Admirable performance from Jorge Jesus' side comes up short of a first win in Germany

Sporting's European campaign for this season was brought to an end this Thursday night, after a harsh 3-1 defeat at the hands of Bayern Leverkusen.

The evening got off to a frantic start, with both teams scrapping hard for possession in the midfield. On two minutes, the first chance materialised for the hosts, when Papadopoulos rose higher than the Alvalade defence to put a header wide after a cross from Çalhanoglu. Sporting were instantly down the other end, but Carlos Mané was unable to keep his shot down after a cross from Bruno César. The theme for the rest of the half had been set, with a slight advantage for the Germans courtesy in part of some sloppy passing bySporting. However, Bayer only really threatened goal once in the early exchanges, when Wendell pulled a stop out of Patrício.

As time ticked over, Sporting began to get a foothold going forward, largely due to a fantastic showing of intelligence and tactical maturity on the part of João Mário. The Germans had laid down an impervious looking defensive wall, but Sporting soon began to find ways through with flashes of creativity, like in the 26th minute when Bruno César found an inch of space and fired a shot towards goal that Leno did well to stop. Jorge Jesus' side were looking more and more likely to find the back of the net, but a quick break saw Bayer strike first when Chicharito Hernández set Bellarabi away on goal for a driven finish between Patrício's legs.

Although now trailing 2-0 on aggregate, Sporting rallied and took the fight to the hosts and after Mané had the goal at his mercy in the 36th minute, João Mário equalised with a tap in at the far post following an intelligent delayed cross from João Pereira and an initial volley from Carlos Mané that Leno parried into the path of the Portuguese international.

The second-half got underway with a change for the Germans (Mehmedi on for Brandt), followed by some wasteful finishing from both sides and some baffling refereeing decisions. In the 57th minute Carlos Mané failed to get a shot away and Leno denied João Mário from the rebound, before the evening's official failed to respond to a clash between Wendell and Wendell and Bruno César (59’).

Sporting were looking capable of taking the lead, but what looked to be a stroke of bad luck for Bayer Leverkusen (injury to Kiessling) actually worked against the visitors, with the introduction of Ramalho in place of the forward seeing the Germans bolster up their midfield in a move that gave an extra bit of freedom to their players in the final third. On 65 minutes, Bellarabi scored what will likely be a candidate for goal of the tournament with a blistering shot from range with the outside of his boot.

Jorge Jesus, who had already brought on Bryan Ruiz for Mané, rolled the dice and signaled for Slimani (in place of Teo Gutiérrez, 67’) and Gelson Martins (for Bruno César, 78’). However, the Sporting's busy fixture schedule started to show and tired legs set in as the final whistle approached. Bayer Leverkusen finally put the game beyond all doubt in the 87th minute, when Tah picked out Çalhanoglu running in behind the Alvalade backline and blasted past Patrício with an unstoppable half-volley.

Jorge Jesus' looks ahead to Thursday's Europa League showdown

While accepting that his side will face a tougher challenge in their quest to secure a historic victory on German soil this Thursday against Bayer Leverkusen, Jorge Jesus used his pre-match press conference to throw the door open for Sporting's chances of prolonging this season's Europa League campaign.

"It will be harder than it was in Lisbon. We played on Monday, made the trip and then we will play tomorrow. I will see how the players react in training later today and from there I will choose the best options for the team. Our choices are a bit conditioned, but we believe we can do what Leverkusen did in Lisbon", said the Alvalade boss, adding: "This game could set the tone for us in the Europa League. If we get through, then we are also capable of being the best teams in this competition."

Kick off is scheduled for 18h00 CET. 

Ewerton on Thursday's Europa League second-leg against Bayer Leverkusen

"We have to go forward tomorrow and we will be ready to defend against Leverkusen", said Ewerton in this Wednesday's Europa League press conference, throwing down the gauntlet for what could be a memorable first win in Germany.

