Betinho own goal setences Sporting B

Sporting CP B lost out 1-0 to Olhanense this Saturday, on Ledman LigaPro matchday 32 with an own goal from Betinho in the second-half sentencing João de Deus' side to defeat.

The first noteworthy incident of the encounter was a chance on goal in the 9th minute. In fact, it was the only chance on goal in the entire half and came from Olhanense's Jorge González, who lost his marker and picked up possession in front of goal, only to be denied by Stojkovic in what was only the Sporting B shotstopper's second match of the season.

With Kikas, Ivanildo Fernandes and Francisco Geraldes all missing out due to suspension, Rafael Barbosa, Rukas and Fábio Martins were all given places in the starting line-up. It was Sporting B who set the pace of the afternoon, with the team from Alvalade enjoying long spells of possession, while Olhanense looked happy to sit back and cede territory. However, the visitors proved well organised and smothered most of Sporting's attempts to get forward.

The second-half was much more open, mainly due to Olhanense looking to push higher up the pitch. The extra space saw chances inevitably follow and on 50 minutes Rafael Barbosa picked out Podence in the area, but the Alvalade forward fired off target. Fifteen minutes later, Podence again had a chance to open the scoring, but this time the ball finished up the wrong side of the cross bar. Olhanense responded with a great chance of their own through Jorge González, but Stojkovic pulled out a fantastic stop to keep the scoreboard blank.

Olhanense began to turn the screw as the clock ticked over and the extra pressure while in possession saw Sporting's dominance start to dip. In the 67th minute Galassi tried to put Olhanense ahead with a chip, before a stroke of bad luck two minutes later saw Betinho deflect the ball into the back of his own net following a corner whipped in by Leandro Borges.

João de Deus on his side's Ledman LigaPro matchday 31 draw

Speaking in a flash interview at the final whistle of Sunday's 1-1 draw with Freamunde, coach João de Deus praised his team for battling on, despite being a man down for the entire second-half.

“Sporting lost two points today. Eleven against eleven, we were the better side and we played with the most quality. We looked strong down the wings and we had a lot of chances. Kikas was sent off and we lost a man, but after we made some tactical changes I think we played as a team. Freamunde had possession, but they didn't really have any clear chances on goal. We let in a goal from an individual mistake, but we recovered. After we scored I think a different result would have been fairer, with the tactical intelligence that we showed", said the Sporting B coach at the final whistle.

Sporting B claim a draw after playing the full second-half with ten men

Sporting B were held to a 1-1 draw by Freamunde this Sunday, on Ledman LigaPro matchday 31.

João de Deus' side made made a solid start to the afternoon, creating a chance on goal in the very first minute after Filipe Chaby battled back possession in midfield. The Sporting B number 43 then pushed out wide to the left and whipped a cross in for Geraldes, who came up just inches short of opening the scoring. Long spells of possession for the hosts starved Freamunde of any real chance to gain momentum going forward, but Francisco Geraldes, Ryan Gauld and Kikas, not being the biggest midfielders in the league, were having a tough time holding on to the ball in the centre of the park. On 11 minutes, Francisco Geraldes charged down the right flank and skillfully flicked the ball over his marker, but the midfielder was only able to drive his subsequent shot at the visiting keeper.

Daniel Podence and Francisco Geraldes were looking particularly dangerous out on the wings and spearheaded most of the Sporting B attacking efforts, while the afternoon's visitors looked happy to sit back and go forward through the occasional break. The next major opportunity came on 21 minutes, but Betinho, inside the 12-yard box, was unable to finish on Daniel Podence's pass after Geraldes had again carved up ground down the right. João de Deus' side were then dealt what has become a regular setback this season, when Kikas was shown a second yellow card just before the break. The resulting red card obliged the Sporting B boss to make sacrifices in attack, bringing on Zezinho to bolster the midfield. With an extra man, Freamunde took advantage of the extra space and began to move the ball around with a little more freedom.

The first few minutes of the second-half were a struggle for Sporting B and after 60 seconds Ivan Perez was allowed a chance on goal that ended up in the side netting. Freamunde began to turn up the intensity and actually took the lead after a decisive counter-attack. Celeste put a cross in from the right and Ivan Perez popped up in the area with a shot that was initially stopped by Stojkovic as the Alvalade defence appealed for offside, but the referee waved play on and Diogo Ramos had the enviable task of tapping in the subsequent rebound.

Despite being a man, as well as a goal, down, Sporting B rallied and took the fight to Freamunde. The introduction of Mama Baldé for Chaby gave a drop of extra speed to Sporting B and play was soon being held down in the visitors' half. Freamunde really dropped the pace in the last twenty minutes despite being a man up and Sporting B responded by forcing through the middle. Daniel Podence was brought down for a free-kick and Francisco Geraldes, without so much as a run-up, curved the ball into the top corner. There was still time for the referee to award a penalty to Freamunde, but Pedrinho blazed the spot-kick a good few yards high over the bar.

The result keeps Sporting B in 12th in Ledman LigaPro.

João Bento Named for Ledman LigaPro matchday 31

João Bento, 32, from the Santarém Football Association, has been named to take charge of Sporting CP B-Freamunde, on Ledman LigaPro matchday 31.

Nuno Henrique Ferreira and Samuel Dionísio will act as linesmen.

