Sporting battle to victory over Belenenses with a late penalty

Sporting battled to another three points this Monday night, beating Belenenses 1-0 on Liga NOS matchday 11. Jorge Jesus' side dominated from start to finish, but it took a penalty in added-time to finally define to the result.

Bouyed by a thunderous performance in the Europa Leauge in Moscow last Thursday and encouraged by an enthusiastic crowd, the team from Alvalade soon had Belenenses on the back foot. After just four minutes Montero picked out Bryan Ruiz high up the pitch for the Costa Rican to find a yard of space and put a ball across the edge of the box, but Adrien's shot was blocked by the visiting defence. Montero was again the instigator in the next move forward, this time finding Slimani, but the Algerian was beaten to the ball by the on rushing Hugo Ventura.

Belenenses could do little but bunker down under the Alvalade attacking display and on 18 minutes Montero came close to opening the scoring, when the Colombian broke away from his marker at the edge of the box to fire a shot towards goal that Hugo Ventura turned away with an outstretched save.

Although surely an emotional return to Alvalade for Ricardo Sá Pinto, the Sporting legend did a fine job of setting his team out defensively. While Jesus' side continued to move the ball around freely, a penetrating pass in the final third was lacking and it wasn't long before efforts from range began to gain a certain appeal. William Carvalho fired one over in the 36th minute, before Bryan Ruiz's genius saw the Alvalade forward ghost past various defenders and get a shot away that was turned for a corner by the Belenenses keeper.

The second-half got underway with another Sporting attempt on goal, this time with Slimani uncharacteristically missing the target with a header. The Alvalade stands were craving a goal, but neither Montero or Jonathan Silva were able to find the back of the net. With impatience starting to creep in, Hugo Ventura was finally shown a yellow card for taking an excessive amount of time to put the ball back into play.

Again Montero and Jonathan Silva created chances to take a lead, this time with the Argentinean picking out Montero with a spraying pass that the Colombian was unable to convert on .

Jesus introduced Gelson Martins and Matheus Pereira into the action and the game continued one-way, but a goal was proving near impossible to come by. Beneneses were completely unable to materialise any sort of danger for Rui Patrício's goal, but their well organised defensive style kept them in with a chance of some unlikely points as the clock ticked over. On 75 minutes Matheus Pereira burst into the box, but his shot ended up in the wrong side of the side netting.

On 82 minutes Belenenses had possibly their best chance of the ninety, when Luís Leal instigated a counter-attacking move, but the final product ended up wide of Rui Patrício's goal. Two minutes later the recently introduced Tanaka found Slimani, but the Algerian's header lacked power and was smothered by Hugo Ventura.

With dropped points looking all but inevitable, the evening's referee found time to show yellow to Slimani and see him suspended as a result from the next match. However, the best certainly was kept until last, when Tonel bafflingly cut out a ball with his hand to award Sporting a penalty that William Carvalho calmly slotted to seal the win.

Jorge Jesus' thoughts ahead of Sporting's hosting of Beleneness

Speaking ahead of Sporting's Monday night hosting of Belenenses, Jorge Jesus alerted to the danger of any Liga NOS encounter, with this week's fixture also having the extra emotion of being a Lisbon derby.

“Sporting-Belenenses is a derby, so it is never easy. Belenenses are a quality side with good payers and they are having a good start to the season, like us. We are ready for the problems they can cause us, especially with how they will probably set out in defence. We will have to be creative to break down their defence, which is normal when teams visit us. It really won't be that different to things we have already faced this season", commented the Alvalade boss, going on to speak about his time with the club so far.

“Six months? Well it has only been four months of competition. In terms of our performances, things have been happening quicker than we expected, but that is down to the players, their quality and their passion for Sporting. We are doing well, but we still haven't played a third of the season yet and the only thing we have won is the Super Cup. We have built a sense of pride for the fans and we want that to keep growing", said Jesus, before revealing that Naldo, Bruno Paulista and William have recovered and could be available tomorrow, while Schelotto “is still finding his physical and tactical form”.