Focusing in on what his side is likely to expect come kick off, the Brazilian affirmed: "It will be a difficult match and we have already seen what they are capable of. We are ready and we are confident. I think it (never having won in Germany) motivates us more and tomorrow it could be the first time. That is what we want."

A partir de dia 27 de Fevereiro

Sporting Clube de Portugal informs all Club Members and fans that tickets for the Lisbon derby are in high demand. Special Seats which have not been renewed by 10h00 on the 27th of February, being 1 week before the match, will be put on sale.

Sporting has issued the following information for fans traveling to Leverkusen this Thursday:

- The match will kick off at 19h00 CET (18H00 GMT).

- The “BayArena” is approximately 7 minutes from the centre of the city.

- Sporting fans are to gather at the train station which accesses the stadium, called “Leverkusen Mitte”.

- All tickets for the visiting fans section are completely sold out (1800 Sporting fans).

- It is advisable to depart “Leverkusen Mitte” by 16h30, in order to guarantee that all fans are inside the stadium before kick-off.

- The journey to the stadium will be accompanied by both Portuguese and local police forces.

- Parking for for Organised Fan Groups and other fans will be available near to the stadium.

- The area occupied by Sporting will be in the western corner, with entry through gates SG and G for the lower and upper stands.

- A Sporting Fan Liaison Officer will be at “BayArena” to assist fans locally.

Sales begin on Wednesday

Tickets for Lia NOS matchday 24, between Vitória de Guimarães and Sporting Clube de Portugal, will go on sale at the Estádio José Alvalade ticket offices as follows:

Wednesday: Club Members with a Gamebox and January 2016 fees paid
Thursday: until 14h00: Club Members with January 2016 fees paid
Thursday: after 14h00: General public

The Estádio José Alvalade ticket offices will be open from 10h00 to 20h00, with tickets priced at 10€ each.

Tickets will also be on sale at the Solar do Norte (www.solardonorte.org), Fafe, Braga, Gondomar, Famalicão, Vila das Aves and Vila do Conde Supporters Clubs.

Jorge Jesus' reaction to his side's 2-0 win against Benfica

“I want to start by thanking the fans. Almost 40 thousand people on a Monday night is really good. They were really important for the team", began Jorge Jesus in a flash interview at the final whistle this Monday, after his side's 2-0 win against Boavista.

In his usually analytical form, the Sporting boss reflected: “It was a tough game against a really intense Boavista team that doesn't let you play. We scored two goals in the first-half and from then on we managed the game well. Our objective was to win and it was important to keep a clean sheet. Once again we showed quality."

Jesus went on to speak about the absence of João Pereira, Coates and Jefferson from the starting line-up, as well as the introduction of Carlos Mané for Teo Gutiérrez: "It was my choice. Coates has played a lot in the last three games and he wasn't used to it. He is a big lad and it takes him some time to recover between matches. We will see if he is ready for Thursday or not."

Moving his attention to a question on Thursday's trip to Germany, Jesus added: "Of course there will be a first time for Sporting winning in Germany, but today is Monday and we have until Wednesday before we travel to see how things work out. A lot of people are talking about it, but a lot of things would have to happen for us to reach the Europa League final. Being ahead of Benfica and FC Porto, now that is something worth talking about."

To finish, the Alvalade boss touched on the possible suspension of Slimani, with the Lisbon derby just around the corner: "I don't know what is going to happen and we will have to wait and see. If it happens, then it will be like we thought it would, but right now we can't be sure. To be honest, what could we do but laugh about it?"

Bryan Ruiz on Monday night's Liga NOS win

Bryan Ruiz was once again one of the stand-out performers this Monday night, setting up Ewerton for Sporting's first and netting a goal of his own with a kind deflection from a free-kick.

“It was an important win and it is three more points in the fight for the league", said the Costa Rican in a flash interview at the final whistle, going on to add: "What happens depends on us, so all we have to do is think about what we have to do. If we do that, we will be champions."