This will be João Bento's second Sporting B match of the season, following the matchday 5 draw against Portimonense.

Sporting CP B-Freamunde will kick off at 15h00 on Sunday the 21st of February, at the Sporting Academy.

Mica Pinto's reaction to Sporting B's loss in the Algarve

Mica Pinto was again handed the captain's armband this weekend, this time for Sporting B's 2-0 loss to Portimonense. Speaking at the final whistle, the left-back proved confident that his side will soon be back to winning form in II Liga.

“We had 45 really good minutes and even when Portimonense still had eleven players we were hitting them on the counter-attack. When they went down to ten, we took a few more risks and it caused problems for us. Their goals came from individual errors and we have to accept them and dix them. This isn't a good period for us, but I have been here four years now and a phase like this always happens during the season. With hard work we will try and turn it around in our next game", said Pinto at the final whistle.

João de Deus on Sporting B's loss in Portimão

João de Deus was understandably disappointed with his side's loss to Portimonense this Saturday, however the Sporting B coach was also keen to point out the positives for a team looking for form.

“What was missing was us scoring when we had chances. We had some good opportunities and we were in front of goal three or for times, but we didn't score and when that happens you end up conceding. It was a hard game for us, because we were comfortable and our opponent only had three chances. The result isn't a reflection of what happened, but that is our fault", opened Deus, adding: "We have to carry on. I saw spirit in the lads today. They were more organised and players coming in during the transfer window is going to help us."

To finish, the Sporting B coach compared his side's current spell to a blip in form last season: "Las season we had a similar phase, but we lifted ourselves us and almost finished the league brilliantly. I believe we will do the same this season as well."

Sporting B sank by two second-half strikes

Sporting B were unable to turn around their recent II Liga form this weekend, with a 2-0 loss to Portimonense seeing João de Deus' side tally their seventh defeat in eight outings.

After a start-stop opening to the encounter, Podence fired off the first shot in 13th minute following a move with Ryan Gauld. The young Scotsman had a chance of his own four minutes later, but his effort lacked the pace to trouble the keeper. Looking particularly dangerous down the right, João de Deus' side were moulding some decent chances going forward and on 29 minutes Betinho could have opened the scoring, but for Ricardo Ferreira's heroics one-on-one.

Ewerton was shown a straight red a minute later, after a tackle on Domingos Duarte and Sporting B were given more breathing room in the build-up, but the team from Alvalade struggled to find the dept to do any damage to the scoreboard.

In the second-half Betinho again had a chance after linking up with a Ryan Gauld and Dramé, but the final product finished the wrong side of the post. Portimonense continued to dominated possession, but it was the introduction of Zambujo to the host's midfield that finally tipped the encounter. The midfielder opened the scoring in the 64th minute with a strike from outside the area, before winning a penalty five minutes from time that Ricardo Pessoa converted on.

The result leaves Sporting B on 36 points in II Liga.

Hadi Sacko loan to FC Sochaux

Sporting Clube de Portugal, Futebol SAD has reached an agreement with FC Sochaux for the loan of Hadi Sacko until June 2016.

Sporting SAD wishes Sacko the best of personal and professional success.

‘Leões’ perdem com Sp. Covilhã por 3-1 na 27.ª jornada da II Liga

Sporting B were unable to break their string of recent negative results this weekend, this time coming away from the II Liga matchday 27 hosting of Sp. Covilhã with a 3-1 loss.

The return of Sporting Academy prodigy Betinho to the Sporting B lineup was the highlight of the squad list and it was the forward who created the first chance of the afternoon after just 20 seconds, with a shot from the centre of the area that ended up in Pedro Taborda's hands. The game developed into a captivating encounter, with both sides looking for goal, but it was the visitors who struck first, when Éder Diaz rose highest to a corner in the fifth minute.

Sp. Covilhã followed up on the goal with a dominating display in the midfield for the rest of the half, largely limiting Sporting's efforts going forward and doubling their lead in the 15th minute with another header from a corner. To add insult to injury, Sp. Covilhã stretched their lead further five minutes later, when Tiago Moreira found space at the edge of the area to leave João de Deus' side trailing by three.

From there the encounter settled and possession was largely divided, but Sporting B were struggling to string together passes against well compacted opposition who were doing a fine job of closing out the middle of the park. Zezinho was introduced in place of Fokobo and 10 minutes before the break Sporting B looked to have finally shaken off the early shellshock, with Dramé reducing the deficit to 3-1 with a free-kick guided in at the near post.

The interval worked well to lift the spirits of João de Deus' side and better possession, use of space and pace going forward began to produce opportunities. Dramé was looking particularly likely to do damage, but Sp. Covilhã managed to hold on to the result and take away a three points decided in the first quarter of an hour.

The result leaves Sporting B in 10th place in II Liga, with 36 points.

Luís Godinho named for II Liga matchday 27

Luís Godinho, 30, from the Évora Football Association, has been named to take charge Sporting CP B's hosting of Sp. Covilhã, on II Liga matchday 27.

José Braga and Valter Rufo will act as linesmen.

This will be the second time Luís Godinho referees a Sporting CP B match this season, following the hosting of Ac. Viseu on II Liga matchday 18.

Sporting CP B-Sp. Covilhã will kick off on Sunday the 31st of January at 15h00, at the Sporting Academy. The match will be broadcast live and exclusive on Sporting TV.