Jorge Jesus expecting his team to respond after Thursday's defeat in Albania

Jorge Jesus warned caution for his side's trip to Arouca this weekend, speaking in a press conference on Saturday afternoon.

“Basically all we have had time to do was arrive, sleep and travel to Arouca. The time we had was more about getting some sleep. It is going to be a hard game, because Arouca have only lost one game in nine and haven't lost any in the last nine. It will be a really competitive and tough game and we will have to be at our best to win, which we have to do if we want to keep the gap at the top of the table", opened the Alvalade coach, adding: "It is nice to be on the back of a good string of results in the league, but it is hard to defend first place. It brings with it a lot of responsibility and we have to learn to live with that now."

Bombarded with questions abut the 3-0 Europa League loss in Albania in midweek, Jesus didn't shy away: “What happened in Albania is behind us now. It was part of an important competition, but our main focus is the match tomorrow. It was a bad night, but that can happen in football. We want to carry on building on the positives, namely us being at the top of the league. When I arrived at Sporting I said we would fight for the league and every competition we are in here in Portugal, which is exactly what we are doing. I accepted the risks and nothing is going to change our plans for this season. In fact, things are going better than I thought they would, because we are in first place and we have already won a title."

To finish, Jorge Jesus spoke about a conversation with the 4th official against Estoril that has been attacking the headlines, as well as recent praise from the Alvalade president, Bruno de Carvalho: "I am really not worried about what happened against Estoril. It was a conversation between me and the 4th official and I said I already knew him, because he had sent me off in Moreira de Cónegos. What I said is only to do with that and everything else is speculation. I was really happy with the praise (from the president) and we all like to hear nice things being said about us. It was him who believed in me and him who signed me, so I feel proud. I know the differences between my players and some others, but for me the best coach in the world is Pep Guardiola."

Jorge Jesus reflects on his side's loss to Skënderbeu

Speaking after his side's 3-0 to Skënderbeu, Jorge Jesus affirmed that qualification for the Europa League knock-out stage is still within each.

“After the draw in the other match in the group we wanted to push on, but that didn't happen. We aren't out of it yet, but it is harder now. We started badly and we let in two goals. After the break, losing 2-0 and with 10 men, the idea was to try and get back into it, but we let in a third goal. Things like that happen in football sometimes and this is the kind of thing we have to learn from. We lost the game, but not the chance to qualify", said the Sporting coach at the final whistle.

Jorge Jesus focused on claiming three points in Albania

With four points, Sporting currently occupy 3rd place in Europa League H, but are just a single point of Besiktas in 2nd. A win in Albania will keep the Alvalade club's hopes of alive of qualifying for the knock-out stages.

“It is fundamental that we win if we are going to get through the group stages. It won't be like in Lisbon, it will be more divided and more complicated, against a team who will be more relaxed and who will play better than they did in Alvalade, but we believe in the work we are doing. We will rotate some players, but we aren't talking about a game that isn't important here, because the Europa League is important, but some of the players need this kind of experience. We have a responsibility to try and win every competition we are in and the Europa League is one of the competitions that we want to go as far as possible in", opened Jorge Jesus in a pre-match press conference.

Asked about the unenviable record of not having won a European away game in four years, Jorge Jesus preferred to focus on the importance of winning the three points: "We are concentrating on winning games and the importance of being in with a chance to get through to the next round. If we can break that record then great, but I honestly didn't even know about it."

Sporting will take on Skënderbeu at 20h05 on Thurday, in Europa League Group H.

Jorge Jesus highlights the importance of keeping a grip on first place after win against Estoril

Speaking at the final whistle after watching Sporting open up a five-point lead at the top of I Liga, Jorge Jesus highlighted his side's recent defensive performances, having only let in two goals in the last five encounters.

“There were some tough periods tonight, with Estoril creating problems like we thought they would. When a team is in first, it is normal to have games like this one, but I thought the lads showed that they knew what to do and took the right decisions. Sometimes it looks like we are taking one touch too many, but that is how we have been training. Estoril positioned themselves well defensively, but we fixed some things in the second-half and improved. We had more opportunities and wasted some chances on open goal. The most important factor was that we didn't concede, because we are strong defensively. That is what won us this game", opened the Alvalade boss in a flash interview.