With a tricky fixture also awaiting one of Sporting's direct rivals, Jesus proved keen to keep the focus on his own side's task: "We have to focus on our match. What matters is that we do better than our opposition, so we have to keep our focus and just worry about ourselves."

Sporting-Belenenses will kick off at 19h00 on Monday the 30th of November, in Estádio José Alvalade.

Artur Soares Dias named for Liga NOS matchday 11

Artur Soares Dias, 36, from the Porto Football Association, has been named to take charge of the Liga NOS matchday 11 encounter between Sporting and Belenenses.

Rui Licínio and Bruno Rodrigues will act as linesmen.

This will be the second time Soares Dias officiates over a Sporting match this season, following the matchday 6 draw against Boavista.

Sporting-Belenenses will kick-off at 19h00 on Monday the 30th of November, in Estádio José Alvalade.

Colombian named Europa League Player of the Week

Fredy Montero has been named as the Europa League Player of the Week for his fantastic showing in Sporting's 4-2 win against Lokomotiv Moscow.

Setting up both Bryan Ruiz and Gelson Martins, as well as scoring goal of his own, the Colombian received 31% of voted cast on the UEFA Official Website.

The other players in the running for the nomination were Cenk Tosun (Besiktas), Fernandão (Fenerbahçe), Oumaru (Anderlecht), Benteke (Liverpool), Aduriz (Athl. Bilbao), Sané (Schalke 04) and Bernardeschi (Fiorentina).

Alvalade attacking duo named after clinical showing in Russia

Gelson Martins and Montero both feature in the UEFA Team of the Week for Europa League Matchday 5, after helping Sporting to a 4-2 win against Lokomotiv Moscow.

The Colombian also scooped the Player of the Week award for his goal and two assists in the Russian capital.

Team of the Week in full:

Goalkeeper: Dykan (Krasnodar)

Defenders: Brabec (Sparta Prague), Chriches (Napoli) and Mbodji (Anderlecht)

Midfielders: Gelson Martins (Sporting), Sané (Schalke 04), Candreva (Lazio) and Bernardeschi (Fiorentina)

Forwards: Fredy Montero (Sporting), Aduriz (Athl. Bilbao) and Tosun (Besiktas)

Find out how the Europa League is developing so far

Sporting's 4-2 win against Lokomotiv Moscow in Europa League Group H sees the race for a spot in the next round go down right to the wire, with a win against Besiktas enough for the Alvalade team to advance.

Curiously, Group H is the only group from which not a single team has secured qualification yet. Here is a snap shot of hwo the competition is looking:

Group A: Molde qualified, Fenerbahçe and Ajax fighting for second spot

Group B: Liverpool qualified, Sion and Rubin Kazan fighting for second spot

Group C: Krasnodar and Borussia Dortmund qualified

Group D: Napoli qualified, Midtjylland, Club Brugge and Legia fighting for second spot

Group E: Villarreal and Rapid Viena qualified

Group F: Sp. Braga qualified, Marsellies and Slovan Liberec fighting for second spot

Group G: Lazio and Saint-Étienne qualified

Group H: Besiktas, Lokomotiv and Sporting fighting for both spots

Group I: Baseleia qualified, Fiorentina, Lech Poznan and Belenenses fighting for second spot

Group J: Tottenham qualified, Anderlecht, Monaco and Qarabag fighting for second spot

Group K: Schalke 04 and Sparta Praga qualified

Group L: Athl. Bilbao qualified, Partizan and Augsburgo fighting for second spot

Jorge Jesus reflects on 4-2 win in Russia

Gelson, Matheus, Ruiz and Montero tallied up a 4-2 win for Sporting in the Russian capital on Thursday evening, taking Europa League Group H down to the final day.

For Jorge Jesus, the chance of a longer European campaign comes as both a blessing and a curse: "You don't get back the identity of a team in four months. It takes years. My name is Jesus, but I can't work miracles! Step by step we are getting to where we want to be, but things are happening quicker than I thought they would and that brings with it other issues. Now we will take on Besiktas, who are the best team in the group, to define qualification. It is becoming a problem, but we will try to keep the team competititve.”

