Bruno de Carvalho declares intention to bring the nation's hero back to Alvalade

The Sporting president dropped an absolute bombshell in his interview with the Spanish newspaper Marca this week, declaring his intention to see Cristiano Ronaldo hand up his boots in Avalade.

"I was in the stadium when we played against Manchester United I knew right then that they would take him. We will face him (on Wednesday) and he will face the club that trained him. Everybody wants to see Ronaldo against his old team. It would be magical to see Ronaldo finish his career in Portugal, with Sporting. That is my objective. We have been making a big effort to bring back some of our old players, like what happened with Nani", explained Bruno de Carvalho, before answering a question on who he sees as Sporting's best weapon for facing the Spanish giants: "Our star? Jorge Jesus of course, our leader. He is the most important person in the group and he complements what we needed. He is perfect for my vision of Sporting, with leadership and a drive for perfection. Now the players understand that they can win titles."

The full interview can be found here.

#LaPortada 'Un Madrid feliz' pic.twitter.com/0hQPxbqWWn

— MARCA (@marca) 11 de setembro de 2016

Alvalade president answers challenge by Marca with a wonder strike

Real Madrid vs. Sporting CP truely got underway on Monday, with president Bruno de Carvalho netting a penalty past the director of the Marca newspaper, Juan Ignacio Gallardo.

Spanish newspaper runs piece on Alvalade keeper

The Monday edition of Marca ran a piece on Sporting shotstopper Rui Patrício this week, highlighting his role in Portugal's run to the Euro 2016 semi-finals and his fantastic penalty stop against Poland.

"The secret to Patrício is work and more work. He is a humble guy and that is what makes him keep getting better. One-on-one, he is the best in the world", reads the article adding to fellow Portuguese star's Danilo affirmation of Patrício being "better than Neuer".

Sporting has long been known for his brilliance defending from 12-yards, having made a stop on his debut against Marítimo. He repeated the trick in the 2008 Super Cup final, as well as against Jackson Martínez in a 3-1 win and in the final of the Portuguese Cup in Jamor in 2015.

Patrício has also saved penalties in the European scene, having denied Cleiton in a match against Metalist, as well as Doumbia in the Champions League play-offs. In total he has stopped 13 penalties so far in his Sporting career.