In parallel, Jesus spoke about the importance of winning after last week's 3-0 derby win: “It was important to win after the match in Estádio da Luz, because every match is worth three points. Today we had 40 thousand people in the stadium and that is a sign of the fans' confidence in us. It was important to stay top of the league, because if we think it was hard to get where we are then it will be even harder to stay there, but that is what makes champions."

Jorge Jesus shares his thoughts on Saturday's hosting of Estoril

“We want to carry on in first and we will do everything possible to defend that”, opened Jorge Jesus in a pre-match press conference on Friday, ahead of his side’s hosting of Estoril.

Coming into the encounter on the back of a moralising 3-0 away win against Benfica, the Sporting coach warned caution against the weekend’s visitors: “We know we will be playing against one of the strongest teams in the league. They have quality players and they will cause problems for us. We have been working hard during the week to be ready and we don’t underestimate anybody, especially Estoril. We have identified certain targets, such as Bruno César, who was my player and he is strong from dead ball situations.

“As soon as you go clear at the top of the league, you become a target for the teams that are fighting for that position. There is still a long way to go, but we want to be at the top of the league for as long as possible”, added the Sporting coach, finishing: “We are hoping that the fans turn out in force. It is for them that we work hard to give them quality and something to be happy about week in week out. We have scored 17 goals and only conceded two in the last four games, which I am obviously happy about and it shows the work we have been putting in.”

Sporting-Estoril will kick off on Saturday at 20h45, in Estádio José Alvalade.

Jorge Jesus reflects on 3-0 win in Estádio da Luz

“It was a great match for Sporting, with one team showing that they knew exactly what to do with the ball”, opened Jorge Jesus in a post-match press conference on Sunday, after inspiring his side to a second Lisbon derby win of the season.

Asked if there is anything he would like to say to his opposite number at Benfica, Jesus played it cool: “We knew it would be a hard game against a really good team, but we were better and goals always make it easier. It isn’t normal to win 3-0 here. I am not going to respond to Rui Vitória, because it would be too easy after winning. It was an important three points, but it is down to nothing more than tactics. We did enough to win and it could have been by more. The changes we have been making also paid off in the last 15 minutes, because Benfica wanted to get back into the game but the players didn’t have it in them.”

"It was a good win and the team is growing. You need a lot of confidence, consistency and quality to win 3-0 here. I am satisfied, but no more than I would be against any other team. I was at Benfica for six years and in 14 years I lost one match against Sporting. At Sporting, I have won two out of two.", added Jesus, going on to explain why his side didn’t push the pace at the opening whistle: “I have never encouraged my players with comments about the coach and I have never spoken about Benfica in the dressing room. I explained to the lads that we had to keep calm and that if we did then we would be closer to getting the win. We started slow and confident because the players believe in the work they have been doing in training during the week. We knew everything that Benfica could throw at us in attack or from dead balls.”

Jorge Jesus with the press ahead of Sunday's derby

Jorge Jesus was in the press room at Estádio José Alvalade this afternoon to share his thoughts ahead of the weekend’s much awaited derby.

“What we should be focusing on is the teams and the match. There is no point in speaking about anything else right now. We are at the top of the league and we want to defend that”, opened the Sporting coach, before going on to speak about comments made by former referee Marco Ferreira and requests made by the president of the Refereeing Council to favour Benfica.

“We have had more than enough time to prepare for this game. We know each other a lot more than we did compared to when we played in the Supercup. We are feeling really confident right now with the work we have been doing and the team is more than ready to take on a tough opponent on their own turf”, added Jesus, going on to stress that Bryan Ruiz’s place in the squad will only be decided in the morning.

Responding to a comment a journalist that Sporting hasn’t won in Estádio da Luz since 2006, curiously largely due to Jesus, the Avalade boss affirmed: “What matters is that this is Sporting’s second derby with me as coach. We won the first one and we are focused and ready to win the second. Benfica, as I well know, is a team that has six years of my work. Sporting has three months of my work and we want to carry on building on that.”

Finishing with a comment on incidents off the pitch in the build up to the derby, including the publication of players’ phones numbers in a blog associated with Benfica, Jesus said: “The lads are used to this sort of thing before games. All that matters is that we don’t attach any importance to it , because confidence is really important for the group.”

Benfica-Sporting will get underway at 17h00 on Sunday, in Estádio da Luz.

Jorge Jesus happy with his side's display against Skënderbeu

Speaking with the press after his side's comfortable win against Skënderbeu (5-1), Jorge Jesus was evidently happy with the season's first three Europa League points.

