miguel (Veloso) about a lot of things during the season, including Sporting, but it was an easy decision. This is a club where I think I can show my quality."

“I prefer to show my qualities on the pitch than to just talk about them", finished Patrovic.

Serbian signs for four seasons

Sporting Clube de Portugal, Futebol SAD, has reached an agreement with the player Radosav Petrovic for four seasons, with an additional season and a buy-out clause of 60,000,000.00€.

Sporting SAD wishes Radosav Petrovic the best of professional and personal success.

Alvalade president speaks with journalists at event showcasing new Alvalade pitch

Estádio José Alvalade opened its doors to the public this Thursday, giving the fans the chance to catch a glimpse of how the planting of a brand new pitch and a refit of the executive boxes in progressing.

The sporting president took advantage of the gathering to announce that next season's presentation game will take place on the 23rd of July against Lyon, before the hosting of the Five Violins trophy seven days later against Wolfsburg.

“We are stronger and more ambitious, because of the excellent work we have been doing. The way we involved last season during the work we do on a weekly basis shows that we are closer to where we want to be now. We can't wait for the season to start", said Bruno de Carvalho.

Sporting CP to host French giants in presentation match

Sporting will debut Alvalade's new pitch, which is currently being laid, against the French side Olympique Lyon, at 19h30 on the 23rd of July.

Also announced this week was this season's Five Violins Trophy match, will will see Wolfsburg visit Alvalade at 19h30 on the 30th of July.

Bruno de Carvalho speaks about Slimani suspension at dinner organised by Sporting Foundation

Bruno de Carvaho took part in a charity dinner organised by the Sporting Foundation and the Capulana Association this weekend, hosted in the Aldeia dos Capuchos Hotel. Speaking about the event, the Alvalade president reaffirmed Sporting's commitment to helping those in need: "I was born in Mozambique and I am really happy with having the Sporting Foundation help institutions over there. It is really important for Sporting to understand the important mission we have not just in Portugal, but around the world too. We have to show that we are here to help, not just in terms of sports but also socially."

The Sporting boss also made the most of his time with gathered radio journalists to speak about the re-election of Fernando Gomes as president of the Portuguese Football Federation: "Yesterday I was clear. I see a lot of things I agree with in the mandate that was given today, especially those which touch on discipline and refereeing. That is something that Sporting has been pushing for. I am however saddened with seeing people such as Manuel Santos Serra carry on and I am worried about decisions which I think are a bit knee-jerk, such as the Slimani punishment and the vouchers issue nothing being followed up. Those decisions don't make sense."

Bruno de Carvalho also had a word to say about Vítor Pereira, former president of the Refereeing Council: "I worry, but we do not have the capacity to get people back on track. A lot of decisions which were taken were not good for Portuguese football. All that I am hoping for now is that Vítor Pereira, who finally stepped down, does not receive any awards. Referee nominations for matches made no sense at all and I do not want to see Vítor Pereira rewarded with a place at UEFA or the Refereeing Academy. Let's hope that he is moved away from football once and for all. Those who like true sport and transparency certainly will not miss him."

Alvalade veteran side to take on two local sides over the weekend

Manuel Fernandes, Fernando Mendes, Romeu, Jorge Cadete and Litos landed in Switzerland this Friday afternoon for a three-way tournament over the weekend.

Under the command of coach Vítor Esmoriz, Sporting CP was given a fantastic welcome on arriving on Swiss soil and traveling to the Sion Supporters' Club for a hosted lunch.

Sporting will take on Sierre and a local side from Valais over the weekend.

Lukas Spalvis, Alan Ruiz and Federico Ruiz sign in at Alvalade

Sporting has announced the signing of the Lithuanian Lukas Spalvis from Aalborg and the two Argentineans Alan Ruiz and Federico Ruiz from Colón. The forward penned a deal valid until 2018, with an option to extend until 2021 and with a buy-out clause of 60,000,000.00€. The two South Americans signed until 2020 and both have buy-out clauses for 60,000,000.00€.

Lukas Spalvis, who at the age of 21 has already been capped for the Lithuanian national team, was Aalborg's main weapon going forward, bagging 17 goals in 29 appearances. The young striker began his career in Germany with SV weil, before moving to Freiburg and eventually on to Aalborg in 2013.

Alan Ruiz, 22, arrives from Colón and is an offensive midfielder who can also play as a striker. He scored seven goals in just nine games played this season. After putting pen to paper, the Argentinean proved excited by the chance to shine in Alvalade: "Jorge Jesus is amongst the four best coaches in the world and it will be a privilege to work with a coach as important as him. Sporting is a great club that will be in the Champions League. The team really knows how to work the ball around well and the squad is full of players from national teams."

Results published from January to March

Sporting SAD reported a positive operating result of one million euros from January to March, having however accumulated a loss of 17.1 million euros in the first nine months of the 2015/2016 season due to a decision by the Swiss Court of Arbitration which ordered the provision of a total of 14.4 million euros. Without this impact on non-current expenditure, brought about by the case with Doyen relative to the sale of the player Rojo, the result would have been a 2.7 million euro loss.

The current season saw an increased investment by Sporting SAD in technical staff and players, in order to provide for a greater margin for negotiation with sponsors and for television rights, given that the the main sponsorship contract with the main team finished in 2014/2015 and that television rights for league home games were to be negotiated.

The biggest sponsorship and television rights deal in Portuguese football was agreed in 2015, with NOS and PPTV, together with direct qualification for the Champions League, clearly justifying an increased investment.

The current result is also effected by the decision of the Board of Administration to maintain the sports rights of athletes and, consequently, economic rights of players considered as fundamental. Due to this decision and in light of investments in the team, further expenditure has been registered relative to personnel.