In relation to the match itself, Jesus added: "We knew about Lokomotiv and we knew they only play on the counter-attack. It was really important that Adrien and João Mário did what we asked of them, which is exactly what happened. It was a great game and we could have scored a fifth goal."

To finish, the Sporting coach praised the performances of his young stars, particularly Gelson Martins. “The young lads did well and Gelson is really making a name for himself. He isn't just a promising footballer, he is a certainty. He makes life difficult for whoever he plays against. The Europa League is an important competition and I have been trying to use it to help the lads grow."

Sporting win in Russian capital to revive Europa League qualification hopes

Not even snow and -7ºC temperatures could stop Sporting from breezing to a convincing 4-2 win in the Russian capital this Thursday evening, on Europa League matchday five. Not only keeping Alvalade's hopes alive of prolonging the season's international adventure, the win also sees Sporting break a 17-match streak without a European away victory and is also Sporting's first ever win on Russian soil.

Sporting made a fiery opening to the encounter, pressing high and breaking into the final third with relative ease. Fredy Montero was the first to try his luck with an effort in the 3rd minute after some good link-up play between Ricardo Esgaio and Gelson Martins. However, it was Lokomotiv who opening the scoring, when Maicon made the most of a hashed clearance by Marcelo Boeck to beat the on-rushing.

Despite the early blow, Sporting continued to dominate proceedings, while the hosts could do little but watch a young Alvalade side run riot. On eight minutes Matheus fired a rocket goalwards that looked likely to level the scoring, but Guilherme pulled off a good stop to keep Lokomotiv in the lead. Sporting's pressure finally paid off in the 20th minute, when Montero pounced on a cross from Esgaio which took a touch off Denisov to make it 1-1.

Lokomotiv really struggled when it came to creating chances of their own, thanks largely to Sporting's nulling of Maicon's usually tricky movement and Niasse's pace. While the Russians were limited to just a single shot in the entire first-half, Montero and Ruiz busied themselves with carving up space in the final third, while Gelson and Matheus ate up the yards with the blistering pace and Adrien and João Mário held down the passing in the middle of the park.

It was only a matter of time before Sporting took the lead, but what a goal it was! Ruiz exchanged passes with Montero inside the 18-yard box, before breaking loose and somehow squeezing in a technically brilliant chip from an extraordinary angle. Another change for the Porto Rican quickly followed, before Gelson netted Sporting's third with a goal outside-of-the-boot finish after breaking away down the wing.

The second-half brought the expected counter from Lokomotiv and by a whisker the Russians didn't grab a goal immediately, when Ricardo Esgaio put an outstretched cross onto his own crossbar. However, the chance was one of only a handful for the hosts, as Sporting smartly went about wrestling back control of the action. Matheus made it four on the hour-mark, after racing through the middle and showing composure beyond his years with a shot through the keeper's legs.

Matheus put another chance over the bar four minutes later and Ruiz crashed a hammer of an effort off the woodwork in the 69th minute, before Lokomotiv pulled back a consolation goal four minutes from time through some good individual skill by Miranchuk.

The result keeps Sporting's hopes of qualification from Group H alive, with a win over Besiktas needed on the 10th of December.

Fifth round sets up 2014/15 final repeat

Sporting will travel to Braga for the Portuguese fifth round. The fixture has been penciled in for the 15th to the 17th of December, in the AXA Stadium.

“This is the kind of thing the draw can throw at you are Sporting is ready for it. It is a replay of last year's final. Unfortunately it isn't in Alvlade, but we will be going for the win, said Sporting SAD representative Sancho Freitas at the draw.