“The game wasn't how I thought it would be. I wasn't expecting so many goals. We knew we could win this and that is what we were looking to do, but the lads surprised me with five goals and some good play. Obviously the sending off in the first-half conditions the rest of the match and makes it a bit easier, but we naturally created chances and played some good football", opened Jesus, before speaking in more depth about some individual performances.

“Our first objective was to win, which we did. Our second was to play well, which we did. Our third was to give some of the lads some time on the pitch, which we did. I won't focus just on  Matheus Pereira, who is making the most of his chance. Bruno Paulista also looks good and Gelson as well", added the Alvalade coach, continuing: "Of course this is a win that keeps us in the fight to qualify. We knew we had to win and we will have to do the same thing in Albania so we have something to play for against Lokomotiv and Besiktas."

With the Lisbon derby just around the corner, Jesus doesn't see his side as holding the edge, despite having rested some of his big guns: "A team that plays on Thursday won't be any better rested on Sunday than a team that played on Wednesday. A team that plays on Thursday cannot prepare, because it is only two days until Sunday, while a team that plays on Wednesday has that extra day. I believe in my players and I took a gamble on them, but of course we wouldn't be saying the same thing if it had been a different result. As a coach I have to take chances and that sometimes involves a few risks. A derby is always different and you can't look too much at how the two sides are playing. We will be up against a strong team, but we are strong too and we want to win this one."

Jorge Jesus with the press ahead of hosting of Skënderbeu

Meeting with the press ahead of Thursday’s Europa League hosting of Skënderbeu, Jesus guaranteed that his side is focused purely on the task at hand, before revealing that Matheus Pereira will feature in the starting line-up.

“This is our third match in this competition and we only have one objective: to win so that we can carry on fighting for a place in the next round. It will be a hard game against against a team that is theoretically weaker than the other teams in the group, but I don’t know what is going to happen tomorrow. I know that I will put out a team out that is strong enough to come away with the win and the fact that their coach has pointed out the quality of our strikers shows that he knows us well. We really do have some quality strikers and I am a lucky coach to be honest, because the way I see it we won’t lose any quality, no matter who plays”, opened the Alvalade boss adding: “We have nothing to hide. Matheus Pereira will be in the starting team and I can’t really say anything else about the rest, because we will still have another training session tomorrow. What I will say is that almost all of the players are fully recovered now, with the exception of Bryan Ruiz, who is the only player who isn’t in full training right now.

Questions about Sunday’s derby were inevitable, but Jorge Jesus played it cool, affirming that he is squarely focused on the task at hand: “All I am thinking about is the match tomorrow. I will put two teams out, one for each game, and both will be capable of winning. Relative to Sunday, all I want to say is that I am happy to see Salvio back. I hope he has recovered well, because he is a great player, professional and friend.”

With Sporting expected to put the Albanian visitors under pressure come kick off tomorrow, Jorge Jesus already has his plan thought out: “We are sure that we will face a well organised team. I don’t know exactly how good they are, but I know they will cause us problems and we are ready for that. When there is one team that falls back in defence it reduces the space a bit and you have to be patient. Tomorrow we will look to show the class needed to tackle the difficulties we will face. It will be us attacking and we will have to find a way to score.”

Jorge Jesus shares his thoughts on Sunday's win

Jorge Jesus was evidently happy with his side’s dominating performance against V. Guimarães this Sunday evening.

“It was a good game. João Mário played really well on the right and he has played there a few times with the under-21 team. We were really strong down the right in the first-half and we created chances that unbalanced Guimarães. Everything becomes that much easier when you score, but it was a shame that we conceded. We let our focus when we scored the fifth and we can’t do that. I also want to congratulate the fans. We need them, like any good team does. This win is for the fans and for the president”, opened the Alvalade coach, speaking with radio journalists at the final whistle, before speaking about the absence of Bruno de Carvalho from his habitual place on the bench.

“I wasn’t strange, because he was there mentally. We spoke before the game and he spent the morning with the team. The team is really together right now and it is really important that the fans believe in us”, said Jorge Jesus, before revealing some of his tactical thinking: “João Mário has other characteristics compared to Gelson and Mané and that can give more space to Esgaio.”

“A few players have to go on international duty now. It would be better for us to play against Benfica now, but that is how the fixtures are. What matters now is that Ewerton and  Bruno Paulista recover. We are really happy with our start to the season, we won the Supercup and we are at the top of the league.”