To finish, the skillful attacker looked ahead to Thursday's visit to Leverkusen: "We know it will be hard, but we have the capacity to win. It won't be easy, but we will try. Sporting has never won in Germany, but there is a first time for everything."

Sporting reopen gap at the top of Liga NOS with two set piece goals in nine minutes

The 37,000 fans who turned out for Sporting's dominating performance against Boavista may have had to wait until late evening for kick off, but the morning training session was evidentially where the win began, with Sporting overcoming a stubborn visiting defence courtesy of two deadball situations in the space of just nine minutes.

The evening's encounter got underway with Erwin Sánchez's side holding true to their pre-match declaration to take the fight to the league leaders, with Boavista applying pressure high up the pitch in an attempt to disrupt Sporting's passing game. In fact, the visitors often forced the team from Alvalade to take the direct root forward in search of Slimani and Teo. However, despite the visitors best intentions the high pace did little more than see the foul count mount up and hand the initiative to Sporting. On 15 minutes, Rui Patrício spread the ball out wide and Marvin galloped down the left to link up with Bryan Ruiz. The Costa Rican put a measured cross into the box and Teo Gutiérrez met with a side-footed volley, but the effort scuffed wide of the post.

Boavista's good intentions actually played right into Sporting's hands on several occasions, opening up space behind the visitors' defensive line that Bryan Ruiz in particular was enjoying. On 33 minutes, Ruiz saw a shot across the face of the box deflect wide, before João Mário blasted a shot off target from range. A deserved Sporting opener finally game in the 37th minute, when Ewerton popped up at the near post to head in following a corner.

Nine minutes later, Lady Luck then looked kindly on Sporting's work ethic, as a free-kick from Bryan Ruiz took a wicked deflection off the wall and onto the inside of the post, before ending up in the back of Mika's net seconds before the half-time whistle. As the referee signaled for the break, the scoreboard was largely a fair reflection of proceedings so far, with Sporting having attempted twice as many shots on goal and having held down the bulk of possession.

The second-half got underway on a negative note, with Idris crashing into Slimani's ankle with a tackle punished with a yellow card. Boavista's adrenaline did almost claw back a goal in the 53rd minute, when Anderson Carvalho showed a nice bit of skill to turn a cross onto the woodwork. A few of minutes later (59’), Iriberri pulled a rare stop out of Patrício after another ball whipped into the box.

The visitors had fired a warning shot and Jesus responded with a tactical change, introducing Carlos Mané for Teo Gutiérrez for an injection of pace between midfield and attack. The Sporting Academy graduate was soon causing trouble for the Boavista defence, picking out Slimani with a splitting pass that the Algerian almost converted on. A minute later, Mané himself tried his luck with a stinger of a shot, before João Mário was denied by an excellent save from Mika (76’).

Boavista really dropped off in the final stages, but Schelotto gifted possession to the visitors in the 78th minute in what could have took the game to a nail-biting finish, but Patrício was on hand to deny Anderson Carvalho. Jorge Jesus then introduced Aquilani in the 80th minute in place of Gelson Martins, with a move that almost worked to perfection. Ruiz picked out Slimani in the area and the resulting shot ended up at the feet of Carlos Mané, but the young forward could only hit the post.

Jorge Jesus includes 20 for Boavista

Jorge Jesus has included a total of 20 players in his squad for Monday's hosting of Boavista, on Liga NOS matchday 23.

Goalkeepers: Rui Patrício and Azbe Jug

Defenders: Marvin, Jefferson, Ewerton, Coates, Semedo, Tobias, João Pereira, Schelotto and Esgaio

Midfielders: Aquilani, João Mário and Adrien

Forwards: Slimani, Teo, Bryan Ruiz, Mané, Gelson Martins and Matheus Pereira

Sporting CP-Boavista will get underway at 20h00 tonight, on Estádio José Alvalade.