Hortically, the two sides have already met on 16 occasions in the Portuguese Cup, with Sporitng having won nine and drawn three. Here is a complete run down of the previous encounters:

- 1958/59, 1st leg quarter-finals - Sporting-Sp. Braga, 6-2

Goals: Vadinho (3), Hugo, Faustino Pinto and Morais; Fernando Mendonça (2)

- 1958/59, 2nd leg quarter-finals - Sp. Braga-Sporting, 1-3

Goals: Ferreirinha; Vadinho and Diego (2)

- 1960/61, 1st leg last-16 - Sp. Braga-Sporting, 1-6

Goals: Teixeira; Figueiredo (3), David Júlio, Diego and Hugo

- 1960/61, 2nd leg last-16 - Sporting-Sp. Braga, 9-0

Goals: Diego (3), Figueiredo (3) and Fernando Puglia (3)

- 1965/66, 1st leg semi-finals - Sp. Braga-Sporting, 1-1

Goals: Bino; Morais

- 1965/66, 2nd leg semi-finals - Sporting-Sp. Braga, 1-1

Goals: Oliveira Duarte; Perrichon

- 1965/66, semi-final replay – Sp. Braga-Sporting, 1-0

Goal: Perrichon

- 1969/70, 1st leg quarter-finals – Sporting-Sp. Braga, 6-1

Goals: Marinho (3), Gonçalves and Nélson Fernandes (2); Fernando

- 1969/70, 2nd leg quarter-finals - Sp. Braga-Sporting, 0-2

Goals: Lourenço and Marinho

- 1980/81, 2nd round – Sp. Braga-Sporting, 4-2

Goals: Cavungi, Jacques, Malheiro and Germano; Jordão (2)

- 1981/82, Final - Sporting-Sp. Braga, 4-0

Goals: Oliveira (2), Jordão and Manuel Fernandes

- 1993/94, 5th round - Sporting-Sp. Braga, 2-1

Marcadores: Figo and Iordanov; Fernando Pires

- 1997/98, quarter-finals – Sp. Braga-Sporting, 3-1

Goals: Bruno, Formoso and Karoglan; Giménez

- 2011/12, 4th round - Sporting-Sp. Braga, 2-0

Goals: Capel and Insúa

- 2014/15, Final - Sporting-Sp. Braga, 2-2 (3-1, penalties)

Goals: Slimani and Montero; Éder and Rafa 

 

Draw in full:

- V. Setúbal (I)-Rio Ave (I)

- Desp. Aves (II)-Nacional (I)

- Boavista (I)-Académica (I)

- Gil Vicente (II)-Portimonense (II)

- Feirense (II)-FC Porto (I)

- Sp. Braga (I)-SPORTING

- Estoril (I)-Penafiel (II)

- Amarante (CPP)-Arouca (I)

Jorge Jesus and João Pereira ahead of Thursday's encounter in the Russian capital

Jorge Jesus was with the press in the Russian capital this Wednesday afternoon, sharing his thoughts ahead of Thursday's visit to Lokomotiv Moscow.

Squad rotation has certainly been one of the predominant themes so far this season in the Sporting manager's Europa League starting line-ups. Asked if is likely to again make wholesale changes to his side on Thursday, Jesus proved relaxed: "The eleven that I put out tomorrow will be the one that I think is the best for this match and for the future. I have various objectives to meet and it is me who decides. If I think that the young lad Daniel [Podence] should play, then he will even if it is for the first time. That doesn't mean we that Sporting won't be going for the win."

“The match tomorrow will be important, just like they all are in the Europa League and especially in this case because we need a win to qualify. We will be taking on a tough team, who are normally underestimated. The top four teams in the Russian league are really strong and are at the same level as the top teams in Portugal, including Sporting", added Jesus, going on to again speak about his likely teamsheet: "If you look at how I have taken decisions with the team, you see that I will pick the best possible team for this game and for future games. The choice is mine and I am not going to hide from that."

In relation to Thursday's opponent, Jorge Jesus brushed off any comparison between Lokomotiv and CSKA, before thanking Manuel Fernandes for his praise of his side: "I won't analyse Lokomotiv with CSKA, because they are two different teams. What I will say to Manuel Fernandes is that he obviously knows his team and Sporting team really well. He was being nice and I thank him for that. We are trying to get Sporting back onto the right level in Portugal and abroad, but we have our priorities and they are the national competitions. That doesn't mean we won't do our best in the Europa League, although it isn't our main focus."

João Pereira was also on hand to speak with the press and the Alvalade wing-back followed the same logic as his coach speaking before him: "It will be an important match and the only result worth anything to us is the win. We know what we are playing for and we are focused. It will be a hard match against a quality side, but we also know what we are capable of."