Wealth of Alvalade faces feature in under-21 Euro 2017 qualifier win

The national under-21 team beat Norway 3-1 in a Euro 2017 qualifier this week, with Alvalade's Rúben Semedo finding the back of the net with a 59th minute header.

Also in action were Sporting CP's Iuri Medeiros (on loan to Boavista), Daniel Podence and Carlos Mané (on loan to Stuttgart), while Domingos Duarte (on loan to Belenenses) and Tobias Figueiredo (on loan to Nacional) were introduced off the bench.

FIFA president Gianni Infantino speaks on the closing day of the Football Talks conference

FIFA president Gianni Infantino was another one of the speakers invited for the last day of the Football Talks conference this week, adding his contribution to the dominant topic of technology in sport.

"After maybe 50 years, we have decided to test the Video Assistant Referee. I was skeptical at first and I was worried that it would interrupt the fluidity of the game, but that doesn't happen. Instead it helps referees to make the right decisions. We all know in a matters of seconds that a referee has made mistake when we are watching at home. Now we can help. We want to bring transparency and justice to football", said the FIFA leader, finishing: "We want to use the Video Assistant Referee at the World CUp. We are testing the system and in March 2018 we will make a definite decision. I feel really confident about it."

Pierluigi Collina affirms the role of technology in football

The retired referee Pierluigi Collina spoke at the Football Talks conference this Friday, defending technology as a crucial step in football for bringing greater transparency to the game.

"We can working better preparing referees, but even that way we cannot compete with this technology. We live in a world where we are surrounded by technology and we cannot avoid it", opened Collina, going on to remember a disallowed goal in the Ukraine vs. England encounter at Euro 2012: "There were some criticisms that the referee was not capable of seeing if the ball crossed the line. Technology proves it did by 2.2 centimeters. 2.2! That is not a margin for humans, but for technology."

To finish, Collina highlighted the importance of preparing referees for officiating over the teams they are allocated: "Every match is different and the referee has to understand the game he/she is refereeing. That way there are no surprises. We have to know about the characteristics of the players, how the teams play and how dead-ball situations will be."

Alvalade provides six players for European Championship qualifiers

Sporting CP dominates the latest national under-19 ladies call up, with a total of six players in the the group of 19. for three matches in the UEFA Elite Round (European Championship qualification).

The six are: Inês Pereira (goalkeeper), Bruna Costa (defender), Tânia Rodrigues (defender), Bárbara Marques (midfielder), Constança Silva (winger) and Neuza Besugo (forward).

Portugal will face France (06/04), the Netherlands (08/04) and Slovenia (11/04).

IFAB Technical Director David Elleray on the introduction of the Video Assistant Referee

Pedro Proença at the Football Talks conference to speak about corruption in sport

UEFA Director of Competitions Giorgio Marchetti on the Champions League coefficient

Bruno de Carvalho at the Wilmer López Academy

Bruno de Carvalho's visit to Costa Rica continued this week. After opening the first Sporting Academy School in Central America, the Sporting CP president was at the Wilmer López Academy where Costa Rica are gearing up for their coming World Cup 2018 qualifiers.

Bruno de Carvalho in Costa Rica to open Sporting Academy School

The Sporting Academy School project officially appeared on the map in Central America for the first time this week. In Costa Rica for the opening of the country's first Sporting Academy School, Bruno de Carvalho, also took the opportunity to speak with local radio and television stations. 

A wealth of Alvalade stars on international duty

The emotion of Liga NOS will have to be put on the back burner for a week, as Sporting CP's charges go away in international duty with their